Read All of This! School has started!

There's gonna be a pop quiz on it all!

August, you are the cruelest month, are you not? On the other hand, we know straight away what you're going to bring us, so maybe that's the wrong adjective. Anyway, during August we performed for the Public Radio Content Conference and brought them some live medieval music to get their day off to a good start—and to celebrate KMFA's Sara Schneider: her Ancient Voices/Early Music Now program has gone national, with several stations broadcasting her excellent program! Congrats, Sara!

And the 20 for 20 Campaign is still percolating along: Thanks for the support!

And now it's finally September! I can almost smell the pumpkin stout, pumpkin soup, pumpkin pancakes...right? Any day now! It's all just around the corner! No more weeks on end of 100°F+, right!?!?!? Cool days, cooler nights, amiright? Please say yes...

Maestro Daniel Johnson explains ensaladas, pieces that are featured on our Alegría: The Spanish Renaissance program. See more videos on our Gallery page!

Ok, I might live in dreamlandia, but we'll finally have a concert in a few weeks to kick off the 20th Season Anniversary, and it's one of my favorite themes, topped by the incredible ensaladas by Mateo Flecha. These are little epics,  illustrated with music in many different styles to fit the different texts; Señor Flecha knew what he was doing. La Justa (The Joust) is new to us and maybe to you! It tells the story of a tournament—a joust between good and evil, the light and the dark. You'll have to come to the concert to find out if that means Gandalf vs. Sauron, or Dumbledore vs. He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, or maybe some other featured jousters! And there is much alegría throughout the concert!

Enjoy these audio teasers from our 2013 performances:

Voldemort! There. I said it!
-Danny

---

Alegría: The Spanish Renaissance

Saturday, September 22, 2018, at  7:30 pm
Redeemer Presbyterian Church, 2111 Alexander Avenue, Austin, TX

Sunday, September 23, 2018, 3:00 pm,
St. Martin's Lutheran Church, 606 West 15th Street, Austin, TX

Admission $30 general; $25 seniors (60+); $5 students (at the door only)
Tickets available in advance online or by cash, check, or credit card at the door.

For more information, call 512-377-6961 and leave a message,
or email info@early-music.org.

---

Seriously? There are ensaladas on this concert?!?
Usually, if you want an ensalada, you go to a restaurant, not a concert, AMIRIGHT?

Not so fast, my friend! These ensaladas are a treat for the ears and the spirit, but have nothing to do with the delectable edible! Like most salads, they are created from a little of this and little of that, but that’s where the similarity ends. Filled with drama, Biblical quotations, exhortations, lovely melodies, and lots of humor, the ensaladas are toe-tappers from beginning to end! They were extraordinarily popular in many of the Cathedrals of Renaissance Spain—and were even banned in a few!

For a more solemn contrast, our program will explore some of the glorious wealth of polyphonic sacred music from the cathedrals and monasteries of 16th-century Spain, a repertoire that has served as inspiration for fans of choral music everywhere, with selections by Morales, Ceballos, and Peñalosa.

Other pieces in the concert feature the viol consort, led by our guest artist and viola da gamba star Wendy Gillespie, guest percussionist Peter Maund, and 3 sackbut (early trombone) players, led by University of Texas trombone faculty member Nathaniel Brickens.

Soloists and featured singers include Jenifer Thyssen, Gitanjali Mathur, Laura Mercado-Wright, Cayla Cardiff, Jeffrey Jones Ragona, David Lopez, Tim O’Brien, and featured countertenor, Ryland Angel.

¡Bailamos!

Click on the image above to buy tickets now!

Pardon me, boy, is this the Santiago de Compostela Station?

Santiago de Compostela Train Station; photo by David Esteban

Greetings, and many thanks to all who attended our emotion-filled season opener concert, Convivencia Re-Envisioned. The turn-out and the response were both very fulfilling and gratifying. And the response at our little mini-concert at UT was very positive, too; so, again, thanks to the departments who banded together in convivencia to present us.

