Asteria NEW YORK Sylvia Rhyne, soprano Eric Redlinger, tenor and lute Doors open at 6:45 pm. Pre-concert talk at 7:10 pm. Through the tale of Sir Yvain, one of the most beloved of Arthurian stories, Asteria explores how the ideal of courtly love was very much alive and well in the art songs of […]
Monica Huggett, violin and music direction UK Pacific Baroque Orchestra Doors open at 6:45 pm. Pre-concert talk at 7:10 pm. Celebrate the holidays with a fresh take on some old favourites. Vivaldi’s Gloria and Magnificat were originally composed for an all-female ensemble. Join beloved violinist Monica Huggett as she leads these joyful works the […]
Diderot String Quartet NEW YORK Doors open at 6:45 pm. Pre-concert talk at 7:10 pm. When Leipzig composer Felix Mendelssohn revived Bach’s music, it finally received universal admiration. The Diderot String Quartet performs excerpts from The Art of Fugue alongside Mendelssohn’s No.4 Fugue for String Quartet, Op. 81 and his much-loved String Quartet No. 2, […]
Elinor Frey, cello Luc Beauséjour, harpsichord MONTREAL Doors open at 6:45 pm. Pre-concert talk at 7:10 pm. Two of Canada’s leading exponents of historically-informed performance bring to life masterpieces of high Baroque chamber music by Johann Sebastian Bach and his sons Johann Christoph Friedrich and Carl Philipp Emanuel.
La Rêveuse FRANCE Doors open at 6:45 pm. Pre-concert talk at 7:10 pm. A master of instrumental music, Telemann enjoyed more fame and adoration in his time than even the lauded J.S. Bach. Open to French and Italian influences as well as the new galant style that flourished in Germany, he excelled in chamber […]
The Tallis Scholars UK Peter Phillips, music director Doors open at 1:45 pm. Pre-concert talk at 2:10 pm. To commemorate the centenary of the end of World War I, Peter Phillips has put together a stirring program with masses on the theme of the Armed Man (L’homme armé), chansons describing a battle (La Batalla), […]
Psallentes (BELGIUM) Doors open at 6:45 pm. Pre-concert talk at 7:10 pm. The angels of the Ghent Altarpiece, one of the apexes of European art, are the inspiration for this concert where the women of Psallentes impersonate these angels and perform the Flemish polyphony that their earlier counterparts would have witnessed.
London Handel Players (UK) Mary Collins and Steve Players dancers (UK) Doors open at 6:45 pm. Pre-concert talk at 7:10 pm. Explore the origins of ballet in the dances of Baroque opera. Two of the world’s leading authorities on Baroque dance, accompanied by one of Britain’s most distinguished Baroque ensembles, brings to life the elegance, […]
Byron Schenkman and Friends (SEATTLE) Reginald Mobley countertenor (MIAMI) Byron Schenkman harpsichord and direction Doors open at 6:45 pm. Pre-concert talk at 7:10 pm. Byron Schenkman, one of EMSI’s favourite musicians, is joined by flautist Joshua Romatowski, cellist Nathan Whittaker, and countertenor Reginald Mobley in a performance of some of Handel’s most moving cantatas, including […]
Victoria Baroque Jeanne Lamon violin and direction (TORONTO) Rebecca Genge soprano (TORONTO) Kris Kwapis trumpet (SEATTLE) Doors open at 6:45 pm. Pre-concert talk at 7:10 pm. Victoria’s own Baroque orchestra, one of Canada’s most brilliant early music sopranos, and trumpet virtuoso Kris Kwapis are led by the legendary Jeanne Lamon in a performance of festive […]
Tafelmusik Baroque Orchestra (TORONTO) Elisa Citterio violin and direction Doors open at 6:45 pm. Pre-concert talk at 7:10 pm. This all-Bach multimedia creation combines text, music, and stunning projected video and images to explore the world of the artisans—papermakers, violin carvers, string spinners, and performers—who helped J.S. Bach realise his musical genius. In the tradition […]
Corina Marti harpsichord (SWITZERLAND) Doors open at 2:30 pm. Harpsichord virtuoso Corina Marti performs preludes, fantasias, and dances from the manuscripts of Johannes of Lublin and Johannes Fischer Morungensis: fresh, lively music that is still danceable half a millennium after its composition. Don’t miss the once in a lifetime opportunity to hear this repertoire.
