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Harpsichord festival to feature rare instruments, world-class musicians
by Leslie Madsen
(reprinted from the College of Letters & Science newsletter)
Just the sound of a harpsichord can take us back hundreds of years to a time when royalty honored instrument craftsmanship. Some of the makers of these instruments established traditions and models in the seventeenth century that are still used today. On October 24 and 25 at UC Davis, talented musicians will resurrect some of this history and music. One of the world's finest keyboard instruments will make its debut that weekend when the UC Davis music department hosts a harpsichord festival produced by Assistant Professor Jeffrey Thomas.
The reason for the festival is twofold.
First, it is an opportunity to showcase one of the university's latest acquisitions, a reproduction of a German harpsichord built in 1719 by Michael Mietke, "which is a rather rare, very unusual instrument," Thomas explained. It was built earlier this year by Amsterdam's foremost harpsichord maker, Joop Klinkhamer. Because the harpsichord on which this instrument is modeled is the product of the only documented harpsichord purchase of Johann Sebastian Bach, "it's the only one that has a real, direct connection to Bach… its pedigree is of the highest order."
Second, the festival seeks "to draw some attention to the fact that one function of the university is to preserve history," Thomas said. UC Davis is home to a growing collection of historically significant early keyboards, which includes two harpsichords, and a chamber pipe organ.
Thomas hopes people will attend all of the weekend's events. "One of the things we can do for the community is offer symposia, colloquia and other presentations that are unique to a research university's environment and capabilities," he said, stressing that the opportunity for people to "immerse themselves in two afternoons and evenings of beautiful music and historic instruments" is very rare.
Festival Schedule...
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