Hope College will showcase its new harpsichord with a performance by the internationally acclaimed Edward Parmentier on Sunday, Sept. 17, 3 p.m. in Wichers Auditorium of Nykerk Hall of Music.
The public is invited. Admission is free.
Parmentier has performed around the world, and his recordings have won both popular and critical acclaim. Currently a professor at the University of Michigan School of Music, Parmentier is a specialist in the harpsichord music of J. S. Bach, the English virginalists, and the French clavecinistes.
"Superb," says "The New York Times." "Mr. Parmentier's imagination and intensity are hard to resist."
The performance will feature works by J.S. Bach, Domenio Scarlatti, William Byrd and others.
Hope College's new harpsichord is the result a number of gifts to the department of music, and continues Hope's commitment to offering students high-caliber instruments on which to learn and perform. It was built specifically for Hope by Richard Kingston of North Carolina, who has produced more than 300 instruments and in 1991 received the Spivey Award for Excellence in Instrument Building.
Nykerk Hall of Music is located along the former 12th Street between College and Columbia avenues.