Five Boroughs Music Festival Announces Programming For 2019-2020 Season

Season Includes Concerts Featuring Longleash Trio, Founders, Ars Longa de la Habana,
Parthenia, LeStrange Viols, and Alkemie with Elliot Cole

Plus Partnerships with Music on Madison, GEMAS and the Baryshnikov Arts Center

NEW YORK, NY, July 29, 2019 – Five Boroughs Music Festival (5BMF) announces programming for its 13th season in 2019-2020, continuing its mission of bringing affordable, world-class performances of traditional and contemporary chamber music to all five boroughs of New York City. The upcoming slate of concerts feature the Longleash Trio, Founders, Ars Longa de la Habana, Parthenia, LeStrange Viols, and Alkemie with Elliot Cole, as well as partnerships with Music on Madison, Gotham Early Music/Americas Society (GEMAS) and the Baryshnikov Arts Center.

The season kicks off on Monday, September 23, 2019 at 7:30 PM at Judson Memorial Church in Manhattan with Songs for the End of Time, a program featuring Founders, a songwriting collective that combines classical and folk music with original compositions and pop arrangements. Comprised of Ben Russell (violin/vocals), Brandon Ridenour (trumpet/keys), Hamilton Berry (cello/vocals), Yoonah Kim (clarinet), and Greg Chudzik (bass), Founders make their 5BMF debut with a program reimagining Olivier Messiaen’s “Quartet for the End of Time,” featuring daring original works and unique arrangements of Messiaen’s monumental piece.

Medieval ensemble Alkemie teams up with composer-vocalist Elliot Cole for Beautee & Bountee: An Arthurian Refraction, presented on Saturday, November 23, 2019 at 7:30 PM at the Noble Maritime Collection in Staten Island and on Sunday, November 24, 2019 at 4:00 PM at the Areté Venue and Gallery in Brooklyn. This daring new project reimagines the tales of King Arthur, combining 13th & 14th century vocal works with the World Premiere of Cole’s settings of Middle-English texts (co-commissioned by Alkemie and 5BMF.) Performers include Tracy Cowart (voice and harp), David McCormick (viele), Elena Mullins (voice and percussion), Sian Ricketts (voice, recorders, and douçaines), and Niccolo Seligmann (viele, viola, and percussion) with guest performers Elliot Cole (voice, harmonium, and electric bass) and Ben Matus (voice and dulcian.)

On Friday, January 10, 2020 at 7:30 PM at Flushing Town Hall in Queens and Sunday, January 12, 2020 at 3:00 PM at Madison Ave. Presbyterian Church in Manhattan, new-music piano trio Longleash marks the 250th anniversary of Beethoven’s birth with Beethoven Reflections, a program featuring two of the composer’s celebrated trios alongside world premieres of contemporary responses by John Zorn and Reiko Füting, co-commission by 5BMF and Longleash. Longleash, which takes its name from Operation Long Leash, a covert CIA operation designed to promote the work of American avant-garde artists in Europe during the Cold War, is comprised of violinist Pala Garcia, cellist John Popham, and pianist Renate Rohlfing.

5BMF partners with GEMAS (Gotham Early Music Scene/Americas Society) and the Baryshnikov Arts Center to co-present legendary Cuban early music ensemble Ars Longa de la Habana on Wednesday, March 18, 2020 at 7:30 PM at the Baryshnikov Arts Center in Manhattan. Twelve musicians of Ars Longa – founded by Teresa Paz and Aland López in 1994 – perform a thrilling program of 18th century music from Cuba and the New World in the ensemble’s long-awaited return to New York City.

The 5BMF 2019-2020 season closes with Astride Peace and War: John Jenkins, Master of the Musick Art, a multi-concert “mini-festival” exploring the works of English composer John Jenkins (1592–1678) on Friday, May 29, 2020 at 7:30 PM at Flushing Town Hall in Queens; Sunday, May 31, 2020 at 3:00 PM at Christ Church Riverdale in the Bronx; and Monday, June 1, 2020 at 8:00 PM at Church of St. Luke in the Fields in Manhattan. Two virtuosic viol consorts, Parthenia and Lestrange Viols, join forces to celebrate Jenkins’ small- and large-scale works for viols and keyboard. Performers include viol and viola da gamba players Beverly Au, Lawrence Lipnik, Rosamund Morley, Lisa Terry, John Mark Rozendaal, Loren Ludwig, Douglas Kelley, Zoe Weiss, and Kivie Cahn-Lipman, with guest performer Dongsok Shin, chamber organ.

5BMF Artistic Director Jesse Blumberg says, “We couldn't be more excited to share our 13th Season with our friends and fans. It's full of big, beautiful celebrations and collaborations, and explores music spanning several centuries. It’s also a season of discovery and reflection, featuring unexpected pairings and modern takes on traditional chamber music fare. We hope you’ll join us for these fascinating programs, all around NYC!”

Tickets for all Five Boroughs Music Festival concerts, ranging between $15 and $45, are available starting August 15, 2019 at www.5BMF.org.

