Barbara Hollinshead & Howard Bass

Barbara Hollinshead, mezzo-soprano, and lutenist Howard Bass have performed together for more than two decades, presenting “delightfully intimate” programs featuring Renaissance and early baroque music from England, France, Italy, and Spain, often in thematically linked programs. They have performed recently at the Italian Embassy, the National Gallery of Art, at the Washington Early Music Festival, and on music series in the Washington, D.C., area. Barbara, a member of Artek, specializes in baroque and early music and is a much-sought-after soloist for oratorios and chamber music. Howard, a member of Trio Sefardi, has performed and recorded as a soloist, accompanist, and ensemble member throughout the U.S.

 

 

 

The duo offers the following programs:

Theatre Musick: Elizabethan lute songs and solos from the plays of Shakespeare and his contemporaries

Birds, Bees, Flowers, and Trees: An Elizabethan Celebration of Mother Earth

Loves Lost…and Found: Lute Songs and Solos from Elizabethan England

Airs de Cour: Music from 16^th and 17^th Century France

Frottolas, Fantasias, i Amore: Music of 16^th and 17^th Century Italy, including music of Tromboncino, Francesco da Milano, Monteverdi, and Cavalli

Songs of Love and Loss in Spanish and Ladino: Music of 16^th Century Spain and traditional Sephardic songs

Winter Tales: Renaissance and Traditional Holiday and Seasonal Songs

Sleep, Dreams, and Awakenings

For more information and bookings, please email us.

 

What the reviewers say about Barbara Hollinshead and Howard Bass

“Mezzo-soprano Barbara Hollinshead, one of Washington’s finest interpreters of early music, and lute virtuoso Howard Bass have produced a delightful and superbly styled selection of music by John Dowland, Thomas Morley, and other composers of the English Renaissance.” The Washington Post

“Hollinshead and Bass are musicians of tremendous skill and commitment, and they delivered the music with passion and care.” The Washington Post

“The disc (“Loves Lost…and Found”) includes lute solos magnificently played by Bass.” Early Music America

“Howard Bass brought superb musicianship to everything he played.” The Washington Post

[“Loves Lost…and Found”] is a “delightfully intimate disc, a very appealing introduction to this repertoire. Hollinshead has a lovely light, natural voice, and Bass is a sensitive accompanist who produces a strong, substantial sound.” Early Music Review