The Ensemble

a Follia celebrates its 24^rd anniversary season this year as part of Austin's lively and diverse musical scene. Focusing on music of the 17^th and 18^th centuries, we use instruments and performing styles appropriate to that period. We delight in unearthing little-known composers and musical treasures and sharing them with our audiences. Our goal is to bring this fascinating music back to life by recreating the original sounds, which are lighter, sweeter, and more transparent than those of modern instruments, and by mastering such lost arts as ensemble improvisation. We are dedicated to blending thorough scholarship with passion and sheer fun. Expect to be surprised!

La Follia group photo

Stephanie Prewitt Laurie Stevens Boel Gidholm Marcus McGuff
Keith Womer Scott Horton James Brown

a Follia has appeared throughout Texas, and its members have recorded and perform/ed throughout the world as soloists and with other ensembles. La Follia helped establish the annual Early Music Festival at the Festival-Institute at Round Top, Texas. The ensemble has performed throughout Texas and has appeared frequently on John Aielli's Eklektikos radio program on KUT, and Classical Austin on KMFA.

a Follia, meaning "folly," is the title of a 16th-century Spanish dance. The music for this dance was based on a characteristic harmonic pattern, which became associated with a particular melody (shown on our 1995/96 season program covers) in the 17^th century. This dance has fascinated composers down to our own time. Variations on La Follia have been written by Alessandro Scarlatti, Marin Marais, Arcangelo Corelli, J.S. and C.P.E. Bach, Antonio Vivaldi, Luigi Cherubini, Franz Liszt, Carl Nielsen, and Sergei Rachmaninoff.

aul Gabler, in the Netherlands, has assembled a breathtakingly comprehensive web "shrine" to the La Follia theme at La Folia: A Musical Cathedral. If you're interested in the origins of this ubiquitous musical motif, and how it has appeared countless times in western music, you should pay him a visit. He has assembled a wealth of information, including history, discography, sound clips and sheet music, in what can only be described as a labor of love.