Digital ConcertAvailable October 26 - November 15

Under the Influence: Mark Edwards, harpsichord

Mark Edwards, harpsichord

Experience this exclusive digital concert with Canadian harpsichordist as he explores the rich musical world of the 17th-century French clavecinistes. Uncovering a performance culture of spontaneity, variability, and improvisation, he illustrates how these composer-performers were constantly adapting their own music and the music of others. The concert features music by Jacques Champion de Chambonnières, Jean-Henry D’Anglebert, and Louis Couperin, along with a number of improvisations by Edwards, influenced by these improvisers of the past.

These three 17th-century harpsichordists knew each other well. Chambonnières, the so-called “father of the harpsichordists,” was famous for his ability to uncover “new charms” within the music he played, varying his pieces each time he played them. He was also a decisive influence on both Couperin and D’Anglebert, and all three certainly knew and played each other’s music. This concert re-creates this culture of mutual influence, showing how performers took the music of others and made it their own through the medium of performance. It also shows how performers of today can continue this tradition of adaptation. In addition to a variety of improvised preludes, Edwards improvises within a suite of pieces by Chambonnières, adding ornamented variations, additional sections, and even new movements. Under the influence of 17th-century improvisers, the score no longer represents the composer’s last word. Instead, it becomes an invitation to discover “new charms” for old music.

Click here for the concert programme and credits.

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Mark Edwards, harpsichord

First prize winner in the 2012 Musica Antiqua Bruges International Harpsichord Competition, Canadian harpsichordist and organist Mark Edwards is recognized for his captivating performances, bringing the listener “to new and unpredictable regions, using all of the resources of his instrument, […] of his virtuosity, and of his imagination” (La Libre Belgique). Since 2016, he is Assistant Professor of Harpsichord at Oberlin Conservatory.

He has given solo recitals at a number of prominent festival and concert series. He has had concerto performances with a number of award-winning ensembles, including Ensemble Caprice (Canada) and the Montreal Symphony Orchestra. He is also an active chamber musician.

His début solo CD, Orpheus Descending, was released in 2017 on the early-music.com label and was reviewed warmly. Passaggi (ATMA 2013), his CD with the Canadian recorder player Vincent Lauzer, was nominated for an ADISQ award.

In addition to his success in Bruges, Mark has distinguished himself as a prizewinner in a number of important competitions, including the 2012 Jurow International Harpsichord Competition, the 2011 Concours d’orgue de Québec, and the 2008 Rodland Organ Competition. He is the recipient of academic grants from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada and the German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD). He studied at the Eastman School of Music in Rochester, NY, where he earned his Bachelor of Music with highest distinction, and completed graduate degrees at McGill University and the Hochschule für Musik Freiburg. His former teachers include Robert Hill, William Porter, Hank Knox, and David Higgs. In 2021, he received a PhD from Leiden University after successfully defending his dissertation titled “Moving Early Music: Improvisation and the Work-Concept in Seventeenth-Century French Keyboard Performance.”