One of Seattle’s notable artistic distinctions has been to become one of the few non-European cities with a thriving Early Music scene, matching Boston, Berkeley, Montreal, and latecomer New York City. (Portland, Vancouver, Toronto, and Chicago are catching up fast.)
Early Music refers to classical music before 1750, when Bach died. It used to be scorned by mainstream players and conductors, who dismissed the wiry, swelling notes from period instruments and other mannered, academic affectations of the “authentic performance” movement. Continue reading…