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Husband and wife team Jonathan Salzedo and Marion Rubinstein started The Albany Consort in 1974, straight out of College and University in London in England, at Christ Church, Albany Street, London. Startup groups like theirs fill a need for artistic expression. When you find the status quo unacceptable, the only thing to do is to line up a group of like-minded musicians and find your own way. Most of these groups fade out after a couple of years, because they are inherently unsustainable. But somehow we found a formula that works, and even after forty years we are not ready to stop! This is our experimental platform, where they can shun recording because they do not like the idea, where they can try out ideas because they just come to them, and where they can avoid the perils of perfectionism which are so endemic in our culture. They run on a shoestring, so only other enthusiasts will work with them.
They started out with a short series at Christ Church, Albany Street, London – hence the group’s name, which seems to have stuck, despite the (delightful) confusion it can cause. When Jonathan Salzedo moved to California in 1981, the name just wanted to come too. The groups's repertoire spans the period 1550-1750, with occasional forays into earlier and later centuries. Most performances now use period instruments.
Jonathan Salzedo (harpsichord), Marion Rubinstein (recorder and harpsichord) and Laura Rubinstein-Salzedo (violin) run the group. Other musicians are invited to join them, depending on the needs of the music.
The Albany Consort is now based in the San Francisco Bay Area (Sunnyvale). It holds non-profit 501(c)3 status as an affiliate of the San Francisco Early Music Society. |
