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Concerts by virtuoso performers on period instruments in attractive venues in the New London, CT area
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WEEK ONE 8 pm, Friday, June 12, 2009 ANNA BON & JOSEPH HAYDN AT EISENSTADT From Boston - La Donna Musicale Boston’s acclaimed ensemble dedicated to Renaissance, Baroque, and Classical music by women composers presents a delightful evening of music by Anna Bon, who began her music studies at Vivaldi’s Ospedale della Pietà in Venice at age 4 and was serving at with Haydn at Prince Esterházy’s Eisenstadt court at age 22. Like Haydn’s early works, Bon’s music explores the Galant style, a bridge between the Baroque and Classical periods. The ensemble will make use of both continuo organ and fortepiano as well as violins, viola da gamba, flute, and voices. Hear selections by La Donna Musicale here. More information about La Donna Musicale is available at the ensemble's website. www.ladm.org |
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8 pm, Saturday, June 13, 2009 From Paris - Ensemble Dialogos The biblical story of Judith, a Bethulian widow who kills the enemy Holofernes to liberate her people, became a cornerstone of medieval Croatian literature. It was set into verse by Marko Marulić, Dalmatian poet of the 16th century, just as the Croats agreed to defend Habsburg Vienna from the marauding Turks. The text survives without music, but its metrical structure corresponds to a small number of archaic melodies used for storytelling in medieval Dalmatia, often in the context of the highly emotional and dramatic songs related to the Passion or rituals of Holy Week. Katarina Livljanić’s brilliant reconstruction, which she sings in superbly theatrical style with supertitles, includes Norbert Rodenkirchen, flute, and Albrecht Maurer, viele. See a video clip from the award-winning performance at the More information about Ensemble Dialogos is available at the ensemble's website. www.ensemble-dialogos.org/en/index.html |
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6 pm, Sunday, June 14, 2009 From London - Stile Antico The foremost composers of the 16th century were employed in the courts of Habsburg rulers such as King Phillip II of Spain and Emperors Charles V and Ferdinand I. The erotic poetry of the Biblical Song of Solomon inspired these composers to write some of their most ardent music—much of it for the liturgy. Stile Antico, called “one of the brightest new stars in the firmament of Renaissance vocal ensembles” by London’s Daily Telegraph, will perform a rich selection of these a cappella works. Here clips from the Song of Songs CD here. More information about Stile Antico is available at the ensemble's website. www.stileantico.co.uk |
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WEEK TWO 8 pm, Saturday, June 20, 2009 From New York - Parthenia Instrumental music was cultivated in Renaissance Habsburg courts, though it often involved recastings of popular vocal pieces. Parthenia, one of New York’s formidable viol consorts, will perform a lively program of these works with guest lutenist Daniel Swenberg. More information about Parthenia is available at the ensemble's website. www.parthenia.org |
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6 pm, Sunday, June 21, 2009 From Connecticut - Fanfare Consort Gottfried Finger (ca. 1660–1730) had an active career as an opera composer in England before he worked for a series of courts — in Vienna, Berlin, Innsbruck, Heidelberg, Mannheim, and Düsseldorf. His music is a synthesis of Purcell’s harmonies and folk idioms from his native Moravia, and he excelled at writing chamber music for clarino, the valveless, baroque trumpet that is the centerpiece of this ensemble. Hear the Fanfare Consort performing Fantini's Balletto detto il Lunati for clarino and organ here. More information about Fanfare Consort is available at the ensemble's website. www.fanfareconsort.com |
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WEEK THREE 8 pm, Saturday, June 27, 2009 From Massachusetts - Arcadia Players Among the many musical friends of George Frideric Handel, who died 250 years ago this year, Telemann and Arne represent the master’s two different nationalities and portions of his career. Handel met Telemann in 1701 in Halle; they remained friends, corresponding even after Handel had moved to England. The younger Arne became an associate of Handel’s in the Royal Society of Music and consistently performed Handel’s music in conjunction with theatrical performances. The breathtaking variety of style these three composers produced is explored in this program, which includes one of Telemann’s Paris Quartets for flute and strings, a Handel trio sonata, and a keyboard sonata by Arne. More information about Arcadia Players is available at the ensemble's website. www.arcadiaplayers.org |
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6 pm, Sunday, June 28, 2009 Connecticut Early Music Festival Productions The Habsburg monarchy’s imperial, Catholic preoccupations are reflected in both architecture and music, which interacted with one another in powerful ways. In our final concert, we explore this interaction and also commemorate the 200th anniversary of Joseph Haydn’s death, performing his Missa Brevis in F, perhaps his earliest work. Though Haydn’s music reflects Enlightenment ideals more than imperial ones, the influence of the Catholic choral tradition can be heard in some of his early music. As a choirboy at St. Stephen’s Cathedral, Vienna, he undoubtedly sang the music of Johann Fux, the illustrious Kapellmeister and composition teacher. Fux’s grand Missa Corporis Christi ends our program. Also included is a sonata by Heinrich Ignaz Franz von Biber, another formidable imperial musician. Hear a chorus from Gasparini’s L’oraculo del Fato performed by CEMF Productions at last year’s festival here. |
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Titles, programs, and concert times subject to change without notice