Osterlund, Laura

Laura Osterlund

At home in baroque, renaissance, medieval, and modern music for the recorder, Laura Osterlund has performed with Opera Theatre of St. Louis in the North American premiere of Handel's Richard the Lionheart, with Chicago Shakespeare Theater in the American premiere of the play Nell Gwynn, for Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban live with the Cincinnati Pops Orchestra, and with Cincinnati Opera in its production of Monteverdi's The Coronation of Poppea. As a founding member of Boston-based Ensemble Musica Humana, Laura performed in staged productions of Hildegard von Bingen's liturgical drama Ordo Virtutum, as well as original concert programs featuring the music of Michael Praetorius, Turlough O'Carolan, and the Cancionero de Palacio. Laura also performed concert programs showcasing the diverse musical repertoire of the recorder as a founding member of Chicago Recorder Quartet.

After earning her bachelor's degree in Early Music Performance and Music History from McGill University in 2012, Laura worked as the Assistant Program Manager and Recorder Specialist Teacher for Keiskamma Music Academy in rural South Africa. Laura completed her graduate studies in Historical Performance Practice on recorder at Case Western Reserve University in 2018. Her culminating lecture-recital explored medieval instrumental improvisation in the Codex Faenza. Based in Chicago, Laura has worked as a recorder teacher at the Madison and Whitewater summer early music festivals, as a writer for the longstanding radio program Harmonia Early Music, and has performed with Chicago Opera Theater, Music of the Baroque, and Cleveland Opera Theater, among other ensembles.