While the first Germans were landing at Jamestown in 1608 (five glassmakers and three carpenters, aboard an English ship), composers in Germany were deep in the brilliant waters of the early baroque Italianate school. A young Heinrich Schutz, one of the greatest 17th century German composers, was preparing to go to law school, but instead went to study music in Venice a year later with Giovanni Gabrieli. He was not the first to seek an education in Italy; Hans Leo Hassler studied with Giovanni’s uncle Andrea Gabrieli in 1584, and Gregor Aichinger was G. Gabrieli’s student beginning around the same time. The Italian influence was not limited to those who went to Italy for training; Michael Praetorius, Johann Hermann Schein, and Jacob Praetorius (II) were among those who soaked up the Italian musical styles without leaving Germany. These composers all adopted Italian musical forms ranging from madrigals to vocal concertos to huge polychoral antiphonal works. The Countertop Quartet, a vocal ensemble comprised of two counter-tenors, a mezzo-soprano, and a soprano, will explore the music that grew out of this German fascination and mastery of the Italian compositional styles in the early Baroque period. For this concert, the group will include seven vocalists, joined by three-period instrument ensemble of viols; Many of the works will be performed as they would have been heard in the 17th century, with instruments playing some of the voice parts. This performance will present a slice of German vocal music history around the time of the Jamestown landing (and a few years before and after), including works by M. Praetorius (from his 9-volume Musae sioniae published between 1605-1610), Aichinger, J. Praetorius, Schein, and more.

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Here are the concert details:
Music Commemorating the 400th Anniversary of
Germans in Jamestown, VA

Chamber chorus with chamber orchestra
Chris Dudley, artistic director

Sopranos: Ellen Kliman, Rachel Barham
Alto: Naomi DeVries Pomerantz
Countertenors: Chris Dudley, Philip Sherman, John Bohl
Tenor: Matthew Smith
Organ: John Bohl & Simon Zaleski
Treble Viol: Tina Chancey
Tenor Viol: Simon Zaleski
Bass Viols: Tina Chancey & Andrew Arceci

Date: Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Time: 8:00pm – 10:00pm
Location: St. Paul’s Parish, K Street, NW
Street: 2430 K Street, NW
City/Town: Washington, DC

Contact Phone: 1-866-364-6418
Email: info@countertopquartet.org
Website: http://www.countertopquartet.org/jamestown.html

Part of the Washington Early Music Festival