Welcome to the wonderful world of early music!

Whether it’s your first time at a classical music concert or you’re a seasoned pro who wants to expand their early music vocabulary, we've compiled information to help you see yourself at Ars Lyrica Houston.

👠🎩 Dress code

Our patrons have arrived in ballgowns, and they’ve arrived in jeans and a button-down! Wear something that makes you feel confident inside and outside the concert hall.

📍Location📍

Zilkha Hall is the smaller hall in The Hobby Center for the Performing Arts, located downtown in the Theater District at Bagby and Rusk.

• There is a box office with will call in the lobby, and for every ALH concert, there will also be a PR table where you can learn more about the organization, subscriptions, and special events.

• The Zilkha Hall concession stand offers snacks and drinks. You may bring your drinks into the concert hall as long as there is no ice in your cup!

The closest light rail stops are Main Street Square (line 700) and Theater District (lines 800 and 900).

Parking is $25 at the valet (Lexus drivers get free valet parking) and $15 at the Hobby Center Parking Garage. Downtown street parking is free on weekends.

The run time of ALH concerts is normally 1.5 to 2 hours with intermission. Check each concert’s event page to see if there will be a pre-concert discussion.

Early music: An umbrella term for music written from the Renaissance to the early Classical eras.

Baroque: An era of classical music that encompassed the years 1600-1750. During the Baroque period, there was a resurgence of interest in ancient Greek and Roman culture and philosophy. Since one of the revitalized pillars of their culture was the idea that music served as a powerful tool of communication and could affect listeners' emotions intensely, Baroque composers started writing music with their Greek and Roman ancestors' philosophies in mind: their music displayed the power they had over their listeners' emotions.

When you come to an ALH concert, imagine you're listening to this music for the very first time 300 years ago. Free from the church, patrons of the arts (including a blossoming middle class that had never existed before) could now experience music in a way they had never heard. The sadness, joy, raucousness, and beauty of Baroque music was new, surprising, and intense. What an incredible experience! And it's one you get to re-live at every ALH concert you attend.

Continuo: A group of instruments in the orchestra that provide the bass line for the rest of the ensemble. The use of a continuo was especially prominent in the Baroque era. In the two example photos, there are white arrows pointing to each member of the continuo. On the left, the members are harpsichord, bassoon, clavichord, cello, and bass. On the right, the members are harpsichord, cello, theorbo, viola, and bass. Everyone else is either a soloist or a part of the orchestra, *not* the continuo.

Historically-informed performance: Performance that takes into account sources including art, original manuscripts, treatises, costume, and instruments available at the time in order to recreate an authentic interpretation and experience.

Period instrument: An instrument that was used in a historical time period.

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