musica Dei donum
Concert reviews
Festival Early Music Utrecht 2025
The theme of the Festival Early Music Utrecht 2025 was "Museum Art?" It focused primarily on the question of how music from the past can be heard today in such a way that it remains alive. One point of attention was that music is heard in different places and contexts today than when it was composed. Some essays the programme book connected music and the visual arts. The raison d'être of a museum is the conservation of what has come down to us from the past. It often goes hand in hand with restoration and even reconstruction.
Notable in this year's festival were the performances of complete collections of music: the two books of the Well-tempered Clavier by Johann Sebastian Bach, the complete oeuvre of Louis Couperin and the Forqueray family, and the complete Mechelen Choirbook. The reconstruction aspect especially concerned liturgical music, where the distance between the original context and modern performance practice may be larger than in any other repertoire.
In the next paragraphs I am going to review the performances I was able to attend, which is not more than a small selection of the large supply. I'll start with music from the Middle Ages and early Renaissance.
Middle Ages/Early Renaissance
Music of the Middle Ages is part of every year's festival. The themes allow for this part of music history to be given attention. The most unusual concert was undoubtedly the performance by the Sollazzo Ensemble [14], directed by Anna Danilevskaia. This ensemble has garnered much praise since its founding in 2014. One of its achievements is the recording of the Leuven Chansonnier. This requires only a small ensemble. For several years now, it has also been performing with a large ensemble. But what business have twenty singers and instrumentalists with late medieval music? That was the size of the ensemble during the concert in the main hall of TivoliVredenburg. The programme was entitled "La Flamboyance: Ceremonial Festive Music from 1425." This may make one think of a special event that is more or less reconstructed. That wasn't the case. The programme notes stated: "Like a monumental fresco coming to life, with the programme La Flamboyance we present a large-scale ensemble that evokes the sounds of the most solemn occasions around 1425." The performance of large ensembles on special occasions is documented, for example in Lille in 1454. Obviously, the question - not addressed in the programme notes - is whether the musicians involved played together or rather in alternation. Listening to medieval music performed by such a large group of singers and instrumentalists was an unusual experience. Take, for example, the fairly well-known Una panthera by Johannes Ciconia. Anyone familiar with a performance of this piece by a small ensemble will have been amazed by the sight of eight singers on stage, plus a battery of instruments. The musical quality remained intact, but it failed to convince me, no matter how well it was performed. This was true of many other works. The singing and acting were superb, and I expected nothing less from this ensemble. But from a stylistic-historical perspective, it raised quite a few questions, also with regard to the combination of instruments from different families. Lighting effects were also used, which created a theatrical atmosphere. The purpose of it escaped me.
Somewhat earlier repertoire was performed by two ensembles of more common proportions. A regular guest at the festival is the ensemble Le Miroir de Musique [21], directed by Baptiste Romain. It presented a programme devoted to the Chansonnier du Roi, a songbook compiled around 1300 which contains a wide variety of musical forms, monophonic and polyphonic, vocal and instrumental, and in several languages. The ensemble, consisting of three singers (two of whom also played instruments) and three instrumentalists, offered an interesting and diverse palette of pieces from this collection. Most of these are anonymous; the names of the composers who are known will likely not have rung a bell with many listeners: Ernoul le vielle de Gastinois, Gilles le Vinier, Pieros il Borgnes de Lille, and Chastelain de Coucy. The collection is historically interesting for several reasons. It combines old and new, as Romain wrote in his programme notes. It includes songs by troubadours, but also by trouvères, the troubadours' successors. Here one can also find the oldest surviving instrumental pieces, estampies royales. Some of these were performed between vocal works, on fiddle, rebec, lute and bagpipes. Instruments were also used in several vocal works, either accompanying the voice(s) or alternating with them. This music is intimate and unspectacular. It demands an attentive audience, which the large audience in the Pieterskerk certainly was. This ensemble compels this attention through its performance. La Miroir de Musique's concerts are always of high quality and musically captivating thanks to sophisticated programming and subtle delivery. The singing of the three vocalists - Miriam Trevisan, Tessa Roos, and Ivo Haun - was compelling and entirely based on the text, which was clearly intelligible. The instrumental works gave a good impression of the virtuosity of the medieval colleagues of Elizabeth Rumsey, Aliénor Wolteche, and Baptiste Romain. Although older repertoire was performed here than by the Sollazzo Ensemble, this concert and this style of performance were more convincing.
The ensemble Contre le Temps [17], whose name is derived from an anonymous chanson that was also on its programme, performed in the Pieterskerk. It consists of four female singers specializing in music from the 11th to the 16th century. The programme, entitled "The Kiss of the Rose", focused on music from the 14th and 15th centuries. The programme's title is taken from Le Roman de la Rose, a medieval poem about (courtly) love, which was the framework of the concert. Each section was preceded by a quotation from this work, in English and (fortunately) brief. In addition to anonymous works, pieces by Guillaume Dufay and Guillaume de Machaut, as well as some lesser-known masters, were performed. It is polyphonic music in the ars subtilior style, which is rhythmically complex and harmonically daring. In some pieces several texts are sung simultaneously. Most of these works are very serious in tone and, in content, not much different from the generally much better-known 16th-century madrigals. But there was also a somewhat more frivolous piece: Se je chant mains by Demos le Grant, which is about hunting with falcons. The programme was presented in a more or less theatrical manner, with quite a bit of movement on the church 'stage'. It is probably due to my lack of affinity with theatrical forms that their meaning escaped me. Fortunately, nothing was overdone here; subtlety was a hallmark of this concert, also in the way the selected works were sung. The four singers, who occasionally performed solos, have beautiful voices and the ensemble was impeccable. They brought this complex music to life in an impressive manner. There are different opinions on the use of instruments in this kind of repertoire. In this concert no instruments were used, which I found entirely convincing and made the audience focus on the texts. I was unfamiliar with the ensemble, and this was a most pleasant introduction. I hope to hear this ensemble again, for instance in one of the next editions of this festival.
