The past comes alive this afternoon with a performance by Music's Quill, a duo specializing in Renaissance music.
The lute and voice group will be performing as part of Bowdoin's Teatime Guitar Series.
Music's Quill is composed of Timothy Neill Johnson, singer, and Timothy Burris, lutenist, who have been playing together since 2000.
As written on the group's Web site, Johnson and Burris formed the group after they "discovered their shared love of the English lute song, the French air de cour, and Italian monody—all rich repertoires combining the beauty of the human voice, accompanied by the delicacy of the lute."
Both Johnson and Burris are accomplished individual artists. Burris has performed throughout the United States and Europe and has recorded his own version of many 18th-century ensemble pieces. He is a faculty member at the Portland Conservatory of Music.
Johnson has also performed around the world with groups ranging from the Los Angeles Baroque Ensemble to Le Concert Spirituel of Paris. He is a voice faculty member at both Bowdoin and the University of Maine at Augusta.
This afternoon's performance will feature Burris playing individually, as well as Burris and Johnson combining their lute and song talents.
The concert will begin with a variety of works from 16th-and 17th-century English composers John Dowland and Philip Rosseter. The second half of the concert features pieces from multiple French composers.
Music's Quill will introduce the audience to a very unique genre of musical performance.
"Maine has a very small 'early music' scene, and concerts of Renaissance music are relatively rare," said Concert, Budget and Equipment Manager Delmar Small. "These performers are gifted, very experienced in general, and have been working together on material of this sort for a number of years.
Their repertoire, while rich in musical artistry, is still very accessible and enjoyable to the listener."
The concert will be held today at 4 p.m. in Studzinski Recital Hall. It is open to the public, and no tickets are necessary.
- Compiled by Quinn Cohane.