Ars Lyrica Houston Continues Collaboration With Rienzi, Mfah With Concert Illustrating Chinese Influence On Baroque Art And Music

On Sunday, January 29th at 4 pm and 5:30 pm, Ars Lyrica Houston will present a concert of musical chinoiseries from the 17th and 18th centuries at Rienzi, the Museum of Fine Arts House Museum for European decorative arts. Harpsichordist and curator Mario Aschauer, soprano Josefien Stoppelenburg, and violinist Manami Mizumoto will perform musical works inspired by Chinese art, a popular Baroque design trend reflected in the stunning collection at Rienzi.

Originally hailing from Austria, harpsichordist Mario Aschauer is recognized around the world for his research, conducting, and prize-winning keyboard performance.

Speaking of his joy collaborating with New York violinist Mizumoto and Dutch soprano Stoppelenburg, Aschauer says, "we all share just an incredible curiosity about music that's not often performed or has not been performed in hundreds of years. We are thrilled to share some really cool examples of chinoiserie-inspired music, including some works that haven't been performed in over 300 years."

All three musicians are experts in historically informed performance, and on January 29th will bring to life a collection of solo and chamber works by Couperin, Purcell, Hasse, and more. For this program, Aschauer will fittingly perform on a harpsichord decorated in ornate chinoiserie style, modeled after a 1688 instrument by Parisian maker Michel Richard.

Ars Lyrica Houston and Rienzi have collaborated since 2010. Recently, Ars Lyrica Artistic Director Matthew Dirst presented two sold-out concerts of Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier Book 1 on harpsichord. With its stunning Baroque-era decor, Rienzi offers the perfect environment to be immersed in historically informed performance.