Renaissance polyphony
As I mentioned, the festival connected music and the visual arts. The latter are primarily known through museums, where works of art are preserved. Likewise, musical manuscripts and printed editions are preserved. The difference is that they can only come to life if the music is performed. During this festival, an important manuscript from the 16th century was brought to life. This is the so-called Mechelen Choirbook, created in the workshop of Petrus Alamire. It is a collection of masses primarily by Pierre de La Rue, Margaret of Austria's favorite composer. It is therefore also known as the Choirbook of Margaret of Austria. It wase performed in its entirety during the festival by various ensembles. It was interesting to observe how the various ensembles approached the material. That was very different. Whether this was coordinated by the festival management I don't know.
The first performance, in the Pieterskerk, focused on La Rue's Missa Paschale. The title refers to the Easter period, and for the Utopia Ensemble [5] this was the reason to musically illustrate the transition from Passion to Easter. The concert opened with a homophonic work by Gaspar van Weerbeke, Tenebrae, followed by Vexilla regis / Passio Domini by La Rue. The transition to Easter was marked with the introitus for Easter Sunday, Resurrexi et adhuc tecum sum, sung in plainchant. In the sacred music of the Renaissance in La Rue's time, there was no such thing as expression; there is little connection between text and music. Nevertheless, the contrast between Passion and Easter was certainly expressed musically, with the then common means, even in La Rue's Mass. The Ensemble Utopia is an fine ensemble that consisted here of mezzo-soprano, alto, tenor, baritone, and bass, and delivered excellent performances of the selected works. The space of the Pieterskerk was effectively explored; the Mass was sung in the crossing, the other works in the choir.
The second concert was given by the ensemble Dionysos Now!, with La Rue's Missa Alleluia. I did not attend this performance. In the third installment of this cycle the ensemble Cantoría [10], in the Augustinuskerk, sang a programme that alternated La Rue's Missa Ave Maria with works by the Spanish composer Juan de Anchieta. This referred to the Spanish element in Margaret's life: she was married to John of Aragón, who died young, after which Margaret returned to Flanders. The title of the mass refers to the well-known prayer to Mary, and therefore the Marian devotion, which was of great importance both for Margaret and in Spain, was the central issue. From Anchieta's oeuvre we heard the motets Virgo et mater, Ave sanctissima Maria, and Ave verum corpus, the Marian antiphon Salve Regina, and a Magnificat. In the programme notes Cantoría wrote: "Anchieta embodies the essence of Castilian polyphony at the end of the fifteenth century: an expressive, flowing style with deep devotional charge, which enters into dialogue with the Flemish tradition with its own identity." It was a very captivating dialogue, and Cantoría succeeded in making the contrasts audible and tangible. A few years ago, this ensemble made its debut at the festival and made a great impression. In subsequent performances, it confirmed its qualities, and that was again the case here. It is an ensemble with beautiful voices, who achieved a great degree of transparency in La Rue's mass, and performed Anchieta's works with warmth and passion. The ensemble also differed from the Utopia Ensemble in its line-up: the former sang with one voice per part, whereas Cantoría consisted of eight singers. Moreover, all the works were accompanied on organ by Marina López, who introduced each work or section of the mass with - I assume - improvisations.
The fourth part of the series dedicated to the Mechelen Choirbook focused on the Missa Conceptio tua by Pierre de La Rue. This time Ratas del Viejo Mundo [13], directed by Floris De Rycker, performed in the Pieterskerk. Here the mass was not framed by music by contemporaries or liturgical chants, but by chansons by La Rue. This certainly made sense, as he composed quite a few, mostly for Margaret of Austria, whose favorite composer he was. One chanson was performed in a lute arrangement by Hans Gerle, played by De Rycker to open the concert. Opening a concert in this way is rather unusual. In another chanson, the original, performed by soprano and lute, was alternated with another lute arrangement, by Wolff Heckel. Unusual - that's what one might call this concert. The ensemble mainly devotes itself to secular repertoire, and that's why I was quite surprised to find it in this cycle of masses. I was curious what the ensemble would do with it. The performance of the mass was unusual: I wondered how a five-part mass could be performed with five female voices and one low male voice. A mass can be transposed, because the pitch isn't fixed. But wouldn't that be too high for bass-baritone Tomàs Maxé? Moreover, the voices were accompanied by De Rycker on the lute. That also raises questions. There wasn't much wrong with the singing, although I found Maxé's somewhat unpolished voice not appealing. I was also surprised that in the chansons modern pronunciation was used. I left the concert with mixed feelings.
The next day, in the Cathedral, it was the turn of the Cappella Pratensis [18], and then one knows what to expect: the mass was put into a liturgical framework. This time, the mass was the Missa de Feria, which is not intended for a specific feast day, but for weekdays when no special feast is being celebrated. However, liturgical chants must be chosen. In this case, the starting point was the liturgy of the feast of the Beheading of John the Baptist on August 29th, "as prescribed for a mass on September 3rd, exactly five hundred years ago," as the ensemble's leader, Tim Braithwaite, wrote in his programme notes. The performance practice of the Cappella Pratensis is quite unique (although it is now occasionally imitated by other ensembles). The singers stand around a lectern on which lies a choir book, a replica of the original. The singers communicate with each other through gestures; these are incomprehensible to the audience, but very effective, judging by the flawless ensemble. Obviously, the original Latin pronunciation is also followed. In this case, no Italian "u", but a Dutch one. The ensemble also consists entirely of male voices, resulting in a unique sound heard in few other ensembles. The performance of the plainchant was also excellent. The chants were taken from a historical source. "This programme aims to capture the magic of the everyday and demonstrate how much artistic wealth lies even in the most inconspicuous moments of the liturgy," the programme notes said. This goal was fully achieved. The Cappella Pratensis once again demonstrated that it is a unique voice in the world of Renaissance polyphony. That should be cherished. Masses are intended for liturgical use and the fact that this ensemble puts that into practice again and again cannot be appreciated enough.
