By Marty Warburton, for Iron County Today
The rush of the holidays have come and gone. All of a sudden it is 2026, and Cedar City Music Arts is back on the musical warpath.
Continuing with their 96th season, CCMA presents “The Valencia Baryton Project.” So, what is a Baryton? Well, long story short, it’s a musical instrument, but read on.
The Baryton had its heyday in 17th- and 18th-century Europe, bolstered by a repertoire of compositions, written expressly for the instrument, by Joseph Haydn. Haydn’s Baryton trios showcased the instrument’s soft, light tone alongside a cello and viola, embodying the elegance of classical chamber music. Earlier compositions from the Baroque period illustrate the Baryton’s ability to act as its own accompanist, with a bowed melody floating above plucked notes – like a sparse partnership between viol and lute or harpsichord.
It’s highly unlikely that you, or even someone you know, has ever even heard of the musical instrument, let alone seen one, or have actually heard its 500 year old renderings
Let’s catch you up. With gently sloping shoulders, held between the musician’s knees, noticeably smaller than a modern cello, yet with many more strings, the Baryton must be one of the strangest string instruments ever designed. A cousin of the Baroque viol, what sets the Baryton apart is an extra set of strings running along the back of its wide fretboard, resonating alongside the bowed strings in front. Geared toward ambidexterity, players can pluck these secondary strings with their left thumb, with the rest of the left hand working the fingerboard – all while bowing with the right.
The Valencia Project is a collective founded by Valencia-based Barytonist Matthew Baker with the vision of performing the nearly 170 works written by Franz Joseph Haydn as well as compositions by other composers, both modern and classical. With Matthew Baker, one of only a handful Baryton performers in the world, the Valencia Baryton Project have delighted audiences in over 100 concerts throughout North, Central and South America as well as Europe with what is considered to have been the pinnacle of aristocratic instruments of the classical era.
The Valencia Baryton Project has dedicated itself to the performance of music written for this ancient and little-known instrument, and CCMA is excited to introduce the long lost, quirky, rare Baryton to southern Utah.
Make plans to see what all the fuss is about. The concert will be Thursday, January 8th at The Heritage Center Theater. Doors open at 6:30pm, concert at 7:30pm.
Get tickets at cedarcitymusicarts.org or call 435-865-2882
