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The Sebastians are a dynamic and vital musical ensemble specializing in music of the Baroque and Classical eras. Lauded as “everywhere sharp-edged and engaging” (The New York Times), the Sebastians have also been praised for their “well-thought-out articulation and phrasing” (Early Music Review) and “elegant string playing… immaculate in tuning and balance” (Early Music Today). I Care If You Listen praised the ensemble’s “beautifully-nuanced playing and thoughtful expressivity” in their début album, calling the recording a “technical and timbral tour-de-force.”
Winners of the Audience Prize at the 2012 Early Music America Baroque Performance Competition, the Sebastians were also finalists in the 2011 York International Early Music Competition and the 2011 Early Music America/Naxos Recording Competition. They have participated in the Carnegie Hall Professional Training Workshop with L'Arpeggiata, and have performed at Music Matters (LaGrua Center in Stonington, Connecticut), Friends of Music at Pequot Library (Southport, Connecticut), St. John’s Episcopal Church (Tulsa, Oklahoma), Juilliard in Aiken (Aiken, South Carolina), in the Twelfth Night Festival and Concerts@One at Trinity Wall Street (New York City, New York), and on the Early Music in Columbus series (Ohio), ), the Renaissance and Baroque Society of Pittsburgh (Pennsylvania), and Houston Early Music (Texas). The Sebastians frequently collaborate with TENET Vocal Artists, including a critically acclaimed performances of J.S. Bach's St. John Passion (BWV 245).
The Sebastians début CD "Night Scenes from the Ospedale" (January 2015) pairs Antonio Vivaldi's concerti from L'Estro Armonico with newly composed interludes by Robert Honstein. I Care If You Listen praised the “beautifully-nuanced playing and thoughtful expressivity” in the recording, calling the album a “technical and timbral tour-de-force.” Their second CD, "the Sebastians a 2: Virtuoso Music of the Holy Roman Empire", (September 2015) explores the rich Baroque repertoire of music for violin and harpsichord written by composers from modern-day Germany, Austria, and the Czech Republic. In Fall 2018, the Sebastians will release a new CD of trio sonatas and vocal works by Arcangelo Corelli, Colista, George Frideric Handel, and A. Vivaldi, with soprano Awet Andemicael, and other recordings are currently in production for future seasons.
In 2015-2016 season, the Sebastians continue for the fourth season as ensemble-in-residence at All Angels’ Church in New York City. In addition, their season includes a recording project of cantatas by Christoph Graupner with baritone Michael Hix, touring engagements in Miami, Washington DC, New York City and Philadelphia with acclaimed vocal ensemble Seraphic Fire, an appearance on the Pittsburgh Renaissance & Baroque series, and numerous performances in New York and Connecticut.
In 2016-2017 season, in addition to performances in Massachusetts, New Jersey, and Seattle, the Sebastians presented a year-long celebration of their namesake, J.S. Bach, in New York City, featuring J.S. Bach's Brandenburg Concerti; A. Vivaldi's Four Seasons with a newly-commissioned companion work by Tawnie Olson; J.S. Bach's sonatas and partitas for solo violin as an installation piece; a program exploring the Musical Offering (BWV 1079); and a spectacular production of J.S. Bach's St. John Passion (BWV 245) in collaboration with TENET Vocal Artists.
The Sebastians 2018-2019 season features Venetian and Roman trio sonatas and concerti grossi; J.S. Bach's six sonatas for violin and obbligato harpsichord and sonatas for violin and continuo; and, with TENET Vocal Artists, J.S. Bach's St. Matthew Passion (BWV 244) and G.F. Handel's Messiah, in intimate unconducted performances. The Sebastians are currently in residence at the Yale Collection of Musical Instruments. |
