Poster Dark Horse Consort
Dark Horse Consort
Michael Haug Photography

A musical Dark Horse

A musical Dark Horse

In 15th century Spain, court bands of sackbuts were the norm.

"Sackbut?" You ask. "Can you say that on air?"

Most definitely! The sackbut is a name derived from Old French verbs sacquer (to pull) and bouter (to push). That's the motion of the slide on a sackbut — much like the modern trombone — and yet these Renaissance instruments have a softer, rounder tone, one that was meant not to explode over an orchestra like Brünnhilde, but blend in, emulate and enhance a group of vocalists.

Rose Ensemble
The Rose Ensemble
Michael Haug Photography

Tonight in Duluth and this weekend in the Twin Cities, a band of sackbuts, Dark Horse Consort, joins The Rose Ensemble in a historical re-creation of an event, a Requiem and state funeral service for one of Spain's Princes. The mellow tones of the sackbuts — plus cornetto — are played by early instrument specialists actually standing within the choir, almost as another voice. It's pure magic.

Dark Horse takes its name from the bronze equestrian statues in front of St. Mark's Basilica in Venice, but the name has a double meaning: Many in the historical instrument world of today don't think of sackbuts as part of their world, so sackbut players see themselves as a bit of the "dark horse" in this niche community. And that's even more true for the cornetto, a hybrid instrument made of wood with finger holes like a recorder but a mouthpiece like a trumpet. Credit the Black Plague for killing off its star players and the instrument not finding a line to the modern-day orchestra, which is a real loss as its sound is otherworldly, perfect for a Requiem.

Dark Horse and Rose Ensemble
Dark Horse and Rose Ensemble in Classical MPR's Maud Moon Weyerhaeuser Studio.
MPR photo/Alison Young

Listen to my interview with and performances by Dark Horse and Rose Ensemble.

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