2019-20 Concert Information

SONGS FOR THE END OF TIME
Founders

Ben Russell, violin/vocals
Brandon Ridenour, trumpet/keys
Hamilton Berry, cello/vocals
Yoonah Kim, clarinet
Greg Chudzik, bass 

Monday, September 23, 2019 at 7:30 PM
Judson Memorial Church
55 Washington Square S
Manhattan

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BEAUTEE & BOUNTEE: AN ARTHURIAN REFRACTION
Alkemie 

Tracy Cowart, voice and harp
David McCormick, viele
Elena Mullins, voice and percussion
Sian Ricketts, voice, recorders, and douçaines
Niccolo Seligmann, viele, viola a chiavi, and percussion 

Elliot Cole, voice, harmonium, electric bass
Ben Matus, voice and dulcian

Saturday, November 23, 2019 at 7:30 PM
Noble Maritime Collection
1000 Richmond Terrace # 8
Staten Island

Sunday, November 24, 2019 at 4:00 PM
Areté Venue and Gallery
67 West St
Brooklyn

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BEETHOVEN REFLECTIONS
Longleash

Pala Garcia, violin
John Popham, cello

Renate Rohlfing, piano 

Friday, January 10, 2020 at 7:30 PM
Flushing Town Hall
137-35 Northern Blvd
Queens

Sunday, January 12, 2020 at 3:00 PM
Madison Ave. Presbyterian Church
Co-presented by Music on Madison
921 Madison Ave
Manhattan

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ARS LONGA DE LA HABANA
Co-presented with GEMAS (Gotham Early Music Scene/Americas Society) and Baryshnikov Arts Center

Ars Longa de la Habana 
Teresa Paz, soprano
Adalis Santiesteban, mezzo soprano
Yunie Gaínza, countertenor
Rubiel Martín Soto, tenor
Ahmed Gomez, baritone
Rodrigo López, oboe
Yulmara Vega, chirimías
Beatriz López, violin
Arianna Ochoa, violin
Aland López, guitar
Elis Regina Ramos, violone
Izaskun Cruz, percussion 

Wednesday, March 18, 2020 at 7:30 PM 
Baryshnikov Arts Center
450 W 37th St.
Manhattan

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ASTRIDE PEACE AND WAR: JOHN JENKINS, MASTER OF THE MUSICK ART

Festival exploring the works of John Jenkins

Parthenia
Beverly Au, viol
Lawrence Lipnik, viol
Rosamund Morley, viola da gamba

Lisa Terry, viola da gamba

Lestrange Viols
John Mark Rozendaal, viol
Loren Ludwig, viol
Douglas Kelley, viol
Zoe Weiss, viol
Kivie Cahn-Lipman, viol

Dongsok Shin, chamber organ

Program One: JACOBEAN CABARET

Friday, May 29, 2020 at 7:30 PM
Flushing Town Hall
137-35 Northern Blvd
Queens

Program Two: MASTER OF THE MUSICK ART

Sunday, May 31, 2020 at 4:00 PM
Christ Church Riverdale
5030 Henry Hudson Parkway East
Bronx

Program Three: ASTRIDE PEACE AND WAR

Monday, June 1, 2020 at 8:00 PM
Church of St. Luke in the Fields
487 Hudson St
Manhattan

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About Five Boroughs Music Festival

Since 2007, Five Boroughs Music Festival has brought world-class chamber music programs to every corner of New York City. Described as “imaginative” by The New York Times, “enterprising” by The New Yorker, and “vital” by WQXR’s Operavore blog, 5BMF’s commitment to musical outreach and engaging programming has distinguished the organization as a standout presence in the NYC arts community from its earliest days.

Now entering its 13th season, 5BMF has to date presented more than 80 concerts of over 60 unique programs in nearly 50 different venues across the city. 5BMF’s roster of world-class artists comprises over 250 individual performers and ensembles representing an incredibly diverse range of musical genres and styles. As champions of new music, 5BMF has commissioned 50 composers and presented world premieres of their works in more than 12 concert presentations. 5BMF’s venues are just as eclectic, and have included historic NYC landmarks such as Federal Hall, Pregones Theater, Flushing Town Hall, King Manor Museum, Brooklyn Historical Society and the Snug Harbor Cultural Center, among many others. 

Five Boroughs Music Festival’s mission is to enrich communities and cultivate new audiences by bringing world-class, affordable chamber music to all corners of New York City. 5BMF collaborates with local cultural institutions to present up-and-coming artists alongside the genre’s most distinguished performers, and challenges the standard definition of ‘chamber music’ by presenting a broad range of musical styles, from early music to contemporary works, world music and other non-classical forms.

5BMF’s programming is rooted in familiar classical music traditions, but is inclusive of a broad range of styles; art song recitals, early music, new music and other non-classical forms are all represented. By employing a broad definition of chamber music and sustaining a commitment to artistic outreach by bringing world class programs to neighborhoods all over the city, 5BMF offers an affordable, intimate concert experience to a wide variety of New York City audiences.

Please visit www.5bmf.org or email info@5bmf.org for more information.

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