Early Music Meets New Spotlight - Liaison Ensemble

Leading up to Helia & Liaison Ensemble's October 27th concert, ​Early Music Meets New, we'll be posting interviews with our collaborators to offer you a sneak-peak into their lives, their musical process, and their inspiration. Read on to learn more!

Meet Liaison Ensemble! On October 27, 2018, Liaison will be giving the world-premiere of four brand-new pieces for mezzo-soprano and Baroque ensemble. Learn about their background, their ensemble, and fun facts about their lives.

Tell us about Liaison - how did you meet? When and how was Liaison born?

Liaison was originally formed in 2011 by two of our current members, Susie & Hallie, along with a soprano (Anne-Kathryn Olsen) and soprano (Danielle Sampson), while we were all students at SFCM. The concept of Liaison was founded on our desire to bring historically informed performance and early music to a wider audience and to non-traditional venues, in order to reach more diverse listeners. Some of this effort also involved experimenting with crossover genres using our early instruments and styles.

Over the years, after the two original singers moved out of the Bay Area, we evolved into our current ensemble membership in 2016. With the addition of Melinda and Tatiana, who were also fellow students at SFCM, our group’s focus has shifted into incorporating even more crossover collaboration and celebrating the common thread between early music and many other genres including jazz, world music, and new music.

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What do you look for when choosing music?

Since our core ensemble has always been voice + continuo, we generally look for pieces based on that instrumentation. We enjoy exploring baroque music from all parts of the world, especially by lesser-played/lesser-known composers. In our collaborations we like to work with diverse styles and instruments to highlight the common threads between baroque music and other musical genres. The climate of the last couple years has inspired us to celebrate our identities as women, and also to present works by more female composers and collaborate with more female ensembles.

What do you like to tell collaborators at the beginning of the composition process?

We love the educational aspect of collaboration, in sharing the music in which we specialize, telling others about the nuances of period instruments, and learning about our collaborators’ areas of musical expertise.

Tell us about the program for October 27th. Any surprises? Why did you choose those Baroque pieces in particular?

Focusing on female composers is a really empowering project for us, both as a group and for each of personally. Barbara Strozzi is a favorite, and Francesca Caccini was fun to explore. We found Strozzi especially interesting, since she published under her given name, had children but never married, and wrote almost all secular music.

What's a fun fact about each of you? Interesting hobby outside of music?

Tatiana: I like spending time with my boyfriend and family, cooking, camping, and I practice yoga.

Susie: I also work as a piano teacher and church organist/pianist and have two kids, so I don’t have a lot of free time. If I did, I would love to spend more time baking, reading, movies, or traveling.

Hallie: I’m currently in grad school for Special Education. I like traveling, camping, and drinking wine.
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Melinda: I enjoy listening to old Jazz and Soul LPs, eating tacos, drinking bourbon, cooking New Mexican food, and practicing Muay Thai. I like to dance and was a competitive Irish step dancer for 12 years.

Tatiana Senderowicz (theorbo), Melinda Becker (mezzo-soprano), Susie Fong (harpsichord), & Hallie Marshall-Pridham (baroque cello)

Find out more about Liaison by visiting:

http://www.liaisonensemble.com/


Don't miss Liaison's performance!

Early Music Meets New: Liaison Ensemble + Helia Music Collective
Saturday, October 27th at 8:00pm
Center for New Music (55 Taylor St., SF, CA)
$15 general/$10 members, students, seniors
Tickets available at the door and online here.

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