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Formed in 1973 by five graduates of the Juilliard School, the Aulos Ensemble was at the forefront of a movement that has captured the imagination of the American listening public. The Aulos Ensemble was at the forefront of the now vigorous movement to give performances with original instruments. With the release of their first recording in 1978, Aulos' reputation for exhilarating performances informed with scholarly insight was firmly established. These virtues, along with an uncompromising standard of excellence, have resulted in invitations from virtually all of America's major chamber music presenters. The Aulos Ensemble's performances have created a new awareness for the rich rewards of "original instrument" performance and have America's most respected critics raving: "scintillating," "virtuosic". The New York Times says that the Aulos Ensemble presents "authentic Baroque performance at its best."
Since the 1980's, Aulos has brought the joy of its music making to an ever-larger public through its appearances on America's major chamber music series and its expanding discography. It inaugurated a New York concert series featuring guest artists prominent in the field of original instruments collaborating with the ensemble. The New York Times wrote, "The players of New York's Aulos Ensemble were fluid singers all, their lines never losing clarity or shape, always sounding flexible and spontaneous." The San Francisco Examiner wrote, "The performances were by far the most exhilarating examples of Baroque playing that these ears have heard." Many of its performances have been recorded for National Public Radio.
Members of the Aulos Ensemble are Christopher Krueger, playing flute; Marc Schachman, playing Baroque oboe; Linda Quan, playing Baroque violin; Myron Lutzke, playing Baroque violoncello; and Arthur Haas playing harpsichord. Krueger is principal flutist with the Handel and Haydn Society, Boston Early Music Festival Orchestra, the Bach Ensemble, Smithsonian Chamber Players, and Boston Baroque. Schachman has performed as soloist and principal oboe with "original instrument" orchestras throughout America.
In addition to its extensive touring schedule, the Aulos Ensemble created its own concert series at home in New York City. Featuring collaborations with leading artists in authentic performance from both the USA and Europe, the Aulos ensemble has performed with harpsichordists Trevor Pinnock and Albert Fuller, violinists Jaap Schröder and Stanley Ritchie, cellist Anner Bylsma, oboist Michel Piguet and vocalists Jan DeGaetani, Bethany Beardslee, Charles Bressler, Julianne Baird and Dawn Upshaw.
Now an essential part of New York's holiday celebrations, the Aulos Ensemble performs a special Christmas concert annually in the magical setting of the Medieval Sculpture Court at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. As The New York Times says "If it has to be just one Christmas concert, this is it!" The popularity of the Aulos Ensemble's holiday performances has resulted in seasonal tours throughout the country and a "Baroque Christmas" recording on the MHS/Musicmasters label that is now offered globally through the Metropolitan Museum Catalog.
The Aulos Ensemble's first recording, released on the Musical Heritage Society label in 1981, was heralded as one of the most accomplished and significant observances of the Georg Philipp Telemann tercentenary, receiving the "Critic's Choice" award from High Fidelity/Musical America magazine. Since then, the Aulos Ensemble has released more than a dozen CD's on the MHS label, including 2-CD sets of J.S. Bach, George Frideric Handel and Antonio Vivaldi, as well as the complete "Essercizii Musici" of Telemann on five discs. Its latest releases include "A Baroque Christmas" with soprano Julianne Baird. The Aulos Ensemble can also be heard frequently on National Public Radio.
In conjunction with its concerts, the Aulos Ensemble has given numerous master classes and lecture demonstrations in 17th and 18th century performance practice at colleges and universities throughout the country. |
