My name is Gregory Jon Harbert, and I am very pleased to be joining the Santa Cruz Baroque Festival. To briefly summarize my background, other performing groups I have worked with include Bay Shore Lyric Opera, the Santa Cruz County Symphony, Cabrillo Music Festival, Santa Cruz Ballet Theater, as well as the Distinguished Artists Series. I also publish the Santa Cruz Arts Journal. I look forward to helping guide the Baroque Festival into the new millennium as their general manager.

Early music has always been close to my heart, often harkening back to the twilight times of the days of yore. It seems easy to imagine sharing a meal with King Arthur and his knights, watching dances performed to - you guessed it - early music. These images stem from the magic of the age, which flows through to Baroque music.

A lesser known aspect of Baroque music is its improvisational qualities, much like the modern musical genre called jazz. Often, Baroque includes music derived from folk melodies, many far older than memory. Some musicians would travel far and wide while performing, integrating new musical elements into their own style, and passing on what they knew in the process. Because of this, Baroque music could be considered an early form of world beat. And you can very clearly hear the cultural influences and techniques when they are performed in the festival.

Baroque music and dancing went, literally, hand in hand. Because of its folk origins, many of the Baroque pieces told stories of the lives of the people, or tales about their heroes, battles, and of course, love. These tales, told through the universal languages of music and dance, moved beyond the constraints of national boundaries, creating a musical standard (for what could be thought of as very early pop culture).

It is my hope to work with the Santa Cruz Baroque Festival in its quest to blend high music standards, historical accuracy and interpretation, with the fun and magic that is Baroque. Santa Cruz County should be very proud to host such quality work.

I would like to invite all of you to get involved with the Santa Cruz Baroque Festival, by way of purchasing season tickets, or joining our festival by way of your volunteer time, and join us in making Santa Cruz County go for Baroque! I’m looking forward to seeing you there.

Where the spirit does not work with the hand, there is no art.
- Leonardo Da Vinci