Pro Musica Rara, Baltimore’s premier early music ensemble, with WBJC host and Program Director, Jonathan Palevsky, narration; Cynthia Roberts, violin; Adam Pearl, harpsichord; and artistic director Allen Whear, cello. This is the first concert of PMR’s 2017-18 season.

A Baroque Halloween: A tribute to the diabolical side of music. The program:

- Giuseppi Tartini, "Devil's Trill" Sonata for violin and continuo. Legend has it that this work was dictated to Tartini by the devil himself at the composer's bedside.

- The tragically tinged "Tombeau" Sonata by Jean-Marie Leclair, who was violently murdered in his own garden.

- Marin Marais, "Le Tableau de l'operation de la Taille" (The Gallbladder Operation), which sonically depicts the surgery (without anesthesia!). Narrated.

- Baltimore's own Edgar Allan Poe, "The Cask of Amontillado". Narrated, with by Allen Whear, drawn from themes heard elsewhere in the program.

Now in its 43rd season, Pro Musica Rara is a professional chamber music group that performs baroque, classical, and early romantic repertoire on period instruments. PMR’s core musicians are early music specialists who perform in distinguished ensembles all over the world. Every year’s concert series brings in other internationally renowned musicians – so that each concert has a unique musical theme and focus. PMR’s repertoire goes beyond frequently-played standards.