I knew I shouldn't have worn shorts on Tuesday…

…because on Wednesday it was 55 degrees colder and then it got to be 60 degrees colder! Remind me to avoid tempting the Weather Channel–since it controls the weather, of course–next year. Or ever.

Anyway, we are puttering along, working on the May Convivencia concert, planning all the concerts for next season, working on grants, wrapping up the creation of our first newsletter (due out next week), and just generally not taking it easy, because All The Things Must Be Done.

And Amplify Austin Day, hosted by I Live Here I Give Here, is happening in a few days. See the details below!

Remember, even if you don’t live here, you can give here. Since TEMP is expanding its reach via videos on YouTube and other formats, you can support us from afar. Even from abroad. Or from around the corner.

More soon!
-Danny

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AMPLIFY TEMP!
6 PM CST MARCH 2 — 6 PM CST MARCH 3

Amplify Austin Day, hosted by I Live Here I Give Here, is Central Texas' biggest day of giving, and we are excited to participate once again! As you know, we've been thrilled to perform in person this year! We are so grateful for all that we've been able to accomplish thanks to a supportive, wonderful community. We humbly request your continued support as we continue to fulfill our important mission—to preserve and advance the art of Medieval, Renaissance, Baroque, and early Classical music—in new and creative ways.

Please visit our Amplify page to read more about it.

Here’s how you can help:

Your #amplifyaustin gift made anytime from now through March 3 allows us to:

• employ artists who have lost most, if not all, of their work this past year; 

• explore novel ways to deliver high quality performances and education to an audience no longer bound to Austin's city limits;

• grow and mature as an organization that is evolving with the times; and

• qualifies us for a variety of matching funds, listed on our Amplify page.

Early giving is open now, and every gift matters. But making your donation during the event time frame means your donation is AMPLIFIED by a community that supports its nonprofits.

We'd like to take a moment to specifically point out the "LoveTitos" match: In honor of its 25-year anniversary, Tito’s Handmade Vodka is working with I Live Here I Give Here to spread love and goodness throughout our hometown. Just be sure to enter #LoveTitos in the public message box at check out, and Tito's will add an extra $25 to your donation! They've allotted $25,000 to this match (Three cheers for Tito's!), but it will go fast. 

NO NEED TO WAIT: DONATE NOW!

WE THANK YOU FOR YOUR GENEROUS SUPPORT!

Here's a busy bee week. No murder hornets.

For real, TEMP has a busy, busy week. Last week we were shivering, a couple of days ago we were sweating, for the next 9 days we are caffeinating!

The premiere of the Fresh Take, Baroque episode is this Saturday, Feb. 27 and all three Fresh Take episodes are available until March 4.

March 4 also happens to be the beginning of Amplify Austin, which almost every arts group and other non-profits depend on, especially this year when this things have been so…let’s face it: so weird. We could just be really verklempt about the whole situation or we and our muses could think up creative ways to stay in touch with you and make new friends, and get to see our colleagues (safely) from time to time to make some music! It’s worked out that we chose path #2, and so we do need a little assistance continuing that journey, and for some reason I feel compelled to call that assistance “Amplify”!

Now, where was I? Oh yes…

And then Night Music!, Episode 3 premieres on March 7. Gitanjali Mathur and I will be bringing you lullabies and other songs of comfort from Croatia and the Karelia province of Russia.

So in summation: See a nice movie about Baroque music history, Amplify, and then relax with soothing night music. And enjoy having no murder hornets.

-Danny

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AMPLIFY TEMP!
6 pm March 4 — 6 pm March 5

We know it's not news: arts organizations, both in Austin and beyond, are being forced to adapt to the realities of this time. Rest assured that, with your help, TEMP IS UP TO THE CHALLENGE, offering exceptional virtual performances and educational content this artistic season. We humbly request your support as we seek to continue fulfilling our important mission—to preserve and advance the art of Medieval, Renaissance, Baroque, and early Classical music—in new and creative ways!

Please visit our Amplify page to read more about it.

