Piffaro, the Philadelphia-based and internationally renowned Renaissance wind band, New York City’s TENET Vocal Artists, and projection artist Camilla Tassi are collaborating to transform Philadelphia Episcopal Cathedral. Artwork and poetry will be projected on the interior architecture of the historic building while the sounds of 16th century Italy will fill the sanctuary. The concert takes place at the Cathedral, located at 38th and Market, on Friday, Oct. 11, at 7:30 p.m., and the band is offering West Philly Local readers a special 50 percent discount off regular ticket prices with code WPL.

The occasion of the concert is the 650th anniversary of Francesco Petrarch’s death. The most influential poet of the Italian Renaissance, he wrote hundreds of poems grappling with his thwarted love for the lady we only know as Laura, who died young of the plague. Love, Chastity, Death, Fame, Time, and Eternity all make appearances, embodied by the superlative singers of TENET. The music will run the gamut of 16th century Italian musical styles, from Carnival songs to sacred hymns to yearning madrigals.

Piffaro, the Renaissance band was formed at the University of Pennsylvania in 1980 by musicians who wanted to spend more time exploring the peculiar instruments of the Renaissance: shawms, dulcians, sackbuts, recorders, krumhorns, bagpipes, lutes, guitars, harps, and a variety of percussion. They long ago struck out on their own and found great success, touring around the world and releasing nineteen recordings, but still call Philadelphia home.

The director of the visiting New York City vocal ensemble, Jolle Greenleaf, “established TENET as an independent force on the city’s early-music scene, among the most important outside major institutions like Trinity Wall Street and the Juilliard School,” according to The New York Times. This will be their first Philadelphia appearance.

Click here for tickets, call 215-235-8469, or visit piffaro.org.