Early Music Now’s Biggest Season Ever

Aperi Animam 2023. Photo by Donna Miller.

Local fans of early music and curious folks ready to explore the genre can mark their calendars for 10 concerts sponsored by Early Music Now during the 2023-24 season. Milwaukee’s nationally-recognized presenter of performances of Medieval, Renaissance, and early Baroque music, EMN is expanding its offerings to feature both internationally-renowned performers and Wisconsin-based groups.

New this season, EMN’s Milwaukee Early Music series presents local professional ensembles that specialize in historically informed performance. Four concerts are scheduled for Thursday evenings at United Methodist Church of Whitefish Bay, 819 E. Silver Spring Dr. Pay-what-you-can admission at the door makes them ideal for listeners who want to get a first exposure to this musical style. Suggested donation is $20.

Milwaukee Early Music debuts at 7 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 14, with a performance by Aperi Animam, a Milwaukee choral ensemble. The singers will lead the audience on a journey of English Renaissance music exploring themes of passion, peace and play.

Other concerts in the Milwaukee Early Music series will be held Jan. 18, March 14 (date to be confirmed), and June 6. Performance information is available here.

EMN’s traditional season opens at 5 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 21, with a performance by New York Polyphony at St. Joseph Chapel, 1501 S. Layton Blvd. The four-voice ensemble has a repertoire ranging from Gregorian chant to cutting-edge compositions. The Oct. 21 program, “And the Sun Darkened,” will explore ancient and contemporary expressions of personal piety.

Other concerts present a variety of early music interpretation, including vocal, instrumental, dance and spoken-word performances.

Benjamin Bagby accompanies himself on a Germanic harp as he dramatizes the epic poem Beowulf in the original Anglo-Saxon (with projected English supertitles). The storytelling begins at 5 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 4, at the Irish Cultural & Heritage Center, 2133 W. Wisconsin Ave.

The Baltimore Consort presents festive carols and dance tunes for the yuletide season in two concerts at St. Joseph Chapel. Performances are at 5 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 2 and 3 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 3.

La Morra, an instrumental/vocal ensemble based in Switzerland, will appear in Milwaukee during its first North American tour. The group’s concert of Italian music from the time of Leonardo is scheduled for 5 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 24 at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, 914 E. Knapp St.

Constantinople and Academia del Placere will perform Spanish Renaissance and Persian/Ottoman masterpieces at 5 p.m. Saturday, April 6, at the UW-Milwaukee Zelazo Center, 2419 E. Kenwood Blvd.

Closing the traditional season, Four Nations Ensemble will perform courtly French and emotionally charged Italian music at 5 p.m. Saturday, May 18, at St. Paul’s.

Additional concert details and ticket purchase for the traditional season are available by phone at 414-225-3113 and through the EMN website.