Here’s how you can help:

Your #amplifyaustin gift made anytime from now through March 5 allows us to:

• employ artists who have lost most, if not all, of their work this past year; 

• explore novel ways to deliver high quality performances and education to an audience no longer bound to Austin's city limits; and 

• grow and mature as an organization that is evolving with the times.

Donations made through Amplify Austin between now and March 5 also qualify for matching funds from Tito's Vodka, so your gift goes even further! Thank you for the vital support you give to us, and to the greater Austin arts community. Your generosity is invaluable.

NO NEED TO WAIT: donate NOW!

WE THANK YOU FOR YOUR GENEROUS SUPPORT!

Giving Tuesday Now

#GivingTuesdayNow is a worldwide day of giving and unity on Tuesday, May 5 that aims to meet the urgent needs of nonprofits created by the pandemic. In central Texas, this is being hosted by I Live Here, I Give Here as an Amplify Austin event. Many of our local nonprofits are struggling as funding sources, ranging from ticket sales to City of Austin support, are plummeting. Please consider giving generously to support nonprofits of your choice by going to www.amplifyatx.org.

Texas Early Music Project is participating in this event, and if you wish to help support TEMP and its artists please go to TEMP’s page at www.amplifyatx.org/organizations/texas-early-music-project.

The pandemic has been devastating on so many levels for us as individuals, as families, as businesses, and as artists. But Texas Early Music Project, as an arts organization, is not throwing in the towel. We are working out what we will be doing to continue giving you, our audience, the experience of joy and beauty that music can bring, and finding ways that we can support our artists while we are on a performing hiatus. Please stay with us as we work out exactly how we are going to do this!

And meanwhile, while you are staying healthy in mind, body, and spirit, please enjoy our TEMP Taco Tuesdays, which provide you just the musical snack you need to carry you through these challenging times.

Danny Johnson, Artistic Director
Anthony Toprac, Board President

WE THANK YOU FOR YOUR GENEROUS SUPPORT!

Unknown Facts

1960 Fender Concert Amplifier

So, it’s generally unknown, but pretty true, that I was in a band in high-school in Big Spring. Our name was the Summits, which was picked by going through the phone book and doing the closed-eyes and point technique and whatever the street name was, that was the selection. It was about the 3rd attempt. I don’t recall what the first ones were, but they were probably something like 18th street or Nolan or some other street that was nowhere as good as Summit Street. Anyway: I was the singer (I played bass a little) so since I didn’t have instruments to carry, I wound up carrying the amplifiers, which were, you know, necessary to a fledgeling rock band doing covers of the Beatles, Stones, Kinks, Dylan, Monkees, etc etc … Wow. I miss the Summits. Good times. There was that time that … well, more later.

And here it is is, &$^&$#@%&%$@ years later, and amplification is still necessary for music groups, even relatively fledgeling [compared to some] or established [compared to others] early music groups. So please help me amplify TEMP later this week: March 5–6!  Read all the deets below. And prepare yourself for some covers of Medieval French hits by Anonymous, Anonymous, and Machaut later this month.

More soon!
-Danny

AMPLIFY TEMP!
6 pm March 5 – 6 pm March 6

Our organizational goal is to raise $10,000 for our general operational expenses (especially for musicians’ compensation) and our educational outreach. TEMP is actively creating educational outreach programs to join forces with Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired and the Austin Independent School District. To make this program free for our partners, we need to raise funds for instruments, instructors, and performers. 

Please visit our Amplify page to read more about it.

Here’s how you can help:

Please consider donating $25 (or more!) on TEMP’s page on Amplify Austin. Any Amount Helps! Here are some suggestions:

• $25–$199 Helps with office supplies and program printing 

• $200–$499 Helps cover venue rental costs 

• $500–$999 Helps our educational outreach programs with TSVBI and AISD

• $750–$999 Assists with artist compensation

• $1,000–$4,999 Assists in Director compensation 

• $5,000 + Sponsors a concert

NO NEED TO WAIT: donate NOW!

Enter #LoveTitos and $5 will be added to your donation!

