Category Archives: Opera

A Double Baroque Birthday!

Two very talented Baroque composers were born on this day October 26th in the 17th century! The first one was Domenico Scarlatti, Italian Baroque composer, & son of Alessandro Scarlatti, was born on this day 26 October, 1685. 1685 was a big year for the birth of major Baroque composers, such as J.S. Bach and Handel, and this Scarlatti is no… Read on

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“A Dialogue Upon a Kiss” – Henry Lawes

English composer Henry Lawes died on this day the 21st of October, 1662. This piece is beautifully performed by: Francine van der Heijden – soprano. Sytse Buwalda – counter tenor. David van Ooijen – lute.

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Domenico Zipoli’s Birthday!

Domenico Zipoli Italian Baroque composer and Jesuit missionary to South America, was born on this day 17th October, 1688. Here is a piece played by the amazing Ernst Stolz: And another, “Confitebor tibi Domine”:

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Heinrich Schütz’s Birthday

Heinrich Schütz was born on this day 8 October (O.S) 1585. Now, some of you may wonder why I’m celebrating the birth of someone in the 16th century, so the reason is this: Schütz was a very influential composer of the Baroque. I’m only sorry that I didn’t know about this composer until only in the past five years,… Read on

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Sebastian Anton Scherer

Sebastian Anton Scherer, German Baroque composer and organist, was born on this day the 3rd of October, 1631 in Ulm. In celebration of the birth of this composer, we have for our listening pleasure an andante:

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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

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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

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A Meeting with Philippe Jaroussky

Last night at the Barbican Centre, my husband and I were entranced by the mesmerising beauty of Philippe Jaroussky’s voice and the talented ensemble of Concerto Koln (Cologne). What a great night for Baroque music it was! With an impressive opening with “The Arrival of the Queen of Sheba” by Handel, the evening went from strength to strength.… Read on

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The Voice of Philippe Jaroussky

I was recently astounded by the voice of this extremely talented man. While some uneducated cretins may laugh at his high voice, the majority of people I daresay will agree with me in my opinion that his is a truly magnificent voice. Here is a sample of his work, “Cara Sposa,” from Handel’s beautiful opera, Rinaldo: I think… Read on

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