On Thursday the Cappella Mariana [22] sang La Rue's Missa de Sancta Cruce; the title refers to the Passion season. This was perhaps why the ensemble focused primarily on the tragic side of the life of Margaret of Austria, for whom this choirbook was compiled. They started with Josquin Desprez's Proch dolor, composed to commemorate the death of Margaret's father, Emperor Maximilian I. La Rue set Tous les regretz, a poem commemorating Margaret's departure from the French court in 1493. Alexander Agricola's Dulces exuviae - an example of a motet with a secular text - is similar in content. The text of the lament Si je souspire / Ecce iterum, set by an anonymous composer, is attributed to Margaret herself: "I mourn for you, my dear brother Philip." The result was a compelling musical portrait of Margaret's life, which was above all tragic. The mass and the motet Vexilla regis, also by La Rue, provided a kind of counterbalance to this. The motet calls the cross "our only hope in this time of suffering." It was a fitting conclusion to the concert. The Cappella Mariana has developed into one of the leading ensembles for Renaissance music. In this concert, it consisted of eight superb voices, which blended perfectly without losing their individuality. The works were sung in various settings. Striking - and inexplicable to me except for practical reasons - was the difference in the number of voices between the sections of the mass, which is entirely five-part. The first sections were sung with one singer per part, the last by the entire ensemble. It didn't bother me, though. I was impressed by the way the music unfolded, with beautiful legato lines and a well-balanced use of dynamics.
It was the Huelgas Ensemble [26] which had the honour of concluding the Mechelen Choirbook project. Under the direction of Paul Van Nevel it performed the only mass in the book that is not written by La Rue. The Missa Fors seulement, based on a then-popular song that appears in the oeuvre of a number of composers from the Renaissance, is from the pen of Matthaeus Pipelare (c1450-c1515). Like many masses by composers of the Franco-Flemish school, it contains several two-part passages. These alternate with five-part passages, which are often homophonic. Van Nevel started with a mass by a contemporary: Franchinus Gaffurius (1451-1522), who worked in Milan for most of his life. The four-part Missa O clara luce is based on a 13th-century hymn, which is repeatedly quoted in the tenor. For an audience of our time the material used by a composer is not always easily recognizable. It might have been useful to perform this hymn before the mass. Van Nevel wrote in his programme notes that a characteristic of this mass is the liveliness of the voices, and this was clearly noticeable in the performance. This gives the impression that this mass is rather short, but that is not the case. I noted some striking dissonances in Credo and Agnus Dei. I would like to hear more of Gaffurius' music. Van Nevel always performs Renaissance polyphony with more than one singer per part. During the performance, the singers frequently change places. He must have reasons for this, but they are incomprehensible to the audience. Perhaps this is why the homogeneity and balance between the vocal groups are optimal in this ensemble. The differences between the two masses came off well. One may wonder whether this was the last time one heard this ensemble under Van Nevel's direction in Utrecht. In the coming years, he will hand over his tasks to Achim Schultz, one of the ensemble's tenors.
The sacred music of the Renaissance did not stop there. The Cappella Mariana [25] returned a day after its La Rue performance, this time in collaboration with Capriccio Stravagante, the ensemble of Skip Sempé. The core of the programme was the chanson Doulce mémoire by Pierre Sandrin (c1490-after 1560), one of the most popular pieces in the 16th century. According to the programme, no fewer than 36 versions have survived from that period, vocal and instrumental, the latter often with diminutions. Six of these — unfortunately not specified in the programme - were performed during the concert, on harpsichord, and on recorder, viola da gamba and cornett respectively with basso continuo. The programme opened with Sandrin's original vocal version, beautifully sung by the Cappella Mariana. That ensemble was also responsible for the performance of a mass based on this chanson, the five-part Missa Doulce mémoire by Cipriano de Rore (1515/16-1565). Capriccio Stravagante's instruments were used to support the vocal parts. We are accustomed to the role of cornetts and sackbuts in sacred music, but recorder and viola gamba in a mass are somewhat unusual. It worked, however; they added colour to the vocal parts. Sometimes it is difficult to recognize the work on which a mass is based. That was different here. Rore has incorporated it very recognizably into his mass, and the chanson itself is a piece that easily sticks in the memory. This undoubtedly contributed to its popularity. The performance was excellent, and the collaboration between the two ensembles was ideal. In the instrumental versions, we heard, besides Sempé on the harpsichord, the recorder player Julien Martin, the gambist Josh Cheatham and the cornettist Doron Sherwin, all masters on their instruments, as they demonstrated here once again.
On the second Saturday a rather well-known work was performed in the Cathedral, but in an unusual manner. The Missa pro defunctis by Tomás Luis de Victoria is regularly performed and well represented on disc, but is seldom performed in the way it was by La Grande Chapelle [31], directed by Albert Recasens. Victoria's Requiem is part of the Officium defunctorum, which also includes plainchant. In most recordings, only the plainchant that is part of polyphony with an alternatim structure is performed. Here we also got a large part of the separate plainchant (the CD recording of 2020 comprises the complete Officium). For these chants, Recasens had secured the cooperation of the Schola Antiqua, which, as its name suggests, focuses on the study and performance of liturgical music from a historical perspective. The intensive collaboration between both ensembles resulted in a perfect coordination of monophony and polyphony and the congenial approach to the musical material. In both the monophonic liturgical chants and the polyphony, the singers were supported by Benny Aghassi on dulcian. This added colour to the ensemble. The Gregorian chants were sung beautifully with great attention to the text, which was always clearly audible. La Grande Chapelle always includes excellent singers, and that was no exception here. It resulted in an impressive performance of Victoria's Officium defunctorum and conveyed the emotion it embodies and may have been felt at the time it was first performed. It convinced me once again of the added value of a liturgical framework for Renaissance polyphony. This concert was one of the highlights of the festival.
The Mechelen Choirbook was not the only collection of Renaissance sacred music that was given special attention. Stile Antico [12] sang pieces from the Dow Partbooks, compiled by Robert Dow (1553-1588), about whom virtually nothing is known. In the 1580s, he copied his favourite motets, madrigals, and instrumental pieces into five partbooks. They provide a glimpse of what was available and circulating at the time. Most of the pieces are of English origin, but apparently Lassus's music was also known in England, because the programme included his motet Veni hortum meum. The large number of works based on Latin texts is striking. This doesn't prove that Dow had Catholic sympathies, but it may point in that direction. Incidentally, most composers, Protestant or Catholic, wrote music in both Latin and English. For example, the staunch Catholic William Byrd, prominently featured in the programme, composed O Lord, make thy servant, a prayer for protection for the very Protestant Queen Elizabeth. She loved Byrd's music and therefore turned a blind eye when he published music set to Latin texts. Robert White also composed in both languages: The Lord bless us and keep us and the five-part Lamentations, the first part of which concluded the programme. This is a work of great emotional intensity, even though the time for expressing the text had not yet arrived. Before that, we heard Byrd's Exsurge Domine: "Awake, Lord, why sleepest thou? Awake! Cast us not off forever." There is much speculation as to whether some of Byrd's motets may have been inspired by the precarious position of Catholics under Elizabeth's reign. This is difficult to prove, but it is perfectly clear that this work reflects a troubled state of mind. And that was beautifully expressed in Stile Antico's performance. The darkness of White's Lamentations was also convincingly realized. It remains a miracle that this ensemble of - in this concert - twelve voices without a conductor, purely by listening to and observing each other, manages to achieve such homogeneity, not only technically but also in interpretation. A chanson by Philip van Wilder was sung with one voice per part. Well done, but Stile Antico is primarily an ensemble for sacred music, as this concert again impressive demonstrated.
