The Newberry Consort Explores Renaissance Music of Prophets This March

CHICAGO — The Newberry Consort will invite listeners on a journey through the mystical world of dreams and visions in their upcoming concert “Oracles, Prophets, and Dreams,” taking place March 17 to 19 in Evanston, Hyde Park, and downtown.

The concert revolves around a series of renaissance motets known as Prophetiae Sybillarum, or “The Sibylline Prophecies,” by Flemish composer Orlando de Lassus. Composed sometime between 1549 and 1560, the collection is written for four voices and uses chromaticism to create a dreamlike sense of eeriness and ecstasy.

The Renaissance brought about a renewed interest in ancient Greek and Roman culture including music, art, and the supernatural. People were fascinated with the Sybils, prophetesses of Apollo who were consulted for personal, religious, and political advice. According to myth, the Sybils revealed the gods’ will through poetic texts. Later, early Roman Christians reinterpreted the Sybils’ roles as heralds for the coming of Jesus, probably in a tactic to legitimize their new religion in the eyes of the public. The texts in Lassus’s Sibylline Prophecies reflect this interpretation. Set in Latin, they emulate the rhythm and meter of the ancient Greek proclamations to further enhance the listener’s feeling of being inside a dream.

By the time Lassus was composing, there were said to be 12 different Sybils, and his Sybilline Prophecies is comprised of 12 songs that each tell the story of a Sybil. During the concert, audiences will learn about the myths and stories that surround the Sybils. Because the entire song cycle is only 25 minutes, it will be interspersed with pieces from other Renaissance composers that have a similar theme of prophecy, dreams, and mysticism, including Ludwig Senfl’s rarely heard piece, Vidit Jacob, with text describing Jacob’s dream of a ladder, and more secular selections such as William Byrd’s Farewell, False Love, Oracle of Lies.

Liza Malamut, the artistic director of The Newberry Consort, said she had been drawn to this mysterious, otherworldly music ever since she first heard it more than a decade ago. “I’ve been fascinated by these pieces for a long time,” Malamut says. “They have a wildly unique sound, even for Renaissance music. The sonorities really draw you in, and when they’re over it almost feels like you’re blinking awake. It’s incredibly rare to hear them performed live, so I’m very excited to make this happen in Chicago.”

A lively band of 10 musicians will bring this music and its stories to life. The Consort is pleased to welcome singers Elena Mullins, Laura Pudwell, Matthew Dean, and Daniel Fridley, as well as Renaissance wind specialists Margaret Brown Owens, Daniel Stillman and Priscilla Herreid who will perform on shawms, dulcians, sackbuts, and recorders, and continuo players Grant Herreid on lute and Naomi Gregory on portative organ. The pre-concert lecture will be given by international Renaissance scholar and sackbut player Adam Bregman.

The performances will be held on March 17 at 8 p.m. at Nichols Concert Hall in Evanston, on March 18 at 8 p.m. at Bond Chapel at the University of Chicago in Hyde Park, and on March 19 at 3 p.m. at Ganz Recital Hall at Roosevelt University downtown. Pre-concert lectures begin one hour and 45 minutes before the performances. Tickets are $45 for general seating, $65 for preferred seating, and $10 for students with a valid student ID at all three concerts.

PERFORMANCE DETAILS

Oracles, Prophets and Dreams

• Friday, March 17, 2023 at 8 p.m.
  Nichols Concert Hall, 1490 Chicago Ave., Evanston
  Tickets $45 for general seating, $65 for preferred seating, $10 for students with a valid student ID

• Saturday, March 18, 2023 at 8 p.m.
  Bond Chapel at the University of Chicago, 1025 E. 58th St., Chicago
  Tickets $45 for general seating, $65 for preferred seating, $10 for student with a valid student ID
  
• Sunday, March 19, 2023 at 3 p.m.
  Ganz Hall, Roosevelt University, 430 S Michigan Ave, Chicago,
  Tickets $45 for general seating, $65 for preferred seating, $10 for students with a valid student ID

Tickets available at https://www.newberryconsort.org.

About the Newberry Consort:

The Newberry Consort brings together singers and instrumentalists of the highest caliber to create historically informed performances of music from the Middle Ages, the Renaissance, the Baroque, and beyond. By integrating historical performance and research with contemporary themes and multimedia, we inspire audiences, musicians, and scholars by providing a window into earlier times and diverse cultures. The Consort continues to uplift Chicago’s early music community through mentorships, teaching, and engagement of local artists.