2026-2027 New York City Concerts
Semper Dowland
Saturday, November 14, 2026
7:00 PM
In Semper Dowland, Ars Poetica traces the journeys of John Dowland across the shifting musical landscapes of late Renaissance Europe. From 1560s Dublin to 1580s Paris, through the vibrant centers of 1590s Italy, Germany, and Denmark, and finally to London, this program follows the arc of an artist's life in perpetual motion.
The Queen of the Sacred and the Profane
Saturday, January 23, 2027
7:00 PM
The Queen of the Sacred and the Profane centers on Marguerite de Navarre as a pivotal literary and spiritual figure of the French Renaissance. The program explores her musical world, featuring composers such as Claude de Sermisy, Josquin des Prez, as well as works from the Canconiero del Palacio. Ars Poetica’s vocal, instrumental, and narrative-driven programming offers a unique interpretation of this repertoire, illuminating the interplay between sacred and secular expression in Marguerite’s lifetime.
Tod und der Landsknecht
Friday, April 30, 2027
7:00 PM
Tod und der Landsknecht presents an imagined portrait of a 16th-century mercenary through works by Ludwig Senfl, Heinrich Isaac, Leonhard Lechner, Georg Forster, Benedictus Ducis, and anonymous sources. Structured in five stages, the program traces a trajectory from pastoral simplicity and youthful aspiration, through enlistment and the allure of martial life, to experiences of loss, fear, and displacement, concluding with a retrospective longing for home and stability. Framed as an anti-war narrative, it interrogates the cultural idealization of the Landsknecht, foregrounding instead the psychological and human costs embedded within early modern military life.