La Jolla|Local Event
Artifex Consort | Chamber Concert | Athenaeum Music & Arts Library | La Jolla (May 4)
Monday, May 4, 2026
7:30 PM
Specializing in the rich and varied “sound-world” of the late 17th century, the Artifex Consort (Malachai Komanoff Bandy, Rebecca Landell, and Eva Lymenstull, bass viols; John Lenti, theorbo; Ian Pritchard, keyboards) closes our season with works showcasing the viola da gamba as an ensemble instrument outside of the English consort tradition, during the height of its later flourishing in parts of England and Germany. The program features virtuosic music for two bass viols by Christopher Simpson and Johannes Schenck, alongside lush and ingenious—though little-known—works for three bass viols by Benjamin Hely and Johann Michael Nicolai.
An ensemble dedicated to mediating theory and practice in spirited performance, Artifex Consort shares its name with the 17th century alchemical adept hard at work in both the library and the laboratory, the perennial student whose rigorous craft centers on cultivating and sharing knowledge through Nature’s artful imitation. This mission lends itself particularly well to reanimating lesser-known works of the 17th century Hamburg school of contrapuntists (Johann Theile, Johann Adam Reincken, Dieterich Buxtehude, and their circle), but the ensemble finds an equal home in the rich viol repertories of the French baroque and English consort traditions.
Artifex's base in Claremont, California invites blended inspiration from the cultural riches of metro Los Angeles and the rugged foothills of the San Gabriel mountains.
All concerts are preceded by a pre-concert talk at 6:45 p.m. and are followed by a reception with the artists in the Sharon & Joel Labovitz Entry Hall.