ARTEK (Early Music Vocal & Instrumental Ensemble) - Short History

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ARTEK (Early Music Vocal & Instrumental Ensemble)

Founded: 1986 - New York City, New York, USA

Audiences love ARTEK (The Art of the Early Keyboard) concerts for their exciting, dramatic performances of baroque music, with compelling musical settings of beautiful poetry and infectious dance rhythms that infuse the performances with vitality and spirit. Founded by director Gwendolyn Toth in 1986, ARTEK features America痴 finest singers and instrumentalists in performances of historically informed early music.

ARTEK gave acclaimed performances of the theater show, I値l Never See the Stars Again, at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival, on Off-Broadway, and on the Peak Performances (New Jersey) series. 哲ew York early music company ARTEK provides a stark reminder of just how rich and passionate, as well as achingly sad, Monteverdi痴 songs can be. Martin Platt and Gwendolyn Toth痴 imaginative reinvention of Monteverdi痴 music?not only delivers virtuoso playing from its 14 actor-musicians but also marries the music to some evocative images, using the pieces as a soundtrack to the story of a group of Italian refugees? entangled love lives.? (Chris Bartlett, The Stage, UK)

International festival highlights include standing ovation performances of Monteverdi to sell-out crowds at the Regensburg (Germany) Tage Alter Musik Festival; performances at festivals in Utrecht, Italy, Hungary, and the Czech Replublic, and in the USA performances at prestigious American festivals in Boston, Berkeley, Bloomington, and Indianapolis.

ARTEK toured internationally from 1997 to 2002 with the Mark Morris Dance Group, in the dance 的 Don稚 Want to Love,? visiting major venues in the UK, Italy, and Canada as well as more than 50 of America痴 premier theaters. 的t is beautiful, sensuous music, vibrantly given here by early music specialists, led by Gwendolyn Toth.? (Clive Barnes, The New York Post)

ARTEK made its Lincoln Center debut in spring 2010 and has appeared at Symphony Space, the Metropolitan Museum, Kaye Playhouse, and many other venues. ARTEK痴 30^th anniversary concert of the Intermedii from La Pellegrina 1589 in 2016 brought together sixty distinguished artists for New York City痴 first complete performance of this great masterpiece. ARTEK痴 latest theatrical triumph is Artemisia: Light and Shadow, a new musical show on the life of Italian Baroque artist Artemisia Gentileschi, now touring across the USA.

ARTEK released the first American recording of Monteverdi痴 Orfeo to international acclaim. 鄭 luminous account of this magical opera in its first American recording. Toth痴 fine period-instrument ensemble lets the music dance and breathe, yet her expansive, almost Romantic conception of the piece sacrifices no emotional detail.? (Heidi Waleson, Billboard) ARTEK痴 other recordings include Loveletters from Italy, I Don稚 Want to Love, Monteverdi: Madrigals Book V and Soli Dei Gloria: Cantatas of Johann Rosenmüller. ARTEK痴 latest landmark recording: Monteverdi: Madrigals, Book VII (complete) was released in November 2020.

Members of ARTEK Vocal Ensemble (2005-2023):

Sopranos

Altos

Tenors

Basses

Sarah Chalfy
Hannah De Priest
Sofia Dimitrova
Laura Heimes
Cassandra Hoffman
Christina Kay
Clara Rottsolk
Nell Snaidas
Jessica Tranzillo

Ryland Angel
Eric S. Brenner
Juli Borst
Phillip Cheah
David Dickey
Barbara Hollinshead
Kim Leeds
Clifton Massey
Drew Minter
Emily Ostrom
Andrew Rader

Philip Anderson
Michael Brown
Andrew Fuchs
Nickolas Karageorgiou
James Kennerley
Sal Midolo
Owen McIntosh
Jacob Perry, Jr.
Richard Pittsinger
Michael Steinberger

Peter Becker
Elijah Blaisdell
Steven Hrycelak
Richard Lalli
Paul Shipper

Members of ARTEK Instrumental Ensemble

Violins: Dongmyung Ahn, Alyssa Campbell, Cynthia Freivogel, Enrico Gatti, Peter Kupfer, Francis Liu, Robert Mealy, Rafa Prendergast, Jeremy Rhizor, Theresa Salomon. Chiara Fasani Stauffer, Vita Wallace, Nancy Wilson
Violas: Andrea Andros, Peter Kupfer, Bennett Mahler, Dan McCarthy, Theresa Salomon
Cellos/ Violas da gamba: Motomi Igarashi, Loretta O'Sullivan, Arnie Tanimoto, Lisa Terry,Nathan Whittaker
Double-bass: Motomi Igarashi, Jessica Powell Eig
Flutes: David Ross, Nuria Canales Rubio
Oboes: David Dickey, Emily Ostrom
Bassoon: Joseph Jones
Trumpets: Grant Herreid, Steven Marquardt, Perry Sutton, John Thiessen
Timpani: Danny Mallon
Lute/Theorbo/Guitar: Adam Cockerham Grant Herreid, Daniel Swenberg, Charles Weaver
Lira/Lirone: Motomi Igarashi, Vita Wallace
Harp: Maxine Eilander,Christa Patton
Organ/Harpsichord: Dongsok Shin, Gwendolyn Toth

Sources:
ARTEK Website
Bits & pieces from other sources
Contributed by Aryeh Oron (March 2024)

Gwendolyn Toth: Short Biography | Ensembles: ARTEK
Bach Discography: Recordings of Vocal Works | Recordings of Instrumental Works
Reviews of Instrumental Recordings: Bach's Goldberg Variations on the Lautenwerk
Discussions of Instrumental Recordings: Goldberg Variations BWV 988 - played by G. Toth

Links to other Sites

ARTEK Early Music (Official Website)
Artek Gwendolyn Toth page on Facebook
ARTEK Early Music Channel on YaouTube