Judith Linsenberg, recorder

Elizabeth Blumenstock, violin

David Morris, ‘cello

Charles Sherman, harpsichord and organ

with guest artist, Michael Collver, countertenor and cornetto

Houston Early Music is pleased to present Musica Pacifica in a concert of seventeenth-century Italian instrumental and solo vocal music. Led by artistic directors Judith Linsenberg and Elizabeth Blumenstock, Musica Pacifica has been performing, touring, and recording since 1990.  Mining a rich vein of baroque literature for mixed wind/string ensemble, the group performs the spirited chamber concerti of Vivaldi and Telemann, colorful dance suites from the courts and opera houses of France, and the more intimate solo, duo, and trio sonatas from European countries as diverse as Scotland, Poland, Spain, and England.  Musica Pacifica has been described by the press as "some of the finest baroque musicians in America" (American Record Guide) and "among the best in the world" (Alte Musik Aktuell).  At home in the San Francisco Bay area, the artists are members of Philharmonia Baroque, and they appear with many other prominent early music ensembles nationally and abroad. 

Guest artist, Michael Collver is a founding member of Project Ars Nova with whom he has concertized extensively. He has performed as soloist with Ensemble Sequentia, Empire Brass Quintet, Tafelmusik, Boston Baroque and the Boston Camerata. Among his performances as an oratorio soloist are appearances with the Los Angeles Philharmonic and the Roger Wagner Choral. Mr. Collver is on the faculty at the Longy School of Music in Cambridge, MA and has taught cornetto and early vocal techniques at summer courses in Europe and the U.S.

Prior to the concert, at 7:00 p.m., Dr. Edgar Peters Bowron, The Audrey Jones Beck Curator of European Art, Museum of Fine Arts Houston will present a lecture entitled The Splendor of the Serenissima.

Tickets are $25 general admission, $20 for seniors and students, and may be purchased at the door or by calling 713.432.1744. There will be no charge for children 12 years and under.