You don't have to wait until March 5 to participate in Amplify Austin! You can donate now! Just click on the "Donate now" button on the TEMP campaign page.  And if you enter the hashtag #LoveTitos when you check out, Tito’s Handmade Vodka will add an extra $5 to your donation!

BE A FUNDRAISING CHAMPION!

You can also become an individual fundraiser for TEMP by creating your own campaign page on the Amplify Austin website and inviting family, friends, and colleagues to donate to your TEMP campaign. Go to the TEMP campaign page and click on the "Fundraise"  button in the top right of the page next to the Donate button.

BE A MEDICI - BUT NICER! AMPLIFY TEMP AND AMPLIFY AUSTIN!

WE THANK YOU FOR YOUR GENEROUS SUPPORT!

How Many Tudors did the Tudors Tutor?

So, while March comes roaring in like a lion bundled up in down and scarves, I really must thank all of you who supported TEMP and other nonprofits during the Amplify Austin campaign! Your generous contributions will help us present another spectacular concert season for 2019-2020 and will help us continue and “amplify” our education programs in Austin-area schools. I think the final totals for Amplify Austin Day were about $11.2 million (for 740 local organizations) and TEMP came in #18 among the Arts and Culture organizations with 58 donors who helped us reach almost 80% of our goal!

THANK YOU!

I think you will see the results on the concert stages and in our outreach programs!

Speaking of concert stages, we hope you are keeping track of the calendar and are making plans to come to our Tudor concert: It’s epic, both in the planning and the musical scope.

Here’s a little snippet from our concert of Eton Choirbook/Tudor music back in 2007 and recorded on our Sacred CD:

Tutor yourself by reading the Symphony of Voices concert details below—and thank you, TEMP Fans, for your generosity and enthusiastically amplifying TEMP!

With gratitude,
-Danny

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A Symphony of Voices:
Choral Masterworks of Tudor England

Saturday, March 30, 2019, at  7:30 pm
Redeemer Presbyterian Church, 2111 Alexander Avenue, Austin, TX
Sunday, March 31, 2019, 3:00 pm
St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church, 8134 Mesa Drive, Austin, TX

Admission $30 general; $25 seniors (60+); $5 students (at the door only)
Tickets available in advance online or by cash, check, or credit card at the door.

Take advantage of preferred seating and other perks by sponsoring a concert!

For more information, call 512-377-6961 and leave a message,
or email info@early-music.org.

A symphony of voices, 26 a cappella voices in this case, works in the same way an orchestral symphony might: There are thickly colorful choral tutti sections alternating with starkly transparent solo lines, hypnotically static harmonic rhythms alternating with florid vocal lines that are full of subtle virtuosity, resplendent with both shimmering beauty and unexpected dissonances resolving quickly to more beauty. This is the tradition of the Eton Choirbook, compiled between c.1490 and c.1510, during the transition from the late Medieval to the early Renaissance in England, which set the path for English choral music for generations. TEMP explores a few of the breathtaking masterpieces from the Eton collection as well as music from the contemporaneous English court.

Thanks to boosts from popular culture on television and in movies, more people than ever are aware of and interested in the very important Tudor court of Henry VIII. During the time during which the Tudors ruled England—almost 90 years, from 1509 until 1603—England’s importance in the world increased dramatically and English musical and artistic culture became more important. In addition to small masterpieces from prominent composers like Robert Fayrfax and William Cornysh, we will perform a least one work written by Henry VIII, who received lessons in music and languages from an early age as a part of the standard curriculum for royal children. He played harp, lute, recorder, harpsichord, and organ. Though some of his best-known compositions are lively and roughly hewn, a much larger percentage of his works are rather intimate and delicate pieces written with obvious care and skill. (No, he did not compose Greensleeves. Who starts these rumors?) Most of his compositions can be dated to the early part of his reign (1509-1547) and can be found in the so-called “Henry VIII manuscript,” which dates from about 1520.

