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Unique Chamber Music

Early Music and More
Madison, WI

About Alchemy Ensemble

Jan. 2025: Though not currently active, Alchemy Ensemble existed with a variable lineup during the 2000s/2010s in the Madison, WI area. This group performed arrangements and adaptations for their unique instrumentation, highlighting rarely performed material, old and new.

Founding members Tracy Jane Comer (Artistic Director and cello, guitar, hammered dulcimer, viola, percussion) and Faye Bruggink (clarinet) were joined over the years in turn by flautists Theresa Eisenbraun, Mary Driscoll, Julie Harr, and Joanne Berg, and more recently by Kristin Landis (cello). Percussionist/drummer John Driscoll also performed with the group on occasion.

Tracy Jane ComerFaye BrugginkTracy (left) and Faye still perform as part of a contemporary folk group (with vocals) called Common Chord.
Tracy also has an active music life in many other forms as well. As an in-demand multi-instrumentalist, she performs solo as well as with several duos, trios, and bands covering a variety of genres from folk to classic rock; see her website for more.

During its run, Alchemy enjoyed creating and performing unique custom instrumental arrangements crafted by Tracy of early music plus more traditional classical chamber music as well as folk tunes, show tunes and holiday tunes.

After a long delay, Alchemy has finally published a sampler demo recorded in the early 2000s! This digital-only collection will be available for streaming on major platforms soon; check back for links. See below for information.

Alchemy Ensemble - Rediscover, Reimagine

Alchemy Ensemble - Rediscover, Reimagine
(2001, released January 2025)

Album Released January 2025!

Rediscover, Reimagine

A unique chamber trio performs unique arrangements of early music and folk music (10 tracks), recorded live in the studio

Tracy Jane Comer, Artistic Director – cello, classical and steel string guitars, hammered dulcimer, tambourine
Faye Bruggink – clarinet
Mary Driscoll – flute
John Driscoll – percussion

Arrangements by Tracy Jane Comer
Recorded and mastered by John Driscoll, 2001

Track Listing

  1. Alman (Robert Johnson, 1583-1633)
  2. Flos Ut Rosa Floruit (Leoninus, b. 1135)
    This is a two-part "conductus," a musical setting of Latin poetry. Adapted from a two-part vocal piece, it is an excellent example of early polyphony. This particular conductus is a celebration for Christmas: "A flower bloomed like a rose, when the Virgin Mary gave birth to the Savior of all people, the Son of the highest Father, in a birth of utter newness…"
  3. Greensleeves (traditional English folk tune)
    Presented here in a stately dance form
  4. Pastorale (Gabriel Pierne, 1863-1937)
    Pierne was a student of well-known composer Cesar Frank; this lovely composition was originally for piano solo, as part of a suite called Album pour mes petits amis
  5. Quen a Virgen Ben Servira (Cantiga de Santa Maria No. 103) (circa 16th C.)
    The Canticles of Holy Mary is one of the largest collections of monophonic (solo) songs from the Middle Ages, comprised of 420 poems with musical notation, written in the medieval Galician-Portuguese language during the reign of Alfonso X of Castile El Sabio (1221–1284). Traditionally, they are all attributed to Alfonso, though scholars have since established that the musicians and poets of his court were responsible for most of them, with Alfonso being credited with a few as well.
  6. Simple Gifts (traditional Shaker tune, attributed to Elder Joseph Brackett, c. 1848)
    This lovely and well-known folk tune is combined here with an original countermelody by Tracy.
  7. Saltarello (Anonymous, c. early 15th century)
    Saltarello is a category of fast dance with a leaping step, popular in medieval and Renaissance courts and folk traditions.
  8. Serenade to Spring (Rolf Lovland and Britt Viberg, 1995)
    This is a modern composition, though very reminiscent of a traditional Irish air.
  9. Sumer Is Icumen In (Anonymous, c.1310)
    A song written to be sung as a round…so we play it that way, with a drone in the background (on the dulcimer). The text looks like this: “Sumer is icumen in, Lhude sing cuccu, Groweth sed and bloweth med, And springth the wode nu; Sing cuccu…”
  10. The Cherry Tree (Traditional)
    The Cherry Tree is an Appalachian Christmas carol but has roots as a Medieval tune dating back to the early 15th century.
The most recent incarnation of Alchemy Ensemble on Facebook:

Contact:

tracy@tracyjanecomer.com (Send Email to Tracy, Inquiry about Alchemy Ensemble)