Musicians of the Old Post Road
Musicians of the Old Post Road (MOPR) is a chamber music ensemble based in the Boston area that specializes in period instrument performance. The ensemble often performs "rediscovered" works from the Baroque, Classical, and Romantic periods.{{cite news|last1=Myers|first1=Robert|title=Musicians of the Old Post Road Polish Mediterranean Gems|publisher=Classical Voice of New England|date=19 December 2009}} The ensemble, founded by Artistic Directors Suzanne Stumpf and Daniel Ryan, performs in historical buildings along the Boston Post Road, which was a trade and travel route between Boston and New York City from the late 17th through mid-19th centuries. MOPR's repertoire spans these dates.{{cite news|last1=Duckett|first1=Richard|title=Unusual is Standard for Old Post Road|work=Worcester Telegram & Gazette|date=19 December 2008}} The group has produced seven CDs, toured throughout Europe and North America, and received numerous awards, including the Noah Greenberg Award from the American Musicological Society in 1998.{{cite news|last1=Dyer|first1=Richard|title=Classical Notes|work=The Boston Globe|date=6 November 1998}}
Notable performances and collaborations
MOPR has toured both within the US and internationally. US appearances include the Boston Early Music Festival Concert Series,{{cite web|title=1998-1999 Season|url=http://www.bemf.org/pages/concerts/pastCon/99.htm|website=Boston Early Music Festival|publisher=Boston Early Music Festival|accessdate=20 May 2015}} and the Indianapolis Early Music Festival.{{cite web|title=Concerts Presented by Festival Music Society/Indianapolis Early Music|url=http://www.emindy.org/previous-seasons/|website=Indianapolis Early Music|publisher=Festival Music Society of Indiana|accessdate=20 May 2015}} International appearances include performances at the {{Interlanguage link multi|Regensburg Tage Alter Musik|de|3=Tage Alter Musik Regensburg|lt=Tage Alter Musik}}, Germany,{{cite web|title=Kurze Geschicte der Tage Alter Musik Regensburg|url=http://www.tagealtermusik-regensburg.de/index.php?page=geschichte|website=Tage Alter Musik|publisher=Tage Alter Musik Regensberg|accessdate=6 April 2015}} and El Museo Regional in Cuauhnáhuac, Mexico.{{cite web|title=About Musicians of the Old Post Road|url=http://oldpostroad.org/about|website=Musicians of the Old Post Road|accessdate=6 April 2015}}
MOPR has collaborated with La Fontegara of Mexico,{{cite web|title=La Fontegara|url=http://lafontegara.net/index.html|website=La Fontegara México|publisher=IPOWER|accessdate=6 April 2015}} Schola Cantorum of Boston,{{cite web|title=Recent Concert Seasons|url=http://www.scholacantorumboston.com/past.html|website=Schola Cantorum of Boston|accessdate=6 April 2015}} and Pamela Dellal, mezzo soprano.{{cite web|title=Recordings with Musicians of the Old Post Road|url=http://www.pameladellal.com/PDDiscography.htm|website=Pamela Dellal|accessdate=6 April 2015}}
The ensemble was also commissioned to build a program to accompany an exhibit at the MIT Museum.{{cite web|title=On The Town|url=http://tech.mit.edu/V115/N2/ott.02a.html|website=The Tech|accessdate=6 April 2015}} In 2006, the ensemble was featured on Boston's WCVB television’s Chronicle program about the history of the old Boston Post Road.{{cite web|title=About Musicians of the Old Post Road|url=http://www.oldpostroad.org/about|website=Musicians of the Old Post Road|accessdate=21 July 2014|ref=About Us}}
Rediscovered works and programming
The ensemble frequently performs lesser-known, rediscovered works. In a 2008 interview, Stumpf stated ¨We enjoy finding works not often selected for performance and combining it with interesting ways to present it to our audience.¨{{cite news|last1=Duckett|first1=Richard|title=Unusual Is Standard for Old Post Road|issue=19 December 2008|publisher=Worcester Telegram & Gazette}} The ensemble presents these rediscovered works within contextualized programs.{{cite news|last1=Liu|first1=Cathy|title=Playing with History along the Old Post Road|publisher=Boston Sunday Globe|date=31 October 1993}}
Discography
- Roman Handel
- Feliz Navidad
- Telemann Twelve Fantasias and Other Works
- Telemann and Bodinus Quartets
- Galant with an Attitude: Music of Juan and José Pla
- Trios and Scottish Song Settings of J.N. Hummel. The ensemble won the 1998 Noah Greenberg Award for this recording.{{cite news |title=Chorus Pro Musica surveys its 50 years |work=Boston Globe |date=6 November 1998}}
- The Virtuoso Double Bass{{cite web|title=CD Discography|url=http://www.oldpostroad.org/CD_Discography|website=Musicians of the Old Post Road|accessdate=21 July 2014}}
Members
The ensemble is composed of five core members: Suzanne Stumpf, flute, Daniel Ryan, cello, Sarah Darling, violin, Michael Bahmann, harpsichord, and Marcia Cassidy, viola.{{cite news|last1=Duckett|first1=Richard|title=Unusual Is Standard for Old Post Road|publisher=Worcester Telegram & Gazette|date=19 December 2008}}
External links
- [http://www.oldpostroad.org/ Musicians of the Old Post Road]
- [https://www.youtube.com/user/musiciansopr Youtube of Musicians of the Old Post Road]