Friday, April 11 | 7:30 PM
Northbrook Presbyterian Church [Please note new location]
Saturday, April 12 | 7:30 PM
St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church
String Music from the French Court
Join Baroque string trio Un tas de cordes for a concert of chamber music from the courts of Louis XIV and Louis XV, including sonatas by Jean-Féry Rebel and Georg Muffat as well as a viola da gamba solos by the famed Marin Marais and Antoine Forqueray and a charming and regal chaconne by Marais’ student Jacques Morel.
All of these composers had close contact with Jean-Baptiste Lully, the king’s favorite composer yet each also felt the influence of Italian musicians like Corelli. The program includes pieces that reflect both French and Italian styles, drawing on the best aspects of both.Un tas de cordes is Samuel Breene (Baroque violin), Sarah Biber (viola da gamba) and Jeffrey Noonan (theobo). The trio has performed this popular program for enthusiastic audiences in the Rockies, across the Midwest and on the East Coast.
Pre-concert talk begins at 6:45 pm.
For a decade, Sam Breene and Jeff Noonan have played concerts of 17th- and 18th-century instrumental music across the country as the duo Musicke’s Cordes. Their repertoire includes fantastic Italian sonatas, elegant French suites and rustic English variations on popular tunes. When touring, the duo collaborates regularly with local players and on tour in Colorado several years ago, Sam and Jeff worked with viola da gambist Sarah Biber in a large ensemble. The three discussed future collaborations but schedules, Covid and more blocked any serious plans until last year. Rehearsals began last summer and in the fall of 2023, the trio debuted a program of French chamber music with concerts in the Midwest and on the East Coast. Envisioned as a one-off, this program and the audience reception convinced the three they had lots more exciting music-making ahead of them. While the duo Musicke’s Cordes continues its performance schedule, this new trio project will lead to new programs and performance opportunities. Un tas de cordes will premiere its second project—a program of German trios for violin, viol and continuo by Buxtehude and Telemann—in the 2024 -2025 concert season.
http://jjnoonan.net/ensembles
