Musicians from Collectio Musicorum will perform music by Robert Johnson, the "heretic priest," and a few other early Scottish composers at the Gotham Early Music Scene's Midtown Concert Series on Thursday, October 10th, at 1:15 PM.  Now in its 22nd year, the Midtown Concert Series concerts takes place just about every Thursday afternoon in the chapel at St. Bartholomew's Church, 50th Street and Park Avenue.

Here's the program:


Dum transisset sabbatum……………………………………………………….…..Robert Johnson
I give you a new commandment…………………………………………………....Robert Johnson
Two Scottish branles………………………………………………………...……...Thoinot Arbeau
Defiled is my name…………………………………………………………………Robert Johnson
The beggar’s meal pokes……………………………………………………..……..James VI
O eternal God…………………………………………………………….…………Robert Johnson
Scotch cap—Edinburgh Castle…………………………………………………..…John Playford
Domine in virtute tua………………………………………………………………..Robert Johnson

Collectio Musicorum
Nathaniel Adams, tenor
Amanda Sidebotton, soprano
Padraic Costello, countertenor
Jeff Dailey (director), recorder, bass
Andrew Padgett, bass, percussion

Admission is Free

Collectio Musicorum (“Collection of Music”) presents a concert of music from Scotland, dating from the twelfth through the eighteenth centuries.  It takes place at Christ and St. Stephen’s Church, 120 W 69th St, New York, NY 10023, on Friday, October 18th at 8 PM.  Admission is Free.


Much of the program is devoted to music by Robert Johnson, a priest and reformer, who was forced to flee Scotland due to his reformed religious views.  A prolific composer, his music has recently been edited by Dr. Elaine Moohan as part of the Musica Scotica series.  This music has never before been performed in the United States. 

Also among the pieces on the program are works from the twelfth century, when the northern portions of Scotland were under the control of Scandinavian kings, including one of the earliest examples of medieval polyphony, a hymn to St. Magnus the Martyr, who was martyred in 1115.  Music by Mary, Queen of Scots, and her son, James VI, will also be heard, as well as music by Roderick Morison, also called “The Blind Harper,” who lived at the turn of the eighteenth century. 

The performers include singers Amanda Sidebottom, Padraic Costello, Nate Adams, and Andrew Padgett; harpist Christopher Thompson and lutenist Christopher Morrongiello, all under the direction of Collectio Musicorum’s artistic director, Dr. Jeff S. Dailey.



          In 1850, Giuseppe Verdi began composing an opera based on a contentious play that was banned in France.  Victor Hugo’s Le Roi S’amuse featured a licentious ruler who did whatever he wanted, including seducing women and killing their husbands, and who did so without worrying about any consequences. 
          But Verdi’s opera was not complete fiction.  The title character in Rigoletto was based on a real jester, Nicolas Ferrial, called Triboulet, who lived from 1479 to 1536.  The sumptuous Renaissance setting of the opera influenced the composer, as did music from that time period.
          Collectio Musicorum (“Collection of Music”) presents highlights from Verdi’s opera alongside music of earlier composers, including Tromboncino, Monteverdi, Attaingnant, Sermisy, Gonzaga, Jannequin, Rossi, and others who are less well known, including the single surviving piece by the mysterious French composer Abel. 
          The performance takes place on Friday, May 17th at 8 PM at Christ and St. Stephen’s Church, 120 W 69th St, New York, NY 10023. Admission is free.  The church is accessible--there are no stairs between the performance space and the street.


This is a portrait of Triboulet, born Nicolas Ferrial, created c. 1550 by Jean Clouet.




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