Chiaroscuro String Quartet (EUROPE) Doors open at 6:45 pm. Pre-concert talk at 7:10 pm. Chiaroscuro Quartet brings together some of the finest period string players from across Europe: France, Spain, Sweden, and Russia. Savour some of the most revered of all string quartets as you have never heard them before: Haydn’s Op. 33 No. 2, […]
Choir of Clare College Cambridge (UK) Doors open at 6:45 pm. Pre-concert talk at 7:10 pm. Thirty-two voices-strong, the fresh young vocalists of the Choir of Clare College give a complete performance of Tomas Luis de Victoria’s 1605 Requiem – widely considered one of the last great masterworks of the Renaissance – interwoven with English […]
Constantinople (MONTREAL) Marco Beasley tenor (ITALY) Kiya Tabassian setar and direction Doors open at 6:45 pm. Pre-concert talk at 7:10 pm. Italian, Ottoman, and Persian songs are interwoven in Majmua, an early-17th century manuscript from Constantinople compiled by the Polish musician and orientalist Albert Bobowski (Ali Ufki). Bobowski revels in shifting among languages and styles. […]
The Oct 5 Imaginario concert has unfortunately been cancelled due to last minute illness of artist. EMSI apologizes for any inconvenience this has caused to our patrons. Please contact: info@EarlyMusicSocietyoftheIslands.ca for further information Armonía Concertada (SPAIN) María Cristina Kiehr soprano Ariel Abramovich vihuela de mano Two of Europe’s leading performers of Early Music showcase […]
Haydn, Beethoven, von Weber Eric Hoeprich classical clarinet London Haydn Quartet (UK) The programme features Franz Joseph Haydn’s beloved “Lark” Quartet, Beethoven’s early Quartet in F Major, Op. 18, No. 1, and Carl Maria von Weber’s Clarinet Quintet in B♭ Major, Op. 34. A rare opportunity to hear the world’s authority on classical clarinet together […]
Accademia Hermans (ITALY) Fabio Ciofini harpsichord and direction In Arcangelo Corelli, the Baroque style reached its apotheosis. Although his music was revered throughout Europe long after its composition, it was was rooted in a time and place: Rome at the outset of 18thC. Corelli’s original music and several anonymous arrangements of it are combined with […]
El Mundo (CALIFORNIA) Richard Savino guitar and direction Joyous, celebratory, with a distinctive Latin twist. The music abounds with infectious rhythms, sweet melodies, and the lively spirit of the Christmas season in Latin America. In the spotlight are 18thC pieces from the Cathedral of Guatemala City.
Chloe Kim, baroque violin Martin Bonham viola da gamba Michael Jarvis harpsichord A star is born! Victoria native Chloe Kim, a student at the Juilliard School of Music in New York, is already an emerging star in the firmament of early music. She returns home with a programme of masterpieces by J.S. Bach and his […]
The Baltimore Consort (USA) One of EMSI’s favourite ensembles performs a brand-new programme of music based on Shakespeare’s plays. Danielle Svonavec sings some of the greatest hits from the Bard’s songbook including It Was a Lover and His Lass, Where the Bee Sucks, and Full Fathom Five. Dances and consort music round out the programme.
Concerto Köln (GERMANY) Shunske Sato violin One of the great Baroque orchestras of Europe presents the first ever Victoria performance on period instruments of all the movements of Vivaldi’s Four Seasons. This is a rare chance to hear a world class orchestra perform one of the pinnacles of the Baroque repertoire. Added gems are rarely […]
As the B.C. Government has placed a ban on all gatherings of 250 or more, EMSI will be cancelling the Saturday March 14 concert, Vivaldi in Paris. A decision on the final concert of the season on April 18, Plaisirs de la Chambre, will be made at a later date. Holders of pre-sold tickets will […]
Emma Hannan soprano Victoria Baroque (PACIFIC NORTHWEST) Soile Stratkauskas flute and direction A sensual selection of music from the salons of Versailles including music by Boismortier, Hotteterre, and Marais. Victoria Baroque is joined by Emma Hanna, one of the brightest young Canadian Early Music sopranos, and two recent and stellar additions to the West Coast […]