The same ensemble had also realized a quite unusual project at the first Saturday of the festival. At five different times — the last at nine o'clock in the evening — Stile Antico [2] sang liturgical chants as they have been sung in monasteries throughout the centuries. I attended the first episode devoted to Matins for the First Sunday of Advent. Keeping in mind the festival's theme, "Museum Art?", one could call this a 'liturgical reconstruction'. Music intended for the liturgy is almost always performed in concert form these days, often in churches, but sometimes even in concert halls. This cycle of performances by Stile Antico was an attempt to present the music in a context that at least gives an impression of how it originally functioned. Of course, this is only possible to a limited extent. The seven o'clock time was already a compromise: Matins should ideally be sung at midnight. Moreover, each episode was dedicated to a different feast of the liturgical year. The programmes were a mix of plainchant and polyphony. And here, too, the compromise was evident: historically speaking, it is highly unlikely that Byrd, Ockeghem, and Sheppard - the composers performed during the Matins - ever figured within the same liturgical framework. I assume the ensemble took the plainchant from 20th-century rather than Renaissance sources. This does not compromise the value of these kinds of reconstructions, which offer a glimpse into the liturgical function of polyphonic works, which are usually performed separately. The highlight was the final work: John Sheppard's monumental Te Deum, a work in which polyphony and monophony alternate. It received a brilliant and captivating interpretation, just like Byrd's previously sung Rorate coeli and Ockeghem's Alma redemptoris mater. The plainchant was excellently executed by the Collegium Gregorianum in the Maria chapel of the St. Willibrordkerk, which was the perfect venue for this project.
Staying with liturgical practices of the past, the concert by the ensemble Ordo Virtutum [4], directed by Stefan Johannes Morent, was an example of what may be called an 'acoustic reconstruction'. This ensemble specializes in liturgical repertoire as sung in monasteries and churches in the Middle Ages. It is almost impossible to hear this music in an acoustic environment similar to that in which these chants were originally sung. This inspired Morent to experiment. In his programme notes he wrote: "New technologies in virtual acoustics allow us to reconstruct the sound of lost sacred spaces." During the concert at the Pandora hall at TivoliVredenburg, we traveled from the former abbey church of the Monastery of St. Gall in Switzerland, via the former Cistercian monastery church of Maulbronn, to the former abbey church of Cluny III in Burgundy. I am sceptical about the use of modern technology in performance practice, as usually it allows music to sound in a way that wasn't possible at the time it was written. In this case, it's actually the opposite: technology allows the music to sound in a way that brings us closer to how it sounded back then. Of course, this can never be fully realized, but the way the plainchant was presented here was particularly captivating and revealing. The acoustic differences were clearly noticeable, and images of the respective churches on a screen helped transport the audience to the context of the time. The pronunciation of Latin was adapted to the environment in which the chants were sung. The ensemble consisted of five excellent singers who once again made it clear that plainchant is anything but uniform and certainly doesn't have to be boring. It was a most memorable event.
Late Renaissance/Baroque
Every year the Friends of the festival - who support it financially - are offered a special concert. This time it was something special indeed. Harpsichordist Skip Sempé, one of the festival's regulars, had put together a large 'Renaissance orchestra' under the name of Capriccio Stravagante Renaissance Orchestra [19], which played a programme of instrumental music from around 1600. Its core was Michael Praetorius' collection Terpsichore. It needs to be mentioned that the dances included in it are mostly not of his pen, but arrangements of dances by others. Pieces by other composers, such as William Brade (English-born but working in Germany), Anthony Holborne, and John Dowland, were added. The programme was divided into four sections, called Ballo. The orchestra consisted of three groups of instruments: viole da gamba, recorders, and loud wind instruments (trumpet, cornett, shawm, sackbut), as well as plucked and keyboard instruments, plus percussion. These groups played separately, but also together. For the performance practice, Sempé drew inspiration from information in Praetorius's book Theatrum Instrumentorum. There is no doubt that at some occasions large ensembles with a variety of instruments were used. But the question is whether the music performed in this concert was also played by such large ensembles. I have my doubts about that. It seems highly unlikely to me that Dowland's instrumental music was played by loud wind instruments. If his music was played by a broken consort, it may have been more likely a combination of, for example, recorder, violin, and viola da gamba than a large ensemble with brass instruments. In short, from a historical perspective this performance practice seemed rather debatable to me. It all sounded fantastic, though. No wonder, as Sempé had brought together a number of specialists, among them Doron Sherwin on cornett, Josh Cheatham on viola da gamba, and Julien Martin on recorder. The music was more than worth listening to; there's no reason to look down on it because it's just dance music. Composers took such music seriously, and dance music played an important role in the renaissance and baroque periods. Nevertheless, the programme, lasting over an hour and a half, was a bit too much of a good thing. Dances are often played as part of programmes with other music, such as vocal pieces. That may work better than a long sequence of relatively short instrumental pieces. I certainly enjoyed the concert, but even so I was delighted when the last note had been played.
