Click here to hear the Rosewood Chamber ensemble play the Rainbow Schottisch.

The Rosewood Chamber Ensemble (Barbara Hopkins, flute; Judy Handler, guitar) performs songs and dance music from early America. Their repertoire ranges from familiar Stephen Foster songs to lively dances and newly rediscovered music of the nineteenth century. Particularly interesting are the background stories they tell about the period, the music, and the flutes. Barbara plays these concerts on authentic Asa Hopkins flutes. One of these flutes is made from rosewood, and that combined with the rosewood in Judy's guitar inspired the name Rosewood Chamber Ensemble.

Barbara is a cousin of the early American woodwind maker Asa Hopkins, who lived and worked in Litchfield, Connecticut. She moved to Hartford fifteen years ago to play in the Hartford Symphony Orchestra, having no idea that Asa Hopkins existed, or that her ancestors were from Hartford. She has "come home" in a way she never dreamed of. Also the flute teacher at the University of Connecticut and owner of the Cardinal Classics record label, she has released two solo CD’s, Telemann Methodical Sonatas, Vol. 1 and Short Concert Pieces for Flute and Piano. She has her Doctor of Musical Arts degree from Stony Brook University, and is using the research skills she developed in her doctoral studies to find scores of nineteenth century American music. Barbara has been a top prize winner in the National Flute Association Competition and the New York Flute Club Young Artist Competition, and was awarded a fellowship to Tanglewood Music Center, where she had the honor of playing principal flute under Leonard Bernstein. She earned her Master of Music from The Mannes College of Music, and her Bachelor of Music at The Hartt School.

Judy Handler received a Bachelor of Music degree from the College-Conservatory of Music in Cincinnati and a Master of Music degree from The Hartt School. She also earned a Certificate from the Vila-Seca i Salou Conservatory in Spain and a Diploma of Merit from the Accademia Musicale Chigiana in Italy. She has given concerts and workshops at numerous venues throughout the United States including the University of Arizona, Commons Theater in Chicago, the Boston Classical Guitar Society and the Guitar Salon in New York. As co-founder of the Connecticut Classical Guitar Society, Judy helped develop one of the largest groups of its kind in the United States. Judy performs nationally with her husband, guitarist/mandolinist Mark Levesque. They have received critical acclaim for their CDs, Passion, Two Guitars Live!, and Acoustic Blend. They are also featured on five CDs produced by the Connecticut Classical Guitar Society.