Medieval Ensemble to Lecture, Perform Celtic Music

02/16/04

Altramar, a four-member ensemble specializing in medieval music, will give a performance of Celtic music at Ithaca College on Sunday, February 22. The concert will begin at 3:00 p.m. in the Hockett Family Recital Hall in the James J. Whalen Center for Music. At 2:15 p.m. the performers will give a pre-concert talk, "Galway to Galicia: Celtic Wanderers." Both events are free and open to the public.

Since the group was founded in 1991, Altramar has been presenting its unique blend of song and story to audiences internationally. The ensemble's aim is to evoke the vibrant tapestry of medieval culture. Using instruments appropriate to the times and places of the group's repertoire is central to this purpose.

Since so few original examples of those early instruments have survived, the Altramar performers have reconstructed those ancient instruments using period paintings and sculptures as guides. The vielle, the rebec, and the gittern -- three-stringed instruments once used in medieval folk and religious celebrations -- will be featured at Altramar's Ithaca College performance.

The Ithaca College School of Music offers some 300 free concerts each academic year. More information on these performances is available by calling (607) 274-3356 or visiting the concert calendar at www.ithaca.edu/concerts.

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