The TEMP viol consort, led by Mary Springfels, will freshen the aural palate with some selections from the court and the chapel. The chorus will include several frequent guests, including countertenor Ryland Angel, Temmo Korisheli, Erin Calata, and former UT-EME member, Joel Nesvadba. They will be joining TEMP core members Jenifer Thyssen, Meredith Ruduski, Jenny Houghton, Stephanie Prewitt, Cayla Cardiff, Jeffrey Jones-Ragona, Gil Zilkha, Brett Barnes, and many more. Twenty-six singers, each a soloist in his or her own right, will help create an unforgettably beautiful experience.

Join us for a beautiful and moving concert that will illuminate the passage from the late Medieval to the early Renaissance with passion and beauty and soothe the souls of 21st century audience members.

Click on the image above to buy tickets now!

Man, this word is right on the tip of my brain…

Ya know it, right? It means to intensify something or augment something, right? Like if there’s a performing group and you’d like to support it or even boost it? Gah, what’s that word?! I mean, no matter how it may look from the outside, most cultural arts groups need to be strengthened with support so they can enhance their programs or supplement their reserves so they can magnify and focus and continue their efforts. TEMP is no different—we need this TLC, too! We have some special projects we want to undertake, in addition to our ambitious concert season, but it will take some…some…what’s that word???? I keep trying to think of this word late on a Sunday and all I can picture is Paul McCartney plugging his bass into a box that boosts the sound…. I know there’s a word there.

Paul McCartney Tone bender MKI, 1965B

I wonder if some of the younger generation of TEMPsters can help me out here? Let’s see:

Well, you all probably know what I’m trying to say. Boost TEMP Day is coming right up (6pm Feb. 28–6pm March 1)!! Read all the deets below.

More soon!
-Danny

AMPLIFY TEMP!

Our organizational goal is to raise $10,000 for our general operational expenses (especially for musicians’ compensation) and our educational outreach. TEMP is actively creating educational outreach programs to join forces with Texas School for the Visually Impaired and the Austin Independent School District. To make this program free for our partners, we need to raise funds for instruments, instructors, and performers. 

Please visit our Amplify page here to read more about it.

Here’s how you can help:

Please consider donating $25 (or more!) on TEMP’s page on Amplify Austin. Any Amount Helps! Here are some suggestions:

• $25–$199 Helps with office supplies and program printing 

• $200–$499 Helps cover venue rental costs 

• $500–$999 Assists with artist compensation 

• $1,000–$4,999 Assists in Director compensation 

• $5,000 + Sponsors a concert

NO NEED TO WAIT: PLEDGE NOW!

Enter #LoveTitos and $5 will be added to your donation!

You don't have to wait until February 28 to participate in Amplify Austin! You can donate now and it will post on February 28! Just click on the "Donate now" button on the TEMP campaign page.  And if you enter the hashtag #LoveTitos when you check out, Tito’s Handmade Vodka will add an extra $5 to your donation!

BE A FUNDRAISING CHAMPION!

You can also become an individual fundraiser for TEMP by creating your own campaign page on the Amplify Austin website and inviting family, friends, and colleagues to donate to your TEMP campaign. Go to the TEMP campaign page and click on the "Fundraise"  button in the top right of the page next to the Donate button.

BE A MEDICI - BUT NICER! AMPLIFY TEMP AND AMPLIFY AUSTIN!

WE THANK YOU FOR YOUR GENEROUS SUPPORT!

Who knows where the thyme goes?

Oh, and we're out of milk, too ...

Firstly, I offer my sincere apologies: I meant to write this blog earlier this week, but ever since the time change I have been trying to make up for that MIA hour. You'd think I would get used to it at some point. . . 

Anyway, it's been a far busier first-quarter year than we are used to, with lots of school and outreach concerts in January, a huge and unusual and unique concert in February, and lots of grant applications in anticipation of our 20th season next year.  And then there was the Amplify Austin campaign in March. Yay!!

THANKS SO MUCH to all who donated to support our planned recording of the original Carmina Burana repertoire! We've raised more than $8K for that project and need to raise a bit more to go before we can proceed, but it's in our plans! 