With this concert we are at the brink of Renaissance and Baroque. Two concerts marked the early stages of the baroque period. In the Lutherse Kerk, the soprano Perrine Devillers [7], with Elam Rotem at the harpsichord, demonstrated how Italian composers used the principles of the monody, as propagated by the likes of Caccini and Monteverdi, to communicate the content of sacred texts to the listener. Music was a vehicle for the text and aimed to express the emotions inherent in it. The performance tools of the time were essential for this, including a close attention to the text, but also elements such as ornamentation, harmony, and dynamics. Textbooks from that period are helpful in deciphering the then-current methods of performance, but with a bit of luck, one can also find pieces that explicitly indicate such things. This concert featured several anonymous works from a recently discovered manuscript in which the ornamentation is written out. There was no shortage of ornamentation - sometimes virtuosic - and, to my delight, Perrine Devillers also employed a then-important interpretive tool: the messa di voce, which is too often neglected. Perrine Devillers sings a great deal of early music, for instance in the Ensemble Correspondances, and so it wasn't entirely surprising that she knew her way around in this repertoire. She delivered compelling and stylistically convincing performances. Elam Rotem's contributions were particularly interesting, as he not only played several harpsichord works from the period but also presented pieces of his own in the style of the time, particularly the genre of the partita, a series of variations.
At Hertz Margret Koell [15], specialist on the arpa doppia, played a highly interesting programme consisting of music composed in the decades around 1600. The arpa doppia was a popular instrument at the time, but little music was composed specifically for it. Professional harpists may have mostly improvised, and they also played music primarily intended for keyboard instruments or the lute. These instruments were largely interchangeable. The improvisatory nature of much of the music was reflected in the works performed. We were given examples of what has become known as the stylus phantasticus, in which contrasting tempi alternate almost without interruption. The pieces on the programme came from a collection held in the British Library, the so-called Luigi Rossi manuscript. It contains a wide variety of forms, from more or less fixed ones, such as dances, to very free forms, such as toccatas and pieces entitled stravaganze. Also represented was the then-popular genre of the partite, also represented in the concert just mentioned. Among the themes were La Romanesca and Il Ruggiero. We know this kind of music from performances and recordings on harpsichord and lute or theorbo. Performances on a harp have something special. This is due to the character of the arpa doppia. It has a wide range, a strong resonance, and - unlike the harpsichord - the possibility of dynamic contrasts. Therefore, performances on this instrument are genuine alternatives that add something substantial. It is not music of grand gestures. It requires concentrated listening, and then the richness of the instrument and repertoire manifests itself, especially in a performance by a specialist like Margret Koell. She delivered colourful interpretations, full of contrasts, sometimes subtle and intimate, on other occasions more dramatic. The audience was rightly enthusiastic about her performance, which unfortunately was attended by only about fifty people, which was a real shame.
The stylus phantasticus was also the name of the game in a recital by violinist Stéphanie Paulet and Elisabeth Geiger [23], who played the organ in the large hall of TivoliVredenburg. The acoustics were somewhat problematic - not for the organ, but certainly for the violin. A single violin in a large hall isn't ideal. But the choice of a somewhat larger organ instead of a small instrument, as is usually used in concerts of baroque music, made that unavoidable. Stéphanie Paulet and Elisabeth Geiger performed a beautiful programme with music for violin and basso continuo from a manuscript originating from the Franciscan Monastery in Vienna. This brings us in the vein of Johann Heinrich Schmelzer and Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber. The latter was represented with a short prelude, which was followed by an anonymous sonata. The manuscript contains works by Biber and other relatively well-known composers, as well as many pieces by anonymous masters and lesser-known composers, such as Johann Caspar Teubner; two of his works concluded the recital. Most of the works consisted of multiple sections that flow seamlessly into one another, and contrast in tempo and meter. This makes this repertoire exciting and surprising. This was perfectly captured in the excellent performances by the two artists. The fact that the entire concert consisted of unknown pieces was a bonus and a welcome feature of the festival. Anyone who pays close attention will know more after the festival than before.
A composer who was strongly influenced by what was written in Italy, was Heinrich Schütz. Initially, this was the counterpoint of the Renaissance, which he learned from Giovanni Gabrieli and which accompanied him until the end of his life. Later, he became acquainted with the monody, as practised by Claudio Monteverdi and Alessandro Grandi, among others. The declamatory character of his music is closely related to what he heard in Italy. In the Cathedral, Philippe Pierlot directed his Ricercar Consort [6] in a selection of pieces entitled "Da pacem." These were also the opening words of the first work; several other pieces by Schütz also expressed the longing for peace, such as Verleih uns Frieden gnädiglich. This does not surprise, as much of his life was overshadowed by the Thirty Years' War. Other works in the programme touched on this theme, such as the setting of Psalm 133, Siehe, wie fein und lieblich ist's: "How good and pleasant it is to dwell together as brothers." The longing for redemption through death is a recurring theme in Lutheran Germany in the 17th and 18th centuries, as expressed in So fahr ich hin and, in a slightly different sense, in Simeon's canticle, Herr, nun lässest du deinen Diener. The Ricercar Consort has performed and recorded a great amount of this kind of music over the years. Their performances have all been successful, and the concert in the Cathedral was no exception. This is due to a thorough knowledge of the stylistic characteristics of this music, but also of its spiritual dimension. The key to Schütz's music lies in the texts. He was called musicus poeticus because he was, more than anyone else, able to translate a text and its meaning into music. Pierlot consistently succeeds in finding singers who know how to express this connection in performance. Here, they were Hanna Bayodi and Yetzabel Arias (the latter impressive in Pa pacem), Olivier Coiffet and Hugo Hymas (tenor), and Matthias Vieweg (bass), who gave a compelling interpretation of the aforementioned Herr, nun lässest du deinen Diener. The expressiveness in Schütz's music comes not only from the vocal parts. The instrumental parts also contribute: apart from the two violins, the ensemble included three viole da gamba. The strong scoring of the lower parts is typical of 17th-century German music. For me, this concert was one of the highlights of the festival.
At the same time very different music was written in France. In the Jacobikerk, soprano Adèle Charvet and Le Poème Harmonique [29], directed by Vincent Dumestre, presented a programme of music in the Louvre. This was the residence of the French kings until the Palace of Versailles took over that role. Naturally, French music was played, but the second part of the programme was devoted to Italian repertoire. In his younger years, Louis XIV also appreciated this music (and continued to so do later, though not 'officially'). The concert started with music by Lully, Lalande, Charpentier, and Moulinié. This was primarily music intended for intimate performance, and the acoustics of the Jacobikerk did not suit it. Adèle Charvet's approach was very theatrical, which seemed inappropriate to me. She undeniably possesses dramatic talent, which came in handy in the second part when she performed arias from operas by Cavalli. But here too, the acoustics were a nuisance: a theatre usually has rather dry acoustics. I have quite a few problems with the style of singing she demonstrated. Unfortunately, this is almost standard practice these days. This style relies too little on the intelligibility of the text and too much on a big sound, with too much vibrato. Therefore, I didn't wait for the inevitable encore. The most positive aspect of this concert were the instrumental pieces, but here too, the spacious acoustics played a negative role. All in all, this was a somewhat disappointing experience.
