On Saturday March 1 and Sunday March 2, Crescendo presents two performances of a concert of rarely performed works of two minority groups of the Renaissance era.

March 1: Trinity Church, Lakeville, Conn., at 4:00 pm

March 2: Saint James Place, Great Barrington, Mass., at 4:00 pm

The repertoire includes vocal and instrumental works by six female Italian composers: Isabella de’ Medici, Maddalena Casulana, Paola Massarenghi, Lucia Quinciani, Raffaella Aleotti, and Claudia Francesca Rusca, and motets and a madrigal by the Afro-Portuguese Renaissance composer Vicente Lusitano.

Isabella de’ Medici, a noble woman from the powerful Medici family in Florence, Italy and a talented singer and lutenist, was also a patron of the arts, hosting musical events and seeking out many female poets and singing groups for her performances. Maddalena Casulana was the first woman in Western music history to publish her music and consider herself a professional composer. Paola Massarenghi from Parma is credited for being the second woman ever to have a madrigal published during her lifetime. Venetian Lucia Quinciani is the earliest known published female composer of monody. Raffaella Aleotti was a nun, whose compositions were the first book of sacred music by a woman to appear in print and who not only performed, but led an ensemble of twenty-three nuns – something not usual in her times. Claudia Francesca Rusca wrote the first known preserved instrumental works by a woman. The Portuguese composer Vicente Lusitano was the only published composer of African descent in 16th century Europe. His highly elaborate vocal music has only become more widely available since 2022.

Crescendo Vocal Ensemble of twenty-five singers, with soloists Jennifer Tyo and Sarah Fay, sopranos, Laura Evans, alto, and Igor Ferreira, tenor, are accompanied by Christa Patton, harp and recorder, and Juan Mesa, organ. The ensemble is directed by Crescendo Founding Artistic Director Christine Gevert.

On Sunday, February 23 at 2:00 PM ET, a live, online pre-concert talk will be held with Dr. Laurie Stras from London, UK and Dr. Karen Cook from Hartford, Conn. who will discuss the background of female composers and performers in the 16th century.