Also in our plans: This Sunday (March 18 at 7:00pm) we have another outreach concert, this time for the residents at Westminster! And up next is the concert in which we get to tell it like it really is. Yes, the Complaints concert! It's a funny (and fun) concept, but the music is strikingly beautiful and oftentimes bittersweet—except for when we're just being grumpy! See all the details below and buy your tickets now for this musical kvetch-fest!

Beware the Ides of March!
-Danny

Complaints Through The Ages

 7:00 pm, Saturday, April 21, 2018
Redeemer Presbyterian Church, 2111 Alexander Avenue, Austin, TX

3:00 pm, Sunday, April 22, 2018
First Presbyterian Church, 8001 Mesa Drive, Austin, TX

Admission $30 general; $25 seniors (60+); $5 students (at the door only)
Tickets available in advance online or by cash, check, or credit card at the door.

For more information, call 512-377-6961 and leave a message,
or email info@early-music.org.

“I am, therefore I complain.” Humans have always had things to complain about, ranging from life-threatening, quality-of-life issues to conjured or superficial annoyances that simply don’t fit into the notion of what a good day should hold. Our musical exploration of complaining has an eclectic array of music from Medieval times through the Baroque: Scottish Ballads, French chansons, Dowland madrigals, powerful selections from passionate Italians (Monteverdi, Carissimi, and Sances) and more. Lots of beauty, some sadness (maybe a few tears in those complaints) and quite a few laughs! With guest Ryland Angel (countertenor), and more!

Click on the image above to buy tickets now!

Life is a subliminal suggestion, old chum

Baroque Opera is fun! Our singers and players came away from Love's Grand with new ear worms and an appreciation for a lot of music that was new-ish to them! We hope you enjoyed it also!

You know what else is fun? Chant & polyphony from the Cathedral of Notre-Dame! It may not be quite as immediately evident, but just let it wash over you and envelope you in a dessert of sound. Low-fat. Gluten free.  

Hmmm. High fat kolaches!

Somewhat less low-fat will be the kolaches that Meredith will be making during the Amplify Austin (& Amplify TEMP) fundraiser. (Get the deets below!) You'll be able to watch Meredith live-stream during the night of March 2 as she reports on the progress of TEMP's fundraising and as she reports on the progress of her newest culinary obsession! We're trying to raise some funds—$7,500— in support of our season finale concert, the 1610 Vespers by Monteverdi! It's a big ’un!

So remember: Kolaches = Amplify TEMP = Monteverdi!
And Paris! c.1200! Notre-Dame Cathedral!
-Danny

AMPLIFY TEMP!

Our goal is to raise $7,500 in support of our Monteverdi 1610 program, May 13-14. We have a LOT of new and exciting programs in store for 2017-2018 as well as the familiar ones you know and love, and we need your help to make this possible. Go to our Amplify page here to read more about it.

Here’s how you can help:

You can donate $25 (or more!) on TEMP’s page on Amplify Austin. Any Amount Helps! Here are some suggestions:

• $25–$199 Helps with office supplies and program printing 
• $200–$499 Helps cover venue rental costs 
• $500–$999 Assists with artist compensation 
• $1,000–$4,999 Assists in Director compensation 
• $5,000 + Sponsors a concert

SCHEDULE YOUR PLEDGE NOW!

You don't have to wait until March 2 to participate! You can schedule your pledge now, and it will post on March 2! Just click on the "Donate now" button on the TEMP campaign page. Be sure the little box for "This is an Amplify Austin Day Donation" is checked on the donation form.  THIS IS SUPER IMPORTANT!  If the box is not checked, the donation will process immediately and will not count towards Amplify Austin Day.

CREATE YOUR OWN CAMPAIGN PAGE!

You can also become an individual fundraiser for TEMP by creating your own campaign page on the Amplify Austin website and inviting family, friends, and colleagues to donate to your TEMP campaign. Go to the TEMP campaign page and click on "Create a Fundraising Campaign." 

BE A MEDICI - BUT NICER! AMPLIFY TEMP AND AMPLIFY AUSTIN!

Visit TEMP’s Amplify Austin page by clicking on the  button below and schedule your gift by checking the box for "This is an Amplify Austin Day Donation."

We thank you for your generous support!