sacredbridgeposter
Our December concerts began with three sold-out performances of “The Sacred Bridge,” in Cambridge and in Washington, D.C. We were joined once again by our friends of the Sharq Arabic Music Ensemble. We loved our audiences: quoth the Boston Globe, “The [Boston] audience applauded… as if it would have been happy to stay till dawn.” Joel, too, tells us he was thrilled to be leading this production once again, and also to get his chance, thanks to the miracle of digital photography in the Dumbarton Oaks museum, to produce a Christmas/Hanukah greeting card in the style of King Alfonse the Wise’s medieval illuminated manuscripts…
Then Anne Azéma took over the leadership role for the remainder of the month, and directed the first performances of “A Medieval Christmas” to be heard in our home area in a decade. An enthusiastic cast of Camerata veterans and newcomers helped Anne shape her own, personal vision of this now-classic Camerata program. People who have been following the evolution of this production over the years tell us they loved the current blend of old and new. WGBH radio was present, and broadcast large excerpts of “Medieval Christmas” coast-to-coast on Christmas day. And resident sound-and-image gurus David and Harriet Griesinger documented the Cambridge performance on video. We’ll have more news on that audiovisual front a little later…

rehearsal shot from “Borrowed Light” in Caen
For the fifth and final time in 2011, Camerata musicians packed their bags and passports, headed to Logan airport, and embarked on a European tour. Our five-performance itinerary on this swing had us return to Strasbourg, Rouen, and Caen, all places that had warmly welcomed us on previous tours. November brought us as well our Belgian début, in the magnificent medieval city of Bruges.
Camerata women singing Americana in the Gothic-Renaissance church of Les Andelys
Notwithstanding our pleasure in the quaint streets and ancient church spires of Northern Europe, our particular delight this time was sharing our own, homegrown American hymns and spirituals with our enthusiastic French and Belgian audiences. And, in three of the five events, we had the joy collaborating once again with the superb dancers of the Tero Saarinen company in “Borrowed Light.”

We returned in time for Thanksgiving, and the December concerts closer to home – “A Medieval Christmas” and “The Sacred Bridge.” A rich harvest, indeed.

The Boston Camerata has been much in the news this summer.

As we have already noted, thousands attended our pair of outdoor Americana in Paris. Prior to those performances, Joel Cohen went on French TV to explain (in English!) what we were about to do; his segment begins at ~5:39 in the 12-minute program.

The respected Parisian daily La Croix also did a nice feature article/interview with Anne Azéma in anticipation of the events. And then read a rave review!

As a French-born American equally home in both cultures, Anne’s opinion is often sought after on general cultural/artistic issues affecting both sides of the Atlantic. A few days ago, Le Monde asked for her views on the state of the musical arts in America.

We expect more media coverage in the near future, and we’ll keep you up to date on the latest links.

ClassiqueCamerata2011
The tempest (Irene) was raging back home. And, to be honest, the weather was pretty unstable in Paris, too. Chilly, windy, rainy weekend weather was, however, unable to dampen the enthusiasm of our Paris friends – about 2,600 of them over two days, filling the seats of the outdoor auditorium for the Classique au Vert music festival.

We gave the audiences generous helpings of early Americana, from Boston, Northern New England, and the South: hymns, patriotic songs and dances. They responded with cheers and bravos, and the events, partly because of the sheer size of the crowd, had something of a rock-concert ambiance. Thanks to Jesse, Ben, Anne, Joel, Susan, Thea, Dan, Tim and Don for creating such good energy for the listeners in Camerata’s second homebase! We consider ourselves primed for the upcoming fall season in Strasbourg, Bruges, Caen, Rouen, and of course Boston. Come and share with us!

Head Tide church, Alna, ME
Thanks to our good friends (and newly-matriculated board members) Priscilla and Brett Donham, we spent an unforgettable August weekend in beautiful Alna, Maine — good food and fellowship, a swim in the river, and a concert of New England spirituals in the pristine, eighteenth century Head Tide church, before a wonderfully appreciative audience.Head Tide church, Alna, ME

It was the kind of marriage between music and architecture that we often dream about — but this time, it was reality, a perfect match between the “frozen music” of the old church vaults and the warm, living sounds of early American song. We salute our generous hosts for a very special experience, which was eloquently summed up in an email from one audience member: “Splendid, special, wonderful, spectacular, magical, glorious.”