The free concert will be held this Saturday, November 1, from 2pm, in the gallery foyer, following a free talk by artist Kushana Bush at 1pm in the gallery auditorium.
The Rare Byrds ensemble, comprising Jonathan Cweorth (recorders), Dylan Kirby (recorders), Simone Petrich (nyckelharpa) and Alan Edwards (spinet and portative organ), will perform music from the medieval period, as well as the Renaissance and contemporary works inspired by medieval music.
Bush is a contributor to the "Paradise of Imagination: Medieval & Modern Encounters" exhibition, which includes works from the periods in the gallery collection, the Hocken Collections and Dunedin Public Library’s Reed Collection, as well as pieces by contemporary artists.
In her talk, Bush will discuss her artworks with curator Anya Samarasinghe.
These artworks — The Covered Hours, The Apple Creeper Hours and The Hazing Hours — were made in 2016 and reflected Bush’s visual language which evoked the luminosity and vibrancy of medieval art, and illuminated manuscripts.
Cweorth said the Rare Byrds were relishing the chance to perform a selection of medieval and medieval-influenced pieces inspired by the exhibition.
"It will be our second performance of medieval music for the year, following ... the Tūhura Otago Museum Medieval Fun Day in March.
"It’s fun to be able to showcase this fascinating musical period, as well as Renaissance and modern works inspired by it, once again in this concert," he said.
The performance will include works by Renaissance composer Josquin DesPrez, medieval works such as the Saltarello dance, Stella Splendens, and Summer is icumen in as well as three selections from The Ceremony of Carols by Benjamin Britten, arranged for the Rare Byrds ensemble by Edwards.
For Edwards, the concert will also be a chance to showcase the two keyboard instruments he will play — a spinet based on a specific instrument from the 1770s and a portative organ he built himself.
"The portative organ is the type of organ that would have been used in medieval times, which I built from scratch using timber I had around the house," he said.
"It is quite authentic, except the bellows can be operated using the feet, rather than requiring a second person to pump them. And it makes a really nice, deep sound."
