She loves, but when she confesses...

…it gets really interesting!

 Sometime in the 17th century, or maybe a little earlier, someone wrote these words about love:

My shepherdess, with no fickleness in loving, causes me to find good things every day. But you must manage your time carefully: For it flows away and is lost hour after hour.
Whoever wishes me to fall in love, let him at least tell me, with what: Broken hope, eternal faith? Better a thousand times to die, then for to live thus still tormented.

Crying is my only pleasure; I nourish myself only with tears. Grief is my delight and moans are my joys.
The heavens are raining disasters on me every hour. What can I say? My tears, why do you hold back? Why not give vent to the proud sorrow?
The sun refuses to show his light, and day shall then be turned to night; Then lose no time, for love hath wings, and flies away from aged things.

Your contempt each day causes me a thousand fears, My treasure, I would find torment with you that would be sweeter than happiness with another. My beloved, I suffer... O my sweet love!

Granted, no one poet wrote all of those lines: They are one-liners plucked from each of the songs (in Italian, French, and English) that we are performing in a couple of weeks as part of the cavalcade of “love songs” performed during the Valentine season. We are attempting to give you a pretty full gamut of the emotions involved in 17th-century love songs, but they anticipated Joni Mitchell’s “comfort in melancholy” line in a big way. (I did omit the blatantly ‘happy’ lines in my hodge-podge teaser above... but there are actually a few!)

 Beautiful, often bittersweet love songs from the 17th century in Italy (Strozzi, Monteverdi, & Rossi), France (airs de cour by Lambert, Guédron, & Moulinié), and England (Purcell, Robert Johnson, Dowland, & Lanier).

There are eight soloists and seven instrumentalists; it will be intimate and intense. Maybe we will supply the hankies...

Read the full program description and listen to audio teasers below. 

Happy Valentine’s Day(s) - Why limit it to just one day?
-Danny

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She Loves and She Confesses:
Love Songs from the Baroque

Saturday, February 22, 2020, at  7:30 pm
Redeemer Presbyterian Church, 2111 Alexander Avenue
Sunday, February 23, 2020, 3:00 pm
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 and other perks by sponsoring a concert!

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

The metaphysical English poet Abraham Cowley, who wrote the text of our title song, with music by Henry Purcell, also wrote this:

A mighty pain to love it is, And ’t is a pain that pain to miss;
But of all pains, the greatest pain it is to love, but love in vain.”

Joni Mitchell wrote that there’s a sort of comfort in sadness; both classical and popular composers have long relied on tearjerkers with angst and melancholy to exhibit their powers of expression, and many seem most comfortable when composing in this vein. Barbara Strozzi, John Dowland, and others fit very comfortably into this mold, with music that is passionate and powerful and exquisite.

We will also feature a few wonderful songs about the delights of blissful love, and their exuberance and enthusiasm set them apart from their less happy cousins.

Enjoy these audio teasers from past concerts:

Our 21st season, Love’s Illusion, continues with beautiful, often bittersweet love songs from the 17th century in Italy (Strozzi, Monteverdi, Cavalli, Frescobaldi, & Rossi), France (airs de cour by Lambert, Guédron, Boësset, & Moulinié), and England (Purcell, Johnson, Dowland, & Lanier). Our soloists, accompanied by a small band of lutes, harp, harpsichord, and strings, are Jenifer Thyssen, Meredith Ruduski, Jenny Houghton, Cayla Cardiff, Jeffrey Jones-Ragona, David Lopez, Brett Barnes, and special guests Ryland Angel, countertenor and tenor, and Donald Livingston, harpsichord.

Join us for a few tears, a few giggles, toe tapping and joy, melancholy and empathy. Oh, and some scary jealousy.

Click on the image above to buy tickets now!

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