And—already—we are putting the final touches on the next concert, Medieval Pilgrimage in Iberia, which is just around the bend. As that of our Convivencia concert, the music is still Iberian, but in many different Medieval styles. We, ourselves, will be on a sort of pilgrimage as our Saturday night concert is at a venue that’s new to us! St. John's Episcopal Church is intimate and has lovely acoustics! We think you’ll like it! And then we’re “home” again for the Sunday concert, at First Presbyterian Church. Whether in the new surroundings or in one of our home venues, we think you’ll enjoy this part of our EuroTour!

Learn more about our program below and enjoy the audio teasers!

-Danny

Medieval Pilgrimage in Iberia

 with special guests Mary Springfels (vielle) and Peter Maund (percussion)

8pm, Saturday, October 10, 2015
St. John's Episcopal Church, 11201 Parkfield Drive

3pm, Sunday, October 11, 2015
First Presbyterian Church, 8001 Mesa Drive

Admission $30 general; $25 seniors (60+); $5 students (at the door only)
Tickets available  in advance online or by cash, check, or credit card at the door.

Take advantage of preferred seating
by purchasing Season Tickets through Oct. 11!

For more information, call (512) 377-6961.

A company of eleven female singers explores the music of pilgrimage in Medieval Spain. This music celebrates the richly transparent timbre of treble voices in unison or in polyphonic settings, making the most of sweet consonances and pungent dissonances. Special guests Mary Springfels (vielle) and Peter Maund (percussion) join the ensemble and the TEMP Medieval orchestra of vielles, harps, and gittern. Featured soloists include Jenifer Thyssen, Stephanie Prewitt, Cayla Cardiff, Nina Revering, Erin Calata, and more!

View fullsize

Map showing the pilgrimage routes to Santiago de Compostela.

There was never a more popular time for religious pilgrimage than during the Middle Ages. In those times, people made long and dangerous trips, lasting months or years, in a search for spiritual meaning or fulfillment or as an act of penance. Several of the most important sites of pilgrimage during the Middle Ages were located in what is now northern Spain. 

View fullsize

Llibre Vermell: Stella splendens

The Llibre Vermell (it was discovered in a red binding, and therefore is called the Red Book) comes from the monastery at Montserrat in Catalonia. Some of the music is sophisticated, but some of it was intended to be sung by the pilgrims themselves and included chants, rounds, folk songs, circle dances, and polyphony. We will also perform music from the Cistercian convent in Burgos (Las Huelgas Codex), Las cantigas de Santa Maria from the royal court of Alfonso X, and selections from Codex Calixtinus, from the Cathedral in Santiago de Compostela in Galicia.

Enjoy these two Llibre Vermell audio teasers from our related CDs: Stella splendens and Sacred.

Whether you are focusing on the music with closed eyes or
silently clapping your hands and tapping your feet,
the long-lasting beauty of our Medieval Pilgrimage will delight you.

When April Showers Come In May . . .

Keep 'em Coming!

Photo: Alastair Muir

Just a quick update from us at TEMP Central, now that it’s my least favorite time of the year: the end of the concert season. It was fun to stay in Italy for the whole season—thanks for joining us—but the delights of France, England, Spain, and the Lowlands are begging for our attention next season.

We couldn’t have managed, of course, without our donors. You contributed to the La Pellegrina Indiegogo campaign, our general operating needs, Amplify Austin, and we simply couldn’t exist without you! Thanks so much! Donations are gratefully accepted on our website or by mail at:

Texas Early Music Project
2005 San Gabriel, Suite 204
Austin, TX 78705

We’re already making repertoire and artistic plans for next season’s Postcards from the Past: A TEMP Eurotour. You can see our itinerary on our 2015-2016 Season page. Season subscriptions AND single tickets are on sale now. Season subscriptions represent a 10% savings off regular prices and subscribers get to sit in the preferred seating areas. And new this year: Donors who contribute $500 or more will be able to join the season subscribers in the preferred seating area. We listened!

In the meantime, since I have no laurels upon which to rest, the Summer Toot workshop is coming right up, at breakneck speed, June 7-13, and then it will be time for the Amherst Early Music Festival.

Don’t’ forget about us in the meantime! We’ll see you in September for our multimedia season opener, Convivencia Re-Envisioned: The Three Worlds of Renaissance Spain. Below are some audio teasers of what you can expect to hear. These pieces and more are on our Convivencia CD.

That about does it!

Thanks again! Happy travels, few travails.
-Danny