About the Artists:

Soprano Abigail Chapman is best known for her work in early music and in 20th- and 21st-century classical music. Since moving to Pennsylvania in 2016, Abbi has performed with Opera Philadelphia in Handel’s Semele and other works, and sings on the company’s recording of David Hertzberg’s new opera The Wake World. She has performed new works, toured, and recorded with the Grammy-winning ensemble The Crossing, including the 2019 premiere of Julia Wolfe’s Fire in my mouth with the New York Philharmonic, the recording of which earned a Grammy nomination. She sings regularly with the Philadelphia Orchestra as part of its Symphonic Choir, both at The Kimmel Center and at Carnegie Hall. She has sung with Les Agréments de Musique at Princeton University and Westminster Choir College, and with The Practitioners of Musick at the Museum of the American Revolution. She has appeared in recitals of lute song at the Boston Early Music Festival and at New York’s Gotham Early Music Scene, and has been a guest artist with Musikanten Montana Early Music Festival, Brandywine Baroque, La Fiocco, and many others. Abbi holds a MM in Voice from The Peabody Institute of The Johns Hopkins University, and a BA from Sarah Lawrence College. She lives with her husband, drummer Peter Gregory, and their three cats in Yardley, Pennsylvania; she enjoys cooking, gardening, hiking, biking, and other outdoor activities.

John Orluk Lacombe – lute, theorbo, bass viol, cittern - performs as a soloist and with small ensembles on Renaissance lutes and other early plucked strings. He performs regularly in the central NJ and Bucks County area, and is Co-Director of Riverview Early Music with soprano Abigail Chapman. He also appears as an invited guest in English and literature courses to demonstrate Renaissance lute music and discuss musical aesthetics. John earned an M.A. in musicology at SUNY Buffalo where he focused on issues of authenticity in musical performance. He has studied lute, baroque guitar, and theorbo with Richard Stone, Daniel Swenberg, and the late Patrick O’Brien, and has participated in master classes with Paul O’Dette, Ronn McFarlane, and Nigel North. In performing, he strives to find ways to bridge the gap between historical performance practice and modern understanding of music. John’s interests outside of music include homebrewing and pop-up books.

Bill Thatcher – lutes, early guitars, colascione, winds - came to early music after years of playing guitar, banjo, and bass in a variety of solo and group acts that focused on early genres of American music, including folk, jazz, and classic rock. A product of the folk music revival with an interest in traditional American music and its roots, Bill was attracted to the early music of Europe, the sultry sounds of the lute and the rich history and culture that surrounds it. Bill holds a master’s degree in folklore and ethnomusicology from Indiana University and has studied lute and guitar with Xaver Diaz-Lattore, Ronn McFarlane, and the late Pat O’brien. As a performer, Bill has strolled the grounds of Renaissance Faires and performed concerts with Riverview Early Music, Cambiata, Moravian Collegium, NY Continuo Collective, Bethlehem Bach Festival Orchestra, and La Fiocca. He has also played musical roles in the theatre, including Touchstone Theatre’s Make We Merry, and Pennsylvania Shakespeare Festival’s Hamlet, Much Ado About Nothing, and Shakespeare in Love. Bill is featured on three CD’s by Cambiata, and on the CD release of Handel’s Ode to St. Cecilia’s Day by the Bach Choir of Bethlehem.

Julia Lipkis - stay tuned for more information …