In 1985, harpsichordist, scholar, educator, conductor, and raconteur, Albert Fuller, in the company of Alice Tully and Gregory B. Smith, brought together a group of musicians and music lovers to create The Helicon Foundation.
Taking its name from the Greek mountain revered as the home of Memory and her daughters, the nine Muses, the organization's goal was to address a need in the New York music community. Large concert halls and the manner of playing necessary to fill them had pulled music away from what composers knew and intended. Helicon bridges that gap with style and élan, presenting chamber music in an intimate setting and using the instruments and performance techniques of the period.
In 2006, James Roe succeeded Albert Fuller as Artistic Director, to continue Helicon’s goals into its third decade.
• CHAMBER MUSIC IN AN INTIMATE SPACE — Helicon returns chamber music to an intimate space where the audience can follow a performer’s every nuance and experience proximity to music’s expressive power.
• PROGRAMMING — By focusing on a single composer or specific cultural question, Helicon Symposiums deepen our experience through immersion and focused inquiry.
• MUSICIANS — Helicon chooses its musicians for their virtuosity, openness, and musical creativity, and provides the opportunity to know them as artists and people.
• PERIOD INSTRUMENTS & PERFORMANCE PRACTICE — Our musicians seek out the sounds composers knew by using the instruments and performance techniques of the time.
• COMMUNITY — Helicon’s unique Membership structure connects music lovers and musicians who share the enjoyment of musical exploration.
Helicon has produced over 80 Symposiums covering a broad range of musical genres, from the 14th through the 21st centuries. From these Symposiums have arisen recordings, public concerts, educational programs, and most importantly, a body of performers and music lovers with a deepened experience of music in their lives.
James R. Roe, Artistic Director
Albert Fuller, Founder
William A. Simon, President
2067 Broadway, Studio 50
New York, NY 10023
(212) 874-6438
HeliconFoundation@gmail.com
