Concerts at Blessed Sacrament: Fourteen & Six
$25 advance, $30 at the door ($25 senior/student; ages 12 & under free)
- Andrew Flory, theorbo
Giovanni Girolamo Kapsberger — Canario
Robert de Viseé — Selected works (Prelude, Allemande, Sarabande, La Mascarade, & Chaconne TBA)
Johann Kaspar Mertz — Bardenklänge ("Bardic Sounds") Op. 13 (Book Nos. 7: Variations mignonnes)
Olga Amelkina-Vera — Western Vista
Phillip Houghton — Ophelia... a haunted sonata
This program features solo works for theorbo and classical guitar. The title "Fourteen & Six" is in reference to the fourteen strings of the theorbo and the six strings of the classical guitar.
The theorbo is the largest of the lute family of instruments and was developed in the very late 16th Century in Florence, Italy. A behemoth in size and sound, the theorbo quickly gained popularity as an accompaniment instrument where it excelled in playing continuo in the earliest of operas and for chamber groups and solo voice. Throughout the entirety of the baroque era, the theorbo flourished in its accompanying role, but a mere sliver of solo works for the instrument survive. However, there are three composers that stand out in their quality of solo music for the instrument and in the amount of their surviving solo theorbo works: Alessandro Piccinini (1566-1638), Giovanni Girolamo Kapsberger (1580-1651), and Robert de Visée (1655-1732/1733). These composers are featured in today's program.
The guitar works in this concert feature the Viennese Romantic composer Johann Kaspar Mertz and two contemporary composers, Olga Amelkina-Vera and Phillip Houghton. "Variations mignonnes" by Mertz is from his Bardenklänge, Op. 13, a collection of pieces based on folk and popular songs of 19th-century Vienna, and also his largest collection of works. Western Vista by Olga Amelkina-Vera is a beautiful portrayal of the American West and the larger than life image of the 19th-century cowboy. In its bittersweet opening movement, we hear the tune of the famous cowboy song "Bury Me Not On The Lone Prairie." This is followed by a rousing second movement based on the idea of a cowboy riding a bucking bronco. The final work in this program is Ophelia...a haunted sonata by the late Australian composer Phillip Houghton. This piece is centered around the tragic Shakespearean character Ophelia from the play Hamlet. Her descent into madness and her untimely death is outlined in the titles of the movements of the piece. Musically, Houghton employs an altered tuning of the guitar to create a dark sonority that complements the somber nature of the piece. I find this piece to be one of my favorites to perform as it is incredibly captivating and unrelentingly pulls at one's heartstrings.
About Music at Blessed Sacrament (Seattle)
Blessed Sacrament is fortunate to house an unparalleled collection of musical instruments situated within a warm and reverberant acoustical environment that preserves musical clarity. The primary purpose of these instruments is to facilitate our stunning weekly liturgical music program, but we believe it is our calling to share the beauty with which we've been blessed. Concerts at Blessed Sacrament are our gift to the greater Seattle community whereby we produce and host top ensembles from throughout our city, making available our resources for the benefit of the arts in general. The Church has long been a supporter of the arts and it is the goal of Concerts at Blessed Sacrament to preserve, enhance, and develop musical arts for the benefit of future generations.
https://www.blessed-sacrament.org/About Andrew Flory, theorbo
Dr. Andrew Flory is a classical guitarist, theorbo player, lutenist, and educator based in Rochester, New York. In 2024, Andrew received his Doctor of Musical Arts in Classical Guitar Performance, Certificate of Advanced Achievement in Early Music, and Performer's Certificate in Classical Guitar from the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, New York. As a multi-instrumentalist and Early music specialist, Andrew captivates audiences around the world with his colorful and nuanced musicality in his repertoire that spans over 500 years across many instruments. Along with his solo career, Andrew is a veteran continuo player with the Collegium Musicum Baroque orchestra and was a member of the Schola Cantorum at Christ Church in Rochester.
https://www.andrewfloryguitar.com/