"Performed here with the ease one might expect of an ensemble formed for this purpose more than a quarter of a century ago, the Locke Consort do not disappoint. They sympathetically gauge and shift between tempi, give due weight within phrases to the chromatic inflections and syncopated motifs, and engage in friendly imitative banter among themselves, always stylishly supported by the theorbist Fred Jacobs"
(Julie Anne Sadie for Gramophone) "Like several other 'young' baroque music groups today, the Locke Consort is cross-bred with players from several different countries and yet, far from being at odds stylistically, they seem to play with common convictions about tone, articulation and phrasing." (Gramophone) "The Locke Consort exudes real flair and swagger in this music, with an individual waxy, gutty, violin tone midway between the sound of viols and the more graceful style of later Baroque violin playing we are generally used to. In places the wildness of its tuning exactly matches the spikiness of Locke’s music" (Simon Heighes for International Record Review, April 2012) |
The Locke Consort has celebrated its 25th anniversary in 2011. The ensemble, composed of two baroque violin players (John Wilson Meyer and Mimi Mitchell, one viola da gamba player (Susanne Braumann) and one theorbo player (Fred Jacobs), has a global reputation for its championship of XVIIth century English music. Taking their name from the English composer Matthew Locke (1661/2-1677), they have modeled themselves on the ensemble Locke directed at the court of Charles II.
From the beginning of their career, The Locke Consort has received many international accolades, winning first prizes in the Erwin Body Competition (USA) and the Early Music Network Competition (UK) and being invited to perform in major festivals and series in Europe and the USA. They have recorded many of the major works of the XVIIth century English repertoire by Henry Purcell, John Jenkins and Locke himself. Recordings have been made both on CD and on the major television and radio networks including the BBC, Radio France, Dutch NOS and the National Public Radio (USA). The Locke Consort is also actively involved with contemporary music and has premiered works by the American composer Ron Ford and the Dutch composer Bart Visman. They have also worked together with Peter Greenaway on music for his film The Baby of Macon and with the Dutch modern dance group Leine & Roebana. The same musicians who founded the group more than 25 years ago still compose the ensemble today. The four members - from England, the Netherlands, Germany and the United States – met as conservatory students in the Netherlands, where the ensemble is still based. They look forward to playing together for 25 more years. |