Ensemble playing medieval music coming to Pittsburgh in April
Chatham Baroque is presenting two performances by the New York-based medieval music ensemble East of the River at Hicks Memorial Chapel at the Pittsburgh Theological Seminary Saturday, April 30.
East of the River’s concert, “Hamsa,” will feature music from the regions of Andalusia, North Africa and the Ottoman Empire. The program will consist of songs and dances from liturgical and folk traditions as well as examples of classic instrumental music from the Ottoman court. These types of music are not built with Western musical conventions, but use the system of microtonal melodic modes referred to as the Arabic magam.
This will be the organization’s first public program presented at Pittsburgh Theological Seminary since Chatham Baroque moved its headquarters there in January. The campus’s Kelso Museum of Near Eastern Archeology will feature a related exhibit of ancient coins, and East of the River’s Daphna Mor and Nina Stern will also give a lecture, free to Chatham Baroque subscribers and ticket holders, on the historical significance of “Hamsa.”
Performances will be at 5 p.m. and 8 p.m. The lecture will be at 3 p.m. Chatham Baroque is requiring proof of vaccination or a negative PCR test for in-person attendance. COVID-19 safety protocols are subject to change. Visit www.chathambaroque.org prior to attending the concert for up-to-date information.