Folger Consort Presents Courtly Love Songs from 15th-Century France for Valentine's Day Weekend

WASHINGTON, Jan. 23, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Folger Consort, the award-winning early music ensemble-in-residence at the Folger Shakespeare Library, invites audiences to celebrate romance with the program Love Songs of the 15th Century, on stage in the Elizabethan-style Theatre February 13–15, 2026. 

"The 15th century saw the first full blossoming of what we commonly think of as the Renaissance," shared co-Artistic Director Christopher Kendall. "In the music on this program, you can hear the continuity with styles and techniques of the late Middle Ages, but you also hear the fresh tonal sensibility of composers like Guillaume Du Fay, and it's truly astonishing. We try to understand the seismic shift historically and analytically, but it's ultimately unaccountable: there was just something radically new in the air, and to our ears, it's beautiful in an entirely new way."

The concert series invites listeners back to the rich fabric of courtly life in 15th-century France and Burgundy, a period and region that extolled the romances between chivalrous knights and noble ladies in paintings and illustrations, poetry and music. 

For this Valentine's Day concert, many of the song selections are from the Chansonnier Cordiforme (c. 1470s), a heart-shaped manuscript that featured the most popular love songs of the 15th century by Guillaume Du Fay, Gilles Binchois, Johannes Ockeghem, Antoine Busnoys, and others. Christine de Pisan, author of the early feminist utopia The Book of the City of Ladies, penned the lyrics to one anguished ballad with music by Binchois, the sole surviving example of her poetry set to music. Full of passion and beauty, these secular songs serve as musical counterparts to the elegantly rendered illuminations in contemporary manuscripts. There will be instrumental works as well, some based on the popular chansons.

"As a 15th-century kind of guy, I am really looking forward to our Love Songs program," stated co-Artistic Director Robert Eisenstein. "With a colorful instrumental palette and terrific singers, we will explore songs from the 15th-century hit parade. These songs nostalgically look back to the courtly love lyrics of the troubadours but infuse these 'retro' lyrics with fresh new Renaissance sonorities." 

Folger Consort's lineup of artists includes Eisenstein (medieval fiddle, viol, and recorder), Kristen Dubenion-Smith (mezzo soprano), Dan Meyers (winds, percussion, and baritone), Allison Monroe (medieval fiddle and mezzo soprano), Christa Patton (harp and winds), and Jason McStoots (tenor).

Related programming for Love Songs of the 15th Century includes pre-show conversations with guest artists led by Kendall and Eisenstein, from 7–7:30pm before the Friday, February 13, and Saturday, February 14, performances. This event is free for performance ticketholders.

On Wednesday, February 11, at 6pm, Eisenstein leads a virtual seminar that offers a sneak peek at the music performed in the Folger Consort's Love Songs of the 15th Century concerts. The event will be hosted on Zoom; $10, free for Folger Members and Subscribers: https://www.folger.edu/whats-on/early-music-seminar-love-songs-of-the-15th-century/.

Tickets for each performance can be purchased online at www.folger.edu/consort or by contacting the Folger box office at (202) 544-7077. Tickets are $20-$50, with discounts available for Folger members and subscribers, seniors, students, educators, military and their families, and groups.

For more information about Love Songs of the 15th Century, please visit: www.folger.edu/lovesongs. 

Members of the press who would like to cover the performance may reserve tickets through Colleen Kennedy, Senior Communications Manager, via email at [email protected]. Selected images are available here: folger.edu/consort-presskit.

Folger Consort wishes to thank Premier Season Sponsor Andrea "Andi" Kasarsky; Production Sponsors Dr. Charles C. Hanna and Dr. Gail Orgelfinger; Associate Sponsors David and Lenka Lundsten and Mary Augusta and George D. Thomas; and Artist Sponsors Karl K. and Carrol Benner Kindel.

