Award-winning harpsichordist Mitzi Meyerson will perform a program of 17th and 18th century compositions, including J.S. Bach’s Concerto in D Minor for Harpsichord and Strings, at 8 p.m. April 5 in the DePaul Concert Hall, 800 W. Belden Ave., on DePaul’s Lincoln Park Campus.

Thanks to the generosity of DePaul University alumna Marie McGuckin of Palos Heights, Ill., the DePaul School of Music has hosted the Charles E. McGuckin Harpsichord Recital for eight consecutive years. For this performance, Meyerson will be joined by seven DePaul music students.

The concert, which also will feature works by C.B. Balastre and J.B. Forqueray, will be followed by a reception. Both events are free and open to the public.

Because the harpsichord is infrequently played in modern times, the April 5 program affords concertgoers an opportunity to experience this keyboard instrument, which was widely used from the 16th and 18th centuries. The harpsichord differs from its descendent, the piano, because its strings are plucked, and not struck, by the key mechanism.

A Chicago native, Meyerson is professor of harpsichord at the Universitat der Kunste in Berlin, the first modern academic institution to offer harpsichord studies. Meyerson’s chair originally was created for Wanda Landowska, who at the beginning of the 20th century championed the revival of the harpsichord, and, most importantly, reintroduced Bach’s harpsichord works to the repertory and to the public.

Meyerson has performed around the globe and released more than 50 recordings. In her teaching and performing, Meyerson emphasizes the importance of historical performance—remaining faithful to keyboard practices, techniques and styles from the past. To that end, she has formed a highly praised period instrument ensemble, The Bottom Line, which has received critical acclaim throughout Europe.

Marie McGuckin established this recital series in 2000 with a donation of a double manual Martin harpsichord in honor of her late husband, Charles. The McGuckins have close ties to DePaul – he was a 1956 alumnus of the University’s School of Education and a former Chicago Public Schools principal; she is a 1964 graduate of the music school. The harpsichord was unveiled at an inaugural concert in April 2001.