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Pamela Dellal: Tuning the Modes

January 20, 2021 | 7:00 PM

The second of Blue Heron’s 2020-2021 Spotlight Sessions, “Tuning the Modes,” features our own Pamela Dellal. A seasoned teacher and performer, Pam draws on many years of experience singing medieval and Renaissance music with Sequentia and Blue Heron, among other ensembles. In this lecture-demonstration she will introduce the characteristic intervals and melodic gestures of the medieval modes and—singing to the drone of her hurdy-gurdy—show how the tuning of the intervals lends direction, color, and expression to the modal scales.

This Spotlight Session will be a mix of live and pre-recorded elements.

Preview Video

Pamela Dellal, mezzo-soprano, has enjoyed a distinguished career as a soloist and recitalist. She has performed in Symphony Hall, the Kennedy Center, Avery Fisher Hall, and the Royal Albert Hall, and premiered a chamber work by John Harbison in New York, San Francisco, Boston, and London. With Sequentia, Dellal has recorded the music of Hildegard von Bingen and toured the US, Europe, and Australia. Passionate about chamber music, early music, and contemporary music, she has appeared frequently with Dinosaur Annex, Boston Musica Viva, Ensemble Chaconne, Blue Heron, and the Musicians of the Old Post Road. She has been a regular soloist with Emmanuel Music for over thirty-five years and is close to accomplishing her goal of singing all the alto movements in Bach’s sacred works. She has made over forty commercial recordings, for Artona, BMG, CRI, Dorian, Meridian, KOCH, and other labels. Dellal serves on the faculties of the Boston Conservatory at Berklee and the Longy School of Music of Bard College.

www.pameladellal.com