Early Music Program

The Five College Early Music Program offers a variety of opportunities to engage with the rich and varied repertoire of Medieval, Renaissance, and Baroque music.

    About

    Founded in 1979, the Five College Early Music Program (EMP) is a collaboration among schools, programs, and teachers in the Five College Consortium to offer students and affiliates the opportunity to explore the rich and varied music of the Medieval, Renaissance, and Baroque periods. Participants may take private lessons, participate in chamber music courses or larger ensembles, or study historical dance, under the guidance of specialist instructors in the field of early music. The Early Music Program also hosts or co-hosts performances and residencies by professional early music performers and ensembles.

    Faculty and Instructors

    Allison Monroe, Five College Collegium, Program Director
    Nona Monahin, Renaissance/Baroque Dance
    Meg Pash, lute, Lute Ensemble, Dance Band, Renaissance/Baroque Dance, 17th-century Song Seminar, mixed ensembles
    Alice Robbins, viola de gamba, Baroque cello, string ensembles, mixed ensembles

    Courses and Ensembles

    Note that if you don't see classes from all campuses currently listed, they will appear as the campuses release their course schedules for the semester. The five campuses release their schedules on different dates. Visit this page for specific dates.

    Fall 2023 Early Music Courses

    Subject Course # Sect # Course Title Instructor(s) Institution Meeting Times
    MUSIC 143H 01 Early Music Chamber Ensemble Instructor To Be Announced Mount Holyoke College -
    MUSIC 147D 01 Early Music:Ren/Baroque Dance Nona Monahin,Margaret Pash Mount Holyoke College TH 07:15PM-08:45PM
    MUSIC 151X 01 Ind. Perform. Study: Lute Margaret Pash Mount Holyoke College
    MUSIC 151Y 01 Ind. Perform. Study: Erly Str Alice Robbins Mount Holyoke College

    Five College Collegium

    Hampshire College [course number TBD] (late fall 2023)
    UMass Amherst MUSIC 578-01

    The Five College Collegium is the flagship ensemble of the Five College Early Music Program. The ensemble is made up of experienced singers and instrumentalists from the Five College Consortium, and prepares four large-scale projects in the course of the academic year for public performance. The Collegium rotates its rehearsal residency among the schools in the Five College system, and focuses on repertoire from the Medieval, Renaissance, and Baroque periods. Whenever possible, the Collegium invites professional musicians as guests to work with the ensemble on material that is relevant to the current project.

    If Collegium is meeting at your home institution in a given half semester, you may register (with instructor approval, after audition) through your college’s registration system. Otherwise, please use the Five College cross-registration system.

     

    Early Music Chamber Ensembles

    Mount Holyoke College MUSIC-143H

    This course offers opportunities to play and sing chamber music from the Medieval, Renaissance, and Baroque eras, collaborating with musicians from the Five Colleges and with the support of a specialist coach. Ensemble members will draw on historical context and performance practice as they refine performance technique and ensemble skills. Singers and instrumentalists will be sorted into ensembles based on level— from beginner to advanced— and areas of interest. Chamber ensembles also offer an opportunity to develop skills for more advanced projects such as those of the Five College Collegium. (See MUSIC-147A.) The Early Music Program has a large collection of historical instruments to loan.

     

    Early Music Chamber Ensembles

    Below are descriptions of some of the many ensembles that can be formed under the heading of MHC Music 143H, Early Music Chamber Ensemble. For more details, contact the instructor linked below or program director Allison Monroe (amonroe@mtholyoke.edu.)

    All levels, beginner to advanced, grouped by experience. Opportunity to study and play Renaissance Viol consort repertoire for 3-6 viols (treble, tenor, bass). Beginning classes will learn basic Viola da Gamba technique and will be able to play simple consort pieces by semester end. Instruments are available for enrolled students. Led by Alice Robbins.

    For experienced modern violin family string players. Violin, viola, cello and bass students will study late Renaissance and Baroque style bowing and playing techniques and appropriate performance practice through the study and playing of ensemble pieces from the time period 1550-1750.  A limited number of gut strung instruments and early bows are available for enrolled students. Led by Alice Robbins.

    These ensembles will focus on interpreting the music of the Renaissance and Baroque eras on the four commonly-played sizes of recorders (soprano, alto, tenor, and bass). Participants will learn recorder technique, ensemble skills, and performance practices applicable to Renaissance and Baroque music. Some instruments are available to borrow. Instructor to be announced. 

    This ensemble will focus on Renaissance music for historical reed and brass instruments, the forerunners of the modern oboe, bassoon, trombone, and trumpet. Participants will learn technique, ensemble skills, and the repertoire of Renaissance civic wind bands, in an ensemble of three to six players. Instructor to be announced.

    Music as it was played for dancers in the 16th to 18th centuries, and adapted for concert music by composers from Monteverdi to Bach, from pavan and galliard to minuet, sarabande, and gigue.  Open to intermediate and advanced players of recorder, flute, violin, viola, cello, viola da gamba, lute, and guitar. Led by Meg Pash.

    Open to beginning through advanced players of lute and guitar (any style). There are a limited number of lutes available, and guitarists will find it easy and fun to make the transition to lute while playing renaissance songs, dance music, and improvising renaissance-style over familiar chord progressions. Led by Meg Pash.

    For advanced singers, and players of continuo instruments including lute, guitar, harpsichord, viola da gamba, and cello. 17th-century solos, duos, and trios, including English lute songs, French airs de cour, and Italian arias. Led by Meg Pash.

    Depending upon interest, Medieval ensemble may focus on topics including Gregorian chant, 13th-century monophonic and polyphonic song, instrumental dances, 14th-century chanson, etc. Instructor to be announced. 

    Early music chamber ensembles are administered through Mount Holyoke College. If you are not a Mount Holyoke student, please use the Five College cross-registration system.

    Historical Dance

    Sixteenth- through eighteenth-century European social dance, contemporary with the eras of Elizabeth I and Shakespeare in England, the Medicis in Italy, Louis XIV in France, and colonial America. The focus will be on learning the dances, supplemented by historical and social background, discussion of the original dance sources, and reconstruction techniques.
    Crosslisted as: DANCE-127

     

    Continuation of Renaissance and Baroque Dance I. Sixteenth- through eighteenth-century European social dance, contemporary with the eras of Elizabeth I and Shakespeare in England, the Medicis in Italy, Louis XIV in France, and colonial America. The focus will be on learning the dances, supplemented by historical and social background, discussion of the original dance sources, and reconstruction techniques.
    Crosslisted as: DANCE-128

     

    Renaissance/Baroque Dance I and II are Mount Holyoke College classes. If you are not a Mount Holyoke student, please use the Five College cross-registration system.

     

    Individual Performance Study (private lessons)

    Individual performance study (private lessons) is administered through Mount Holyoke College. If you are not a Mount Holyoke student, please use the Five College cross-registration system.

    Some examples of instruments that may be studied privately include:

    • Recorder
    • Baroque flute
    • Other early winds (e.g. sackbut)
    • Lute
    • Baroque strings

    Inquiries and Auditions

    If you’re interested in participating in the Early Music Program, please contact program director Allison Monroe at amonroe@mtholyoke.edu, or you can email the relevant ensemble director for more information or to schedule an audition. We look forward to hearing from you!