Early Music - Dept. of Music Assembly

Early Music Ensemble

This Department of Music assembly is a costumed performance demonstrating instrumental and vocal music from the 12th to the 18th centuries with Andrews University Early Music Ensemble and Julia Lindsay. All students and general public are welcome to attend.

Instruments to be featured include: viols, krumhorns, recorders, violins, and harpsichord.

Early music has been a part of the Andrews University (Berrien Springs, Michigan) musical scene since the early music revival of the 1970's. The university’s first serious group Capella da camera was established by musicologist Hans-Jürgen Holman following a year’s sabbatical in Europe where he had studied performance practice of the Baroque. The current group, the Andrews University Early Music Ensemble performs in concerts, school assemblies, lecture-recitals, benefits, weddings, and other events around the Michiana area. The members, all professionally trained musicians, are active or retired teachers or librarians.

Director, organist and harpsichordist Linda Mack, was a member of the original group Capella da camera and had been a member of the current group for several years before assuming the directorship in 1999. In 1972 she earned her Master of Music degree in Organ Performance from Andrews University. Moving to Salt Lake City, Utah, she expanded her career as an ensemble keyboardist performing with vocalists and instrumentalists, early music and brass ensembles, choruses and orchestras, for radio broadcasts as well as concerts. In 1987 she completed her Master of Library and Information Science degree and returned to Andrews as a librarian. Since 1993 she has been the director of the Music Materials Center of the James White Library. In addition to her library work and research, Ms. Mack continues to perform extensively specializing in ensemble work and church music. She is currently organist/choir director at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in St. Joseph, Michigan.

Soprano Julia Lindsay Grenon is coordinator for vocal studies in the Department of Music at Andrews University. She holds a Master of Music degree from Andrews University and is also an honorary member of Pi Kappa Lambda. Ms. Lindsay has been afforded the opportunity to work with some of the great choral/orchestral conductors of the 20th century including Eric Leinsdorf (Kennedy Center, Washington, D.C.), Leonard Bernstein (Kennedy Center & Lincoln Center, New York, N.Y.), Norman Scribner (Choral Arts Society, Washington, D.C.), Zvonimir Hacko (Pro Musica, St. Joseph, MI) and Robert Vodnoy (Southwest Michigan Symphony Orchestra, St. Joseph, MI).

Ms. Lindsay maintains an active career as a soloist. During the summers of 1989 and 1992 she was principal soloist for the Newbold Summer Music Festival in England, touring with the Festival throughout England, Scotland, Belgium and France ('89). In 1991, she was featured as principal soprano soloist for the 1991 Columbia River Music Festival in Southeastern Washington. In 1994, Ms. Lindsay was the guest vocal clinician for the Virgin Islands Choral Festival held on the Island of Martinique. She is particularly interested in the performance of early music collaborating regularly with the Andrews University Early Music Ensemble as a soloist and as a member of Michigana vocal groups Canto Dulcis and Opus Nine.