Category Archives: History
The Birth of Mary of Modena
Mary of Modena, second wife of James, Duke of York, and his Queen consort upon his becoming King James II, was born on this day the 5th of October, 1658, in the Ducal Palace in Modena. She was a beautiful woman, with black hair and dark eyes – what we’d call an Italian beauty now. As you can… Read on
Remembering Rembrandt
Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn, better known simply by his forename, Rembrandt, died on this day the 4th of October, 1669. During his life, the Dutch Republic, aka the United Provinces, was in its Golden Age (gouden Eeuw) and this region prospered not only economically, but culturally – with some of the most beautiful works of Baroque art being… Read on
Sebastian Anton Scherer
Queen Mary II is now on Facebook!
Why did I decide to make a page for her? Well, I think she’s always overshadowed by her husband, William III of Orange, and whilst that’s understandable, she was too good a person for us to forget about. For Mary II, Princess of Orange and Queen of England, please go to: http://www.facebook.com/MaryStuartII
The Death of Antonio Cifra
Antonio Cifra, Italian Baroque & Late Renaissance composer, died on this day the 2nd of October, 1629. Cifra is important in Early Music because he straddled the Late Renaissance and the Early Baroque movements and made beautiful music in both. So, in honour of Antonio Cifra, here is “Era la Notte:” Links about Antonio Cifra: http://www.hoasm.org/VG/Cifra.html http://www.last.fm/music/Antonio+Cifra http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antonio_Cifra (I normally don’t like to link… Read on
Lamenti – Le Concert d`Astrée
I received this beautiful, luscious album for my birthday recently and it has blown me away! “Lamenti” performed by many of today’s greatest opera singers and Le Concert d`Astrée under the direction of harpsichordist Emmanuelle Haim is a moving compilation of various works of Baroque. I have been a big fan of Philippe Jaroussky‘s albums since I heard him… Read on
La Rochefoucauld’s Birthday
Today we mark the birth of one of the 17th century’s most influential French philosophers, François VI, Duc de La Rochefoucauld, Prince de Marcillac, who was born on this day, 15th of September, 1613 in Paris, France. My husband, who graduated from Durham University with a First in Philosophy (I’m not boasting, just proud of him) has a few very… Read on