MSU Music will kick off the 2019-2020 Taylor Johnston Early Music Series with a concert by Ensemble Bizarria at 7:30 p.m. on Monday, Sept. 30, in Fairchild Theatre.
Ensemble Bizarria is not a conventional chamber group. Bizarria is an early term for baroque music, and their program, “Music from the Court of Modena,” will bring to life rare gems from 17th-century northern Italy.
The ensemble consists of the talented duo Lindsey Strand-Polyak, baroque violin, and Alexa Haynes-Pilon, baroque cello. Both are well-known early music performers who have performed at many of the country’s premiere early music festivals, including the Twin Cities Early Music Festival, Montana Early Music Festival, Baroque Music Festival Corona del Mar and many more.
In addition to their performance, Strand-Polyak and Haynes-Pilon will lead two workshops for students at 4 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 1, beginning in the MSU Music Building. They will offer one entitled “Baroque Performance Practice for Violinists and Bassoonists” in room 206 and another titled “Same Gig, New Century: Baroque Techniques and Music Careers” at 6 p.m. in room 145. The workshops are free and open to the public.
Earlier this year, MSU lost a remarkable educator with the passing of Taylor Johnston. As an MSU professor of 51 years, Johnston harbored a long-time passion for music, particularly early music, which led to the establishment of the Taylor Johnston Early Music Series. The impact Johnston made on not just the MSU Music community, but on the MSU community as a whole, will be felt for years to come.
Other upcoming performances at Fairchild Theatre in this series include:
Profeti della Quinta, 7 p.m., Jan. 26.
REBEL, 7:30 p.m., Feb. 25.
Medici Ensemble, 7:30 p.m., April 6.
Tickets are available here. They can also be purchased in person at the College of Music box office or at (517) 353-5340.
