Kings and Commonwealth

Date and Time for this Past Event

• Fri, May 2, 2025 - Sun, May 4, 2025  

Location

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Details

Kings and Commonwealth revives the political music of 16th- and 17th-century England, offering country dances, courtly chamber music, and a wealth of popular broadside ballads on political topics, some sung to great tunes like “Greensleeves.”

Kings James I and Charles I, Parliament, and Oliver Cromwell all figure prominently in the concert’s selections. During this tumultuous time, the monarchs and Parliament were involved in a struggle over the absolute power of the king, leading to Civil War and a royal execution. The music and poetry from early modern England remain as charged and fervent as ever.