THE NEWBERRY LIBRARY

60 West Walton Street
Chicago, Illinois 60610-7324
(312)943-9090

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

October 20, 2003

Contact:  Erika Hartings
Phone:  (312)255-3553
hartingse@newberry.org
www.newberry.org

NEWBERRY CONSORT HOSTS RENOWNED LUTENIST
FOR INTIMATE BAROQUE RECITAL

CHICAGO--To celebrate the dawn of Italian operatic music, the Newberry Consort presents "The Birth of Song," an exquisite musical performance of early Italian Baroque pieces featuring renowned lutenist Paul O'Dette and soprano Ellen Hargis.  This intimate recital of works by musical visionaries like Claudio Monteverdi and Jacopo Peri will be performed November 20 through November 23, 2003.

The Newberry Consort is honored to welcome Paul O'Dette, considered to be the world's foremost lutenist, for this rare Chicago appearance.  Most often recognized as a solo Renaissance lute artist, O'Dette is a pioneer in his field.  Besides performing with the greatest international ensembles and conductors, O'Dette is the Artistic Director of the Boston Early Music Festival, and regularly directs operas in Drottingholm, Vancouver, and the United States.  An ardent seventeenth-century Italian and English music researcher, he has been the Director of Early Music at the Eastman School of Music since 1976.  Paul O'Dette's recordings number over 100, and his work has been nominated for Gramophone's Record of the Year Award.

The Newberry Consort will present four performances of "The Birth of Song" in Chicago, Oak Park and Evanston.  Ticket prices vary by section and venue, but range from $27-$37 for evening concerts and $20-$27 for the afternoon matinée.  Open rehearsal tickets are $10.  A ten-percent discount is available for seniors and Newberry Library Associates, and students receive a fifty-percent discount on tickets.  For tickets or more information, call the Center for Public Programs at 312-255-3700.

Thursday, November 20, at 3 p.m.
Open rehearsal
Chicago Sinai Congregation
15 W. Delaware Place, Chicago

Friday, November 21, at 8 p.m.
Pre-concert lecture at 7 p.m.
Newberry Library
60 W. Walton St., Chicago

Saturday, November 22, at 8 p.m.
Pre-concert lecture at 7 p.m.
Grace Episcopal Church
924 Lake St., Oak Park

Sunday, November 23, at 3 p.m.
Matinée performance
Northwestern University's Lutkin Hall
700 University Place, Evanston

The Newberry Consort is ensemble-in-residence at the Newberry Library and at the Northwestern University School of Music.  Programs are made possible in part with funding from the Illinois Arts Council, a state agency, a CityArts Program 4 grant from the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs, the IstitutoItaliano di Cultura, and generous individuals known as the Friends of the Consort.  The Anne P. Lederer Research Institute supports the open rehearsals and the Senior Community Project.