This was also the time one of the greatest composers of keyboard music worked in France: Louis Couperin. The French harpsichordist Jean Rondeau [20, 24] has recorded his complete works (to be released in November 2025), and the festival offered him the opportunity to play them live in seven concerts. Couperin's harpsichord works are frequently performed, and although they are available in various CD recordings, most harpsichordists perform a (small) selection. They often choose the same pieces, and that is precisely what makes a case for a complete performance and recording. I was only able to attend the two organ recitals and a concert with consort music. However, these focused on the least-known part of his oeuvre. For a long time most of the organ works remained unknown, because the man who discovered them, Guy Oldham, refused to publish them. They were recorded for the first time in 1995. Why they still play a marginal role in recordings and concerts is difficult to understand. Rondeau demonstrated their quality in two recitals on the organ of the Tuindorpkerk. Couperin's organ works consist mainly of fantasias and fugues. Most French organ music was composed for liturgical use. Whether these works actually served that purpose, I don't know. Rondeau didn't elaborate on this in his notes in the festival programme. Perhaps it will be discussed in the booklet accompanying his CD recording. Only a few pieces have titles that point to liturgical use, such as Invitatoire pour le Jour de Pâques and Jesu Salvator Saeculi, which concluded the two recitals respectively. In these, the organ was heard in all its glory. In both programs, Rondeau optimally explored the organ's potential to give each work its own character. His lively interpretations reflected his great interest and love for the music of Louis Couperin, and his recitals were a perfect opportunity to become acquainted with this part of his oeuvre.
The consort music was the subject of a concert in which Philippe Pierlot and his Ricercar Consort [28] cooperated with Rondeau and the organist Julien Wolfs. Besides being an organist and harpsichordist, Couperin played the viola da gamba. It is therefore not surprising that he composed consort music. Unfortunately, information about the programme for this concert was missing in the festival book. I would like to know something about the relationship between the consort music and the keyboard works. I recognized several pieces as harpsichord works. Were these originally pieces for viols, or are they keyboard works played by the musicians on viols? According to New Grove, the number of pieces for an instrumental ensemble is small — the list is shorter than what was on the programme for this concert. In any case, it was a particularly interesting and musically captivating addition to the Couperin project. The pieces I recognized as harpsichord works took on a new dimension here, especially because a consort of viols can do something a harpsichord cannot: create dynamic contrasts. Moreover, their sound is particularly suited to express sadness or melancholy. This was the case here, for example, with the Tombeau de Monsieur de Blancrocher. It was the highlight of the concert, thanks to the depth of expression, which was fully realized in the performance. Besides Pierlot, we heard some of the finest viola da gamba players of the younger generation, such as Lucile Boulanger and Myriam Rignol. This concert was one of the best of the festival.
Around 1700
From Couperin to the traditional harpsichord recitals is a small step. This year four of them were special because of the instrument that was used, and that was provided by Andreas Staier. This harpsichord has a 16-foot stop. This is reminiscent of the old days, when harpsichordists - often trained on the piano - played monstrous "harpsichords" with such a stop. This explains why their use has been and still is rather controversial. It's an established fact that such harpsichords were built in the 18th century. Nowadays, recordings are made on historically-oriented harpsichords with a 16-foot stop. As far as I can remember, this is the first time such an instrument has been used at the festival. One could classify it as a 'reconstruction'. The big question is how many such instruments existed, how widespread their use was, and where and in what kind of repertoire they were played. Such questions will probably never be definitively answered. I assume that I am not the only one who doesn't find it easy to get used to such instruments. I attended two of the recitals on this harpsichord.
The first was by Arianna Radaelli [8], who opened with Dieterich Buxtehude's Prelude in G minor (BuxWV 163). It is listed in the catalogue as a keyboard work, which means that it can be played on various keyboard instruments, including the organ. That might be a reason to use the 16-foot stop when played on the harpsichord, although it is questionable whether such instruments already existed in Buxtehude's time and whether he knew them. Johann Sebastian Bach's Italian Concerto could also benefit from the 16-foot stop: it could replace the lower instruments of the orchestra, which is imitated here. That was the second piece, followed by Gustav Leonhardt's arrangement of the Sonata in G minor (BWV 1001) for solo violin. I really don't see a role for the 16-foot stop here. This work was followed by a piece by George Rochberg from 1966, Nach Bach. It was, of course, written with the sound of the old-fashioned factory harpsichord in mind. I would have preferred not to have heard it. I have no affinity for modern music whatsoever, and the piece was also far too long. The recital ended with Froberger and Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach - much more easy to swallow. I very much appreciated Arianna Radaelli's playing. It was full of tension and drama - especially in Buxtehude and Bach's Italian Concerto — thanks in part to the liberties she took in tempo and rhythm. As far as I can tell, she remained within the historical parameters.
The second recital was given by Irene Roldán [11]. Her programme was a kind of follow-up to Arianna Radaelli's, as she also started with a work by Dieterich Buxtehude, the Toccata in G (BuxWV 165). This is one of the works in the Möller manuscript which was the subject of this recital. It contains pieces Johann Sebastian Bach encountered in his younger years. It thus provides a good impression of the influences he was subjected to. One of these influences comes from the North German organ school, of which Buxtehude was the last major representative. In the toccata the organ style is clearly evident, and the use of the 16-foot stop is particularly meaningful there. The second work was by Georg Böhm, who was, to some extent, Bach's teacher. His chorale partitas, in particular, influenced Bach. One of these is the Partite diverse sopra l'Aria Jesu, du bist all zu schöne. The intimate performance of the theme was remarkable here; was this perhaps inspired by the title? (I couldn't find the text of this aria.) French music is also represented in the Möller manuscript. We heard a prelude and chaconne by Louis Marchand. Christian Ritter's Suite in F sharp can also be considered a French influence: the suite had its origin in France. But in this case, the influence comes from Froberger, who introduced the suite to Germany. Two works by Bach himself were played, also from the Möller manuscript: the Prelude and fugue in A (BWV 896) and the Toccata in D (BWV 912). The latter work is one of seven toccatas that demonstrate how Bach had internalized the influence of the North German organ school. Irene Roldán made a great impression with her performances. Almost immediately after the last note, she received standing ovations. And rightly so, as her playing was technically flawless, and her interpretations were exciting, colourful, and full of contrasts. She took fewer liberties than Radaelli, but this was compensated by a great transparency. Bach's Toccata is a late example of the stylus phantasticus, a hallmark of the North German organ school, and the strong contrasts that characterize it were perfectly expressed, as was the improvisatory character inherent in the toccata. We will be hearing much more from Irene Roldán, I am certain of that.
