Nymphs and Shepherds

Nymphs and Shepherds: Music of Monteverdi

Presented by the Department of Music at Washington and Lee University

Tuesday, May 7, 2024 at 7:00 pm

In the Wilson Concert Hall in Lenfest Center for the Arts

No tickets required.

Featuring:

Sarah Gabrielle Lynch '24, soprano

Scott Williamson, tenor

Michael McLaughlin ‘23, baritone

Kailesh Amilcar ‘26, bass

William McCorkle, harpsichord

The Washington and Lee Department of Music will present a concert entitled "Nymphs and Shepherds," which will feature music by the early master composer Claudio Monteverdi and his contemporaries on Tuesday, May 7, 2024, at 7:00PM. in Wilson Concert Hall, Lenfest Center for the Arts.

Music faculty members, William McCorkle (harpsichord) and Scott Williamson (tenor) will be joined by Sarah Gabrielle Lynch '24 (soprano), Michael McLaughlin '23 (baritone), and Kailesh Amilcar '26 (bass). The program, entitled "Nymphs and Shepherds," will showcase Monteverdi's seminal role in the evolution of a style which has come to be called ‘baroque.' Claudio Monteverdi, considered one of the giants in the history of European music, flourished as the leading musician of Venice in the first half of the 17th century.

The featured work on the program will be the ensemble's performance of the famous 'Lamento della Ninfa' ('Lament of the Nymph'), from Monteverdi's eighth book of madrigals (1638). Setting a poem by the poet Ottavio Rinuccini, Monteverdi sets the lament of an abandoned woman for solo soprano, with a trio of male voices provided commentary in the manner of a 'Greek' chorus. Tenor, Scott Williamson will offer 'Vi ricorda, o boschi ombrosi' ('I remember you, dark forest'), an aria from the celebrated early opera 'Orfeo' (1607).  Soprano Lynch will present the dazzling solo song, 'Quel sguardo sdegnosetto' ('That Haughty Little Glance') from the song collection 'Scherzi Musicali' (1632).  As a complement to the vocal works, McCorkle will present harpsichord composition by Monteverdi's Venetian contemporaries, Giovanni Picchi and Giovanni Battista Grillo.

Said McCorkle, "This will be a short 'sorbet' of a concert to celebrate the season of spring, the music of the great Monteverdi, and the musical talents of four remarkable singers."

The public is cordially invited to attend the concert.