ABOUT THE ARTISTS

Robert Eisenstein
Artistic Director, Viol, Medieval Fiddle, and Recorder
Robert Eisenstein has led over 200 productions and performances with Folger Consort over the past 40 years, including Measure + Dido at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and Napa Valley Shakespeare, The Merchant of Venice at Strathmore, The Fairy Queen, and Hildegard Von Bingen's Ordo Virtutum at the Washington National Cathedral. Recently retired as the Director of the Five College Early Music Program; Music Director for the Five College Opera Project production of Francesca Caccini's La Liberazione di Ruggiero; Mount Holyoke College faculty emeritus, where he taught music history and performed on the viola de gamba, violin, and medieval fiddle. He is an active participant in Five College Medieval Studies. Recipient of Early Music America's Thomas Binkley Award for outstanding achievement in performance and scholarship by the director of a college early music ensemble. 

Christopher Kendall
Artistic Director
Christopher Kendall is the founder of the Folger Consort. He is Dean Emeritus of the University of Michigan School of Music, Theatre & Dance in Ann Arbor. In Washington, in addition to his work with Folger Consort, since 1975 he has been Artistic Director and conductor of the 21st Century Consort, the new music ensemble-in-residence at the Smithsonian's Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden. Mr. Kendall served as Director of the University of Maryland School of Music from 1996 to 2005. Associate Conductor of the Seattle Symphony from 1987 to 1992 and Director of the Music Division and Tanglewood Institute of the Boston University School for the Arts from 1993 to 1996, Mr. Kendall has guest conducted many orchestras and ensembles in repertoire from the 18th to the 21st centuries. His recordings can be heard on the Bard, Delos, Nonesuch, Centaur, ASV, Arabesque, Innova, Bridge, and Smithsonian Collection labels. 

GUEST ARTISTS

Kristen Dubenion-Smith (mezzo soprano)
Recognized for her "velvety legato and embracing warmth of sound" (Washington Classical Review) and "lyric-mezzo of uncommon beauty" (Washington Post), mezzo soprano Kristen Dubenion-Smith enjoys an active career performing oratorio and sacred vocal chamber music, specializing in music of the medieval, renaissance, and baroque eras. As a concert soloist, Kristen has earned recognition for her performances of Bach and Handel. Recent highlights include Bach's St. Matthew Passion with the Washington National Cathedral Baroque Orchestra, Handel's Esther with Opera Lafayette, and Bach's Christmas Oratorio with the Washington Bach Consort. Ms. Dubenion-Smith also sings on the 2021 Grammy winning recording of The Prison by Ethel Smyth with the Experiential Orchestra. 2024–2025 season highlights include Bach's St. Matthew Passion with the Washington Bach Consort, Mozart's Requiem with the Washington National Cathedral Baroque Orchestra, Durufle Requiem with Choralis, and debuts with The Thirteen, Variant 6, and Musica Spira.

Dan Meyers (winds, percussion, and baritone)
Dan Meyers is a flexible performer of both classical and folk music; his credits range from premieres of contemporary chamber music to playing Renaissance instruments on Broadway for Shakespeare's Globe Theatre Company. He is a co-founder of the early music/folk crossover group Seven Times Salt, and in recent seasons has performed with Hesperus, the Newberry Consort, the Baroque Chamber Orchestra of Colorado, Severall Friends, the Henry Purcell Society of Boston, the 21st Century Consort, and In Stile Moderno. He also plays traditional Irish music with the band ISHNA, and eclectic fusion from around the Mediterranean with his ensemble Zafarán. www.danmeyersmusic.com 

Allison Monroe (medieval fiddle and mezzo soprano)
Allison Monroe performs historical musical repertoires on bowed strings and sings with ensembles such as the Boston Camerata, Blue Heron, Alkemie, Piffaro, the Newberry Consort, Ensemble L'Harmonie des saisons, Les Délices, Indianapolis Baroque Orchestra, Washington Bach Consort, and Apollo's Fire. She co-founded, performs with, and serves as Artistic Director of medieval band Trobár. Allison can be heard on albums she directed, including with Trobár and The Queen's Rebels, as well as albums by Apollo's Fire and Les Délices. A passionate pedagogue, she formerly taught at Case Western Reserve University (2018-2023), where she also earned a DMA in Historical Performance Practice. Currently, Allison is the Director of the Five College Early Music Program in western Massachusetts (2023-present).

Christa Patton (harp and winds)
Christa Patton, historical harpist and early wind specialist, has performed throughout the Americas, Europe, and Japan with many of today's premier early music ensembles including Folger Consort, Piffaro the Renaissance Band, Early Music New York, Boston Camerata, The King's Noyse, Newberry Consort, Apollo's Fire, Parthenia, ARTEK, and Chatham Baroque. As a Baroque harpist specializing in 17th century opera, Christa has performed with New York City Opera, Wolf Trap Opera, Opera Atelier, and the Opera Theater of Saint Louis. Recent projects include Cantos y Suspiros, a collaboration with soprano Camila Parias performing music housed at the Hispanic Society in New York City. Christa has served on the faculty of Rutgers University and the Graduate Center at CUNY. She is also the director of the Baroque Opera Workshop at Queens College and a popular clinician of early repertoire sharing her knowledge in workshops and conferences.

Jason McStoots (tenor)
Reviewers describe Jason McStoots as "elegantly amorous" (Parterre) and as having a "strong satiny voice [that] filled the hall with grace and, when called for, humor" (Seattle Post-Intelligencer). A respected interpreter of early music, his operatic appearances with Boston Early Music Festival (BEMF) include Sancho Panza in Georg Phillip Telemann's Don Quichotte, Lepidus in Reinhard Keiser's Octavia, Le Jeu in Les plaisirs de Versailles by Marc-Antoine Charpentier, Morpheus in Circe of Desmarest, and Odoardo in Handel's Ariodante with Boston Baroque. He has appeared in concert with Folger Consort, Bach Collegium San Diego, Les Délices, the North Carolina Symphony, and the Newbury Consort. He is a core member of Blue Heron vocal ensemble and has been Associate Director of the BEMF Young Artist Training Program since 2017. Recently he has taken on more frequent projects as stage director for operas with the Amherst Early Music Festival, Connecticut Early Music Festival, Brandeis University, and Les Délices.

About Folger Shakespeare Library
The Folger Shakespeare Library makes Shakespeare's stories and the world in which he lived accessible. Anchored by the world's largest Shakespeare collection, the Folger is a cultural organization where curiosity and creativity are embraced, and conversation is always encouraged. Visitors to the Folger can choose how they want to experience the arts and humanities, from interactive exhibitions to captivating performances, and from path-breaking research to transformative educational programming. The Folger welcomes everyone to connect in their own way—from communities throughout Washington, DC, to communities across the globe. Learn more at www.folger.edu.

About Folger Consort
For 49 seasons as the early music ensemble-in-residence at the Folger Shakespeare Library, Folger Consort has delighted audiences with a stunning repertoire of early music spanning roughly 800 years. With world-class guest artists, from virtuoso soloists to large choirs and period orchestras, Folger Consort has performed masterpieces of the most renowned composers and hidden treasures from those who might otherwise be lost to history. Performing in the intimate setting of the Folger's Elizabethan-styled Theatre, as well as such grand spaces as Washington National Cathedral, Strathmore Hall, and the Kennedy Center, Folger Consort has also toured nationally and internationally to Shakespeare's Globe and other prestigious venues.

Among other awards and critical acclaim for its performances and recordings, Folger Consort has received Best Classical Chamber Ensemble from the Washington Area Music Awards multiple times. For more on Folger Consort, please visit www.folger.edu/folger-consort.

Folger Consort recordings are available for purchase and digital download at iTunes and available for streaming on Spotify.

SOURCE Folger Shakespeare Library