The questions with regard to the use of the 16-foot stop remained unanswered. However, it is commendable that the festival dares to put this issue on the table. That is also one of the purposes of this festival.
With these recitals we were at the turn from the 17th to the 18th century. That was also the time the music was written and performed that was the subject of the festival's opening concert by the Ensemble Hemiola [1], directed by Emmanuel Resche-Caserta. The core of the programme was music by Arcangelo Corelli - very well-known but performed in an unusual way. Movements from several concerti grossi were put together and performed in a large line-up, including trumpets and timpani. In addition we heard some trio sonatas, again played by a large ensemble. It was an attempted reconstruction of an event in Rome in 1686, to celebrate the signing of the Edict of Fontainebleau, by which Louis XIV, on October 18, 1685, had revoked the Edict of Nantes which, since 1598, had defined the rights of Protestants in France. Only one piece is known for sure to have been performed at the event: the cantata Qual armonia guerriera by Alessandro Melani, which has been preserved incomplete and has been reconstructed. I had already heard this programme, as it has been released on disc. However, it was nice to hear it live, especially the trumpets played on instruments without vent holes. Jean-François Madeuf, a pioneer in this field, played the obbligato part in Melani's cantata impressively. Marie Perbost delivered a fine performance, with some theatral gestures, but not in an exaggerated manner. I found the performances overall more energetic than on disc, but that may also be the difference between a studio recording and a live event.
At about the same time the two works were written which Gunar Letzbor performed with his ensemble Ars Antiqua Austria and the St. Florianer Sängerknaben [27]. The name of Benedikt Anton Aufschnaiter (1665-1742) may have been unfamiliar to many listeners in the main hall of TivoliVredenburg where the performance took place. However, this wasn't the first time that Letzbor performed his music at the festival. In 2015, he presented a selection from the composer's opus 5 in the same hall, with the same forces. In this case, the ensemble was considerably larger than in 2015, as the recently rediscovered Missa Laetemurine is scored for twelve voices. In addition to cornetts, trumpets, sackbuts and strings, the ensemble included a lute consort. For several years, the ensemble's leader, Hubert Hoffmann, has been researching the role of lutes in the basso continuo of Austrian music from around 1700. This mass by Aufschnaiter is an impressive work, especially in the tutti, where he demonstrates his mastery of counterpoint. Such music not only had a liturgical function but was also intended to impress. The work fully succeeded in this, not least thanks to the excellent performance. The solo parts in this work are also quite impressive, and the soloists knew how to handle them. One of them was Valentin Werner, who made quite some impression in the far from simple soprano part. Other members of the St. Florianer Sängerknaben also showed their talents, especially in the second work on the programme, the Vesperae a 32 by Heinrich Ignaz Franz Biber, which consist of Dixit Dominus and Magnificat. Stylistically, the two works complemented each other perfectly, and once again, the ensemble's wind section was admirable. As always, Letzbor delivered an impressive performance. He deserves to return more often, especially because he always has something unusual and unfamiliar to offer.
As I wrote above, there is a strong contrast between the context in which liturgical music is performed now and the time the music was written. A good example was a concert by the Ensemble Correspondances [3], directed by Sébastien Daucé, which performed three early cantatas by Johann Sebastian Bach in the main hall of TivoliVredenburg. Obviously these are intended for liturgical use and are not appropriate for a modern concert hall. This is one of the almost inevitable inconsistencies of current performance practice. The Ensemble Correspondances has earned a reputation primarily by performing French music from the 17th and 18th centuries. More recently, it has performed and recorded music by Buxtehude, and from there it is only a small step to Bach. We heard Aus der Tiefe (BWV 131), Gottes Zeit ist die allerbeste Zeit (BWV 108) and Christ lag in Todesbanden (BWV 4). Among the strengths of this ensemble is its stylistic consistency, as the solo parts are sung by members of the ensemble. However, this very aspect also raised questions. The structure of these cantatas points to a performance with one voice per part. Here, the tutti sections were sung by four sopranos, three altos, three tenors, and three basses. I don't really see any good reasons for this. And as the singers came forward for their solos, there were short pauses which damaged the natural flow of the musical discourse. In the case of Christ lag in Todesbanden, Daucé's decisions even violated the symmetrical structure of the cantata, as the solos were sung by the respective voice groups in the first half and by soloists in the second. Be that as it may, the quality of the singing and playing was excellent throughout, and showed that this ensemble does not need to confine itself to French music.
Late Baroque and beyond
Music from the late baroque period and later played a minor role at this year's festival. First: a curiosity. It seems unlikely that the hurdy-gurdy was never played during the festival. But I assume it was usually part of an ensemble for medieval music. I don't recall it playing a solo role in baroque music. That was precisely the case during a concert by the Ensemble Danguy [9], directed by Tobie Miller, who is a specialist in hurdy-gurdy playing. The instrument became very popular in 18th-century France: it was associated with rural life, which was idealized at the time. The hurdy-gurdy was initially used in more popular music, but in the course of the 18th century, technical improvements were made, and playing technique also developed. One of the composers who capitalized on the hurdy-gurdy's popularity was Nicolas Chédeville. He became particularly notorious for publishing a collection of sonatas under Vivaldi's name. One of these was played during the concert, as was a work by Vivaldi himself, the famous variations on La Folia. But this concert focused on a different collection: Chédeville's arrangements of concertos from Vivaldi's Opus 8, which opens with The Four Seasons. Vivaldi's music was very popular in France at the time, and this was certainly true of The Four Seasons. Tobie Miller and her ensemble have recorded the entire collection on CD. I had heard it, but it was very interesting to see how the hurdy-gurdy is played. Anyone who thinks it's not a serious instrument should listen to this ensemble's CDs. In this concert, Miller also demonstrated the instrument's many possibilities. The three concertos from the collection received vivid interpretations. The hurdy-gurdy proved to be a good and interesting alternative to the violin. The two violinists gave excellent performances of the sonatas by Chédeville and Vivaldi. The large audience at Cloud Nine in TivoliVredenburg was clearly enthusiastic about the Ensemble Danguy's performance. As far as I'm concerned, they should return in a future edition of the festival.
The last two concerts bring us to a new aesthetical period. In the first, gambist André Lislevand [16] played music from the second half of the 18th century. This raises the question of whether at that time music for the 'old-fashioned' viola da gamba was still written. Yes, it was. The two composers featured in the programme were Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach and Carl Friedrich Abel. The latter was a gambist himself - one of the greatest of his time. After settling in England, he taught amateurs from aristocratic circles. For them he may have written down pieces which he improvised during private and public concerts. Lislevand began the concert with an Allegro from the so-called Drexel Manuscript, which clearly displays improvisatory features, which were fully realized in his performance. A Sonata in A for viola da gamba and basso continuo by Abel concluded the concert. Lislevand was assisted by Jadran Duncumb (lute) and Emil Duncumb (fortepiano). Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach composed several pieces for the viola da gamba, most likely for Ludwig Christian Hesse, who served as a gambist at the court of Frederick the Great. One of the sonatas is for viola da gamba and basso continuo, the other for keyboard and viola da gamba. The use of a fortepiano is debatable. It's questionable whether that instrument had established itself at the time these works were composed, before 1760. The program didn't specify which instrument was played, but it certainly sounded too modern for this music. If a fortepiano is appropriate here, then a Silbermann; this instrument certainly was different. Emil Duncumb also played Beethoven's Rondo No. 1, a somewhat odd one out in this programme. In addition we heard a sonata that is often attributed to Johann Sebastian Bach, but is probably written by his second son. The Sonata in G minor (BWV 1020) is included in Helm's catalogue of CPE Bach's oeuvre. It is scored for harpsichord and violin, but is often played with a transverse flute. Here we heard it in a version for lute and viola da gamba. An original idea, but musically not particularly convincing. This is mainly because the lute, which is supposed to have the lead, is too soft in comparison to the viola da gamba. That does not compromise my appreciation of the performances. I only knew Lislevand by name, but I had never heard him. He turned out to be an excellent player who performs his parts with much esprit. The Duncumb brothers were his equal partners. It was an interesting concert, despite a few issues.
To conclude this review, a by concert the ensemble L'Apothéose [30], consisting of Laura Quesada (transverse flute), Victor Martínez (violin), María Martínez (cello), and Asís Márquez (harpsichord). They played a programme of chamber music by Carl Stamitz, a composer who doesn't often appear on concert programmes and whose music isn't particularly well represented on CD either. Some of his music is written in the galant idiom, which doesn't have a very good reputation. Wrongly so: much of this music is far better than its reputation suggests. This became clear during this concert, in which four trios from the opus 14 were performed. Although the cello is part of the basso continuo, it sometimes comes forward with obbligato passages. This is the case, for example, in the Trio in G minor, which occupies a special position due to its minor key (the other five trios are in major keys), but also because it is a prime example of the style known as Sturm und Drang. It is characterized by often unexpected dynamic contrasts and sudden pauses, which give this work a distinctly dramatic character. No wonder that the ensemble performed this piece last. In it, the players were able to perfectly showcase their qualities, both individually and together. But they also delighted the audience in the earlier trios. These are indeed galant in tone, but well-written and very entertaining. In order to have any impact, this kind of music requires excellent interpreters, and that is precisely what the four members of L'Apothéose are.
This year's Festival Early Music Utrecht was another excellent edition. Thematically it was very interesting: the questions with regard to the differences in context between our time and the time music was written and performed give much food for thought. It was an excellent idea to perform some collections of music complete. Too often performers select the same pieces. Complete performances reveal hidden treasures and leave the assessment of music to the music-loving public at large - where it belongs. The festival is the perfect place to start debates on issues regarding performance practice, as was the case this year with the recitals on a harpsichord with 16-foot stop.
The overall quality of the performances - at least those that I have attended - was very high. Some disappointments, as I have noted, are inevitable and, obviously, also a matter of taste.
The festival director, Xavier Vandamme, had some good news: the number of visitors was higher than ever before, and - what is even more encouraging - a substantial number of them came to the festival for the first time, including younger people. That is promising for the future. A particularly nice initiative was a 'concert camper', visiting several spots in the town and offering short concerts for free, by various artists, including established ensembles, such as the Ensemble Masques.
Next year the theme will be "Giving voice": the human voice will be given central stage. That is something to look forward to.
Johan van Veen (© 2025)
[1] Ensemble Hemiola/Emmanuel Resche-Caserta
"Concerti Grossi XXL - Corelli and Melani"
August 29, TivoliVredenburg (large hall)
[2] Stile Antico
"Monk's Work: The Divine Hours I (Matins)"
August 30, St Willibrordkerk
[3] Ensemble Correspondances/Sébastien Daucé
"Actus Tragicus: Bach's earliest cantatas"
August 30, TivoliVredenburg
[4] Ordo Virtutum/Stefan Johannes Morent
"Forgotten acoustics"
August 30, TivoliVredenburg (Cloud Nine)
[5] Utopia Ensemble
"The Choirbook of Margaret of Austria I"
August 30, Pieterskerk
[6] Ricercar Consort/Philippe Pierlot
"Da pacem"
August 30, Cathedral
[7] Perrine Devillers, soprano; Elam Rotem, harpsichord
"Sublime Solo"
August 30, Lutheran Church
[8] Arianna Radaelli, harpsichord
"One instrument, a thousand sounds"
Sept 1, Lutheran Church
[9] Ensemble Danguy/Tobie Miller
"Vivaldi's Le quattro stagioni on hurdy-gurdy"
Sept 1, TivoliVredenburg (Cloud Nine)
[10] Cantoría
"The Choirbook of Margaret of Austria III"
Sept 1, St Augustinuskerk
[11] Irene Roldán, harpsichord
"Bach before Bach"
