Are you curious about Baroque music? If you opened this link, we guess so! What if we tell you that you can change the way you think and approach playing this music, and in doing so, time travel? “Wait, wait, can I really time travel?”, you will ask yourself. Yes! Through the study of performance practice, interpreting historical treatises, engaging with Baroque notation, and playing original instruments, gut strings, historical bows, and early keyboards, Early Music Lab endeavors to explore and rediscover the wonders of 17th- and 18th-century Western art music.
Formerly known as the Cornell Baroque Orchestra, MUSIC 4651 Early Music Lab is open to any qualified member Cornell and the Ithaca community, and participation is by audition. No prior experience on historical instruments is required, but a basic competency on their modern counterparts is expected. For music majors and minors, participation in Early Music Lab fulfills the collaborative performance requirement.
Cornell’s collection of restored historical instruments or modern copies include baroque violins, baroque violas, baroque cellos, violas da gamba (treble, alto, bass), and lute. For additional details and possibilities for participation by wind-instrument players and singers, write to al2255@cornell.edu and fe58@cornell.edu.
Pitch level is A=415.
The ensemble for Spring 2025 meets on Wednesdays, 7:00 p.m. at B08 Lincoln Hall, and the semester will culminate with a concert in April. The “audition” in practicality helps in selecting repertoire and assignments. Those interested in joining may choose to submit a brief audio/visual excerpt, or arrange an in-person meeting. The excerpt may be performed on modern or period instruments (a short piece of music from the Baroque period preferably, but music of any period is welcome).Contact al2255@cornell.edu and fe58@cornell.edu for more information.
Introductory Meeting: January 29, 2025 at 7:00–8:00 p.m., in B08 Lincoln Hall
There will be an introductory session for interested students to try their hands on historical violins, violas, cellos, and harpsichord. No instrument or prior experience required—we will provide instruments and bows from Cornell’s collection.