Columbia Baroque Presents “Catesby Comes to the Carolinas: A 300th Anniversary Celebration” May 10, 2022

Richard Stone

From our good friends at Columbia Baroque …

Columbia Baroque invites you to join us Tuesday, May 10 as we present ”Catesby Comes to the Carolinas: A 300th Anniversary Celebration” the final program of our concert series, “Around the Globe: Exploring Unfamiliar Territories.” Our concert is a collaboration with the Catesby 300 organization as they lead the celebration of the 300th anniversary of Mark Catesby in the Carolinas. We are delighted to welcome John Myers, historian, and guest artist Richard Stone, theorbo and lute, who joins our performers Brittnee Siemon, mezzo-soprano; Mary Hostetler Hoyt, baroque violin; Erika Cutler, baroque violin; Gail Ann Schroeder, viola da gamba; and William Douglas, harpsichord. 

The renowned English naturalist, Mark Catesby came to the Carolinas in 1722 to study flora and fauna, the results of which were included in his Natural History of Carolina, Florida, and the Bahama Islands. In addition, Catesby enjoyed singing and was especially fond of the music of Georg Frederic Handel.

Our concert will open with a delightful trio sonata by William McGibbon followed by English songs from the pub favored by Catesby as a participant. To connect with Catesby’s love of nature, we will include a section of music in imitation of birds followed by solo selections for each member of our ensemble. The program will conclude with music by Catesby’s favorite composer, Georg Frederic Handel.  

The Washington Post has described lutenist Richard Stone's playing as having "the energy of a rock solo and the craft of a classical cadenza." His recordings of the Fasch lute concerto and the complete Weiss lute concerti are available on Chandos. Other recording and broadcast credits include Deutsche Grammophon, Polygram, NPR, the BBC and Czech Radio. He has been guest soloist with Apollo's Fire, Handel and Haydn Society, Mark Morris Dance Group, the Boston Symphony and the Philadelphia Orchestra. Stone co-founded and co-directs Philadelphia baroque orchestra Tempesta di Mare and is professor of lute and theorbo at the Peabody Institute. 

A career teacher, John Myers began as an adult educator for unique groups in South Carolina: migrant and seasonal farmworkers and for state Native Americans, specifically the Catawba Nation. He retired from the South Carolina Department of Education in 2019 and is now employed as a historical interpreter at the Lexington County Museum. An avid birder, Myers is a member of the Audubon Society of Columbia and a team leader of the Catesby 300 planning committee, a group of SC state and national park administrators, statewide educators and museum administrators and historians. 

Columbia Baroque’s “Catesby Comes to the Carolinas: A 300th Anniversary Celebration” will be presented Tuesday evening, May 10 in the Recital Hall at the University of South Carolina School of Music, 813 Assembly St. in Columbia. Come early for “Concert Conversations,” hosted by scholar, Peter Hoyt beginning at 7 p.m. with the performance at 7:30 p.m.  

Tickets are $20. All students attend free. For ticket purchasing and information visit www.columbiabaroque.org. 

Columbia Baroque presents “The River Thames,” featuring Danny Jenkins on September 4

Columbia Baroque invites you on a tour of the great rivers of Europe for our 2015-2016 Concert Series, “Across the Water with Columbia Baroque.” Our season opening concert visits “The River Thames” in London, with special guest artist J. Daniel Jenkins, countertenor. The program features spectacular opera arias by Handel, Vivaldi and Monteverdi, plus beautiful instrumental chamber music, and closes with Purcell’s “Sound the Trumpet.”

  Our journey begins with the gorgeous love duet featuring Jenkins and mezzo soprano Brittnee Siemon,“Pur ti miro,” from the final act of Monteverdi’s L’incoronazione di Poppea. Jenkins is the soloist for the exuberant and frenetic aria, “Furibondo spiro il vento,” from Handel’s opera Partenope, which features comic romantic complications and gender confusion. “Spoza son disprezzata” from Vivaldi’s Bajezet gives Siemon the role of the weeping scorned villainess. The instrumental selections include: “Captain Hume’s Lamentation” for violin and gamba by Tobias Hume, which shows the serious side of this oft-times prankster composer; “Lady Pembroke Sonata” for gamba and harpsichord by renowned gamba composer and performer Carl Friederich Abel; the familiar Handel F major Sonata for recorder and continuo; and a lovely Broken Consort by Matthew Locke. Concluding the program, the ever-popular duet, “Sound the Trumpet” from Come Ye Sons of Art, which was written by Purcell as an Ode for Queen Mary’s Birthday. The memorable tune has been delighting audiences for over three hundred years.

  Guest artist, J. Daniel Jenkins, is an associate professor of music theory at the University of South Carolina. He holds a Ph.D. in music theory from the Eastman School of Music, University of Rochester, an M.M. from the University of Louisville, and a B.M. from the University of Kentucky. He was a fellow at the Mannes Institute for Advanced Studies in Music Theory and a Fulbright Scholar in Vienna in 2005-2006. At USC, Jenkins is affiliate faculty in International Studies, Euro Studies and Women's and Gender Studies. Joining Jenkins are Columbia Baroque members: Brittnee Siemon, mezzo soprano; Jean Hein, Baroque recorders; Erika Cutler, Baroque violin; Gail Ann Schroeder, viola da gamba; and Jerry Curry, harpsichord.

  “The River Thames” will be presented Friday evening, September 4 in the Recital Hall at the University of South Carolina School of Music, 813 Assembly St. in Columbia. “Concert Conversations,” hosted by Sarah Williams, University of South Carolina Asst. Professor of Music History, begins at 7 p.m. with the performance at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $15 in advance or $20 at the door, and students attend free. For ticket purchase and information, visit columbiabaroque.com.