Monteverdi’s Legacy

Folger Consort opens its 50th season with a musical journey through 17th-century Venice, the “City of Canals” where early Baroque innovations flourished. The program explores the expressive and virtuosic music associated with Claudio Monteverdi and the composers influenced by him, moving among madrigals, motets, sonatas, and excerpts from early opera.

Monteverdi became music director at Venice’s Basilica of San Marco in 1613, when the city was already an important center of church music. During the following three decades, Venice developed into a leading home for opera and chamber music. This concert features works by Monteverdi as well as his students and admirers, including Rovetta, Cavalli, and Marini.

When: Friday, September 11 through Sunday, September 13, 2026

Showtimes: Friday, September 11 at 8:00 p.m.; Saturday, September 12 at 2:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m.; and Sunday, September 13 at 2:00 p.m.

Venue: Folger Theatre

Tickets: $20–$50, with tickets listed from $20

Ages: Children under 4 are not permitted.

Pre-concert discussion: On Friday, September 11, and Saturday, September 12, Christopher Kendall and Robert Eisenstein, the Folger Consort’s co-artistic directors, will lead a discussion with guest artists from 7:00 to 7:30 p.m. Admission is included with a concert ticket.

Lineup: Jessica Beebe, soprano; Tatiana Chulochnikova, violin; Agnes Coakley Cox, soprano; Robert Eisenstein, viola da gamba; Joseph Gascho, harpsichord; Aisslinn Nosky, violin; and William Simms, theorbo and guitar.

Artistic leadership: Robert Eisenstein and Christopher Kendall are the Folger Consort’s founding artistic directors. Eisenstein, who performs on bass viol, has led more than 200 Folger Consort productions and performances and is a specialist in music history and early performance practice. Kendall founded the ensemble and is also the artistic director and conductor of the 21st Century Consort at the Smithsonian’s Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden. He previously served as dean of the University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance and director of the University of Maryland School of Music, and has conducted repertoire spanning the 18th through 21st centuries.

Artists: Soprano Jessica Beebe has appeared with orchestras and early-music groups including the English Concert, Indianapolis Baroque Orchestra, Piffaro, Bourbon Baroque, and the Princeton Festival Orchestra. Violinist Tatiana Chulochnikova is an international soloist, concertmaster, chamber musician, recording artist, and educator whose 2026–27 season includes appearances with Folger Consort, American Bach, Washington Bach Consort, and Pratum Integrum. Soprano Agnes Coakley Cox specializes in early Baroque singing and is a co-founder of In Stile Moderno, an ensemble devoted to 17th-century music.

Artists: Harpsichordist and conductor Joseph Gascho has performed at venues including Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center and teaches at the University of Michigan, where he co-directs the Baroque Chamber Orchestra. Violinist Aisslinn Nosky is concertmaster of the Handel and Haydn Society of Boston and co-artistic leader of Bach Charlotte; she has also performed with Tafelmusik and the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment. William Simms performs on theorbo and guitar with groups including Apollo’s Fire, Washington Bach Consort, Tempesta di Mare, and Modern Musick, and has performed early-music repertoire with opera companies including Washington National Opera, Opera Lafayette, and Opera Philadelphia.

Ensemble: Folger Consort is the Folger Shakespeare Library’s award-winning ensemble-in-residence. Founded in 1977 by Eisenstein and Kendall, it presents music from the medieval, Renaissance, and Baroque periods.

Run time: Not listed on the event page.