ENSEMBLE BASSO !

19 North 4th Street,Carbondale CO 81623

11 March, 2023

Description

Ensemble Basso comprises cellists and gambaists Sarah Biber and Sarah Graf. Both musicians have delved into playing music ranging from renaissance to modern eras on the instrument most suited to the time. Together they enjoy playing the vast repertoire which features the bass voices of the string family - the baroque cello, modern cello and viola da gamba, equally enjoying playing music from all eras. You’ll hear virtuosic baroque cello sonatas with continuo, duos where the two voices trade melodies in lively conversation, and exciting early classical music played on baroque cello— a completely different experience than hearing the same on our modern instruments. On viola da gamba, Sarah Biber’s musical artistry will transport you to another era. The quieter tone color of the instrument asks you to lean in and listen closely. We invite you to an early spring evening of music including works by Klein, Marais, Couperin and more. Sarah Biber has played viola da gamba and cello across the United States, Australia and China. In recent collaborations with dance, she has been featured with the Paul Taylor Dance Company performing solo Bach for the company’s first performance with period instruments. Ms. Biber earned her doctorate from Stony Brook University after double-degree studies at Oberlin Conservatory and College and the Sydney Conservatorium of Music. She relocated to Golden, Colorado where she teaches and plays with the Baroque Orchestra of Colorado, Colorado Bach Ensemble, Colorado Chamber Players and Byrd on a Wire, her viol consort. Sarah plays an 1815 Lockey Hill cello and a 2015 gamba by François Danger. A Colorado native, she has been delighted to be a part of the growth of Early Music in this beautiful state. Sarah Graf plays the cello and viola da gamba and is an avid chamber musician, soloist, and teacher. Since moving to Colorado in 2007, Sarah has performed extensively in recitals and concert series across the state. She earned her undergraduate degree and Performer’s Certificate from the Eastman School of Music, studying with Alan Harris and Steven Doane, and enjoyed playing with both the Ossia New Music Ensemble and the Collegium Musicum. Sarah has attended festivals including the Freiburg Baroque Academie in Freiburg, Germany, the National Orchestral Institute, and Aspen Music Festival. Sarah has performed in the Colorado Bach Ensemble, as principal cellist of the Aspen Choral Society and the Grand Junction Symphony Orchestra, and has appeared as a soloist with the High Country Sinfonia. As a teacher, Sarah has a private studio and coaches students of the Roaring Fork Youth Orchestra, of which she is also Executive Director. Now based in the Roaring Fork Valley region, Sarah grew up in Frederick, Maryland.