Seated inside a rehearsal room in the Amy E. du Pont Music Building, Rob Ellis and sophomore James McCain speedily flip through and sight-read potential Baroque and Renaissance selections to play in their quickly approaching performance.

Ellis and McCain, as well as senior Jason LeBrun and UD graduate student Paul Arbogast, will perform in UD’s first ever Recorder Consort, as part of the ongoing Bach’s Lunch Series from 12:10 to 12:50 p.m., Wednesday, April 17, at the Jefferson Music Gallery in Bayard Sharp Hall.

The quartet, led by Ellis and LeBrun, will be playing the recorder, an instrument that many equate with an elementary school music class. But, this instrument is quite different.

“Don’t think ‘Twinkle Twinkle Little Star’ from the fourth grade,” Lebrun said. “Think Handel sonatas and Bach’s Brandenberg Concertos.”

Michael O’Connor, director of Collegium Musicum, said the recorder dates back to the 15th century and is more sophisticated than its plastic classroom cousin.

“Recorder playing was always a big social and recreational activity,” he said. “To this day, people form societies to play the recorder. It’s a fun pastime. It’s not difficult to learn, and it can play most Renaissance music fairly easily.”

O’Connor said he chose the recorder to perform in the Bach’s Lunch Series due to its versatility.

“The recorder can play pretty much anything,” O’Connor said. “It has a high fluty sound that sounds best on high, upbeat, happy tunes, but it also can play sad melodies. It’s a great instrument for people who like to play quickly, it’s very fast and very nimble.”

The Baroque and modern-day recorders are quite similar in shape to its elementary school version, except these are larger and vary in size depending on type — alto, soprano, tenor or bass.

“The recorder is almost like an organ pipe,” Ellis explained, “ the longer the tube, the lower the pitch. They have a very distinct sound, and when played in combinations it’s very soothing, very warm and not piercing to the ear.”

Ellis, who has been playing the recorder for three years, said he likes the distinct, individual sounds of the recorder.

“The nice thing about the recorder is that each instrument has its own line [of music],” Ellis said. “There is a uniformity of sound, but you can hear the different voices come in and out.”

LeBrun said he was attracted to the simplicity of the instrument.

“It is an underrated instrument that can produce wonderful sounds, especially in a consort setting,” LeBrun said. “It’s easy to manage and easy to pick up when you have a few free minutes to play a few tunes.”

Ellis, who also plays the piano, said he first became interested in playing the recorder when he was looking for another instrument to pick-up.

“No prior experience was required to play it in the collegiums, and it was, and is, as much of a fun thing as it is a challenge to play new music,” he said.

Ellis said he also enjoys the obscurity of the instrument.

“The recorder is a very unique instrument, one that not many people here at UD play,” Ellis said. “So when there is a demand for it, you’re the people they turn to. It’s a fun thing to be in demand.”

The quartet members said they are excited to be performing in the consort.

“It’s a great group of people and we are working on some fun pieces,” LeBrun said.

“Hopefully the consort will rekindle people’s interest in the recorder,” Ellis said. “Once you’ve heard it, you’ll never forget it.”

April 16, 2002