Review of Mideast 2009

I’ve attended the Mid East Recorder Workshop a total of 14 years. This summer I re-turned after a break of two years and found myself wondering if it would have the same atmosphere that had drawn me to it in the past. It had been marked by hard work, soaring music. a compassionate faculty with a sense of humor, amazingly good food for an institution, and a sense of fellowship with other people who share the love of Early Music. I quickly learned that each of these still applied, but this year I re-learned how important the fundamentals are to making music.

The daily routine at Mid East was simple. We played and then we ate! Fortunately, there was enough walking during the day to mitigate some of the excesses I had. After breakfast the first class of the day was technique. Students chose recorder, viol, or flute as their main instrument and were placed in a class with those of similar experience. My class led by Ken Wollitz stressed a meticulous investigation of La Spagna by Josquin des Pres. For most of the week we studied the first several measures of the piece to make sure that each person played intervals in tune and articulated rhythmic patterns in the same way. We practiced tone production to ensure that the Flauto Dulce sounded sweet. Whoever said the recorder was an easy instrument to play? That attention to detail allowed notes to become alive! In fact, that was the main lesson of the week for me. Attention to the details of technique allows music to emerge from a cacophony of notes.

Renaissance Band followed the technique class. Stu Carter molded such instruments as recorders, bray harps, buzzies of all variety, viols, sackbuts, a racket, and percussion instruments to sing with an exuberant vitality that marks so much of early music. It has been remarked that buzzies could raise the dead, but with the Stu’s skilful leading of the band, they would be raised with a smile on the faces!

Then was lunch and a chance to chat and gather ourselves for the afternoon.

After lunch each student was assigned to a consort of players with similar experience. Once again there was close attention detail. Among other pieces the class studied Regina Caeli Laetare a barless five part piece by Cristobal Morales. That piece was rhythmically challenging but its incomparable beauty reminded me how music acts as a mid wife for giving birth to the mysteries of the spirit. Our teacher, Martha Bixler, always had a sense of humor but she also expected us to do our best by paying attention to intonation, voice leading, articulation, and phrasing. Her attention to detail enabled the piece to enter the transcendent Realm of sublime music.

During the rest of the afternoon participants chose from a variety of electives. Canons and Puzzles of the Medieval Collegium sounded intriguing to me and before I knew it I was immersed in rounds, normal canons, canons whose beginning was the end and whose end was the beginning, mensural canons, and canons in which each part has a different meter. In moments of metric chagrin, I wondered what kind of deviant mind would come up with something so complicated. Marilyn Carlson’s very systematic approach to making sense out of complicated rhythms gave us a chance to learn and to hear music beginning to emerge from these mind boggling rhythms. Hopefully, the next time we encounter them they will be a little less intimidating.

As in prior years the All Workshop Consort led by Eric Haas was a high light of the week. The entire workshop played such gems as the Fantasia by Tomas de Santa Maria and Con Amores, la mi Madre by Juan de Anchieta. At the end of the week to close the student recital we played a two choir version of Super Flumina Babylonis by Tomas Luis da Victoria. Can you imagine 60 singers and instrumenatalists being in good tune and keeping together to produce this awesome piece of music? Many of us had goosebumps as we played it. Once again I was reminded that attention to the fundamentals, sound production, intonation, timing, and articulation allows music to emerge from notes and to raise the human spirit. Mid East 2009 was a great experience and I look forward to next year.

Bill Hull