Renegade Duo is Jon Mendle, guitar and lute, and Melinda Martinez Becker, mezzo soprano. Jon and Melinda started making music together when they were students at the San Francisco Conservatory. They formed Renegade Duo in 2017 with the intention of focusing on uncommon and rarely heard repertoire for guitar and voice.
At Fifth Street they'll play sets of songs for lute and voice by Elizabethan composers Thomas Ford and John Dowland, songs by the Spanish guitarist and composer Salvador Castro de Gistau, played on an antique guitar from the 19th century, Sephardic folk songs arranged by the contemporary guitarist and composer Dusan Bogdanovic, and solo pieces on renaissance lute and 19th century guitar. The concert will conclude with a set of songs arranged for voice and guitar by 19th century African-American classical guitarist Justin Holland. In addition to a successful career performing, arranging and teaching, Holland was a civil rights activist who worked on the Underground Railroad. His music is virtually unknown today, and the Renegade Duo is doing their part to change that.
Come join us for a selection of rare treats performed by two accomplished musicians on December 7th. In the meantime you can hear them perform a John Dowland piece here.
Fifth Street Farms has been presenting house concerts in Berkeley for over twenty years. Reservations are required and can be made online at www.fifthstfarms.com/reservations. The cost is $20 per person, paid at the door. All proceeds go to the musicians. Doors open at 7pm, concert at 7:30. Guests are welcome to bring snacks or drinks to share. There's a terrace (weather permitting) for mingling before and after concerts and during intermission. Visit www.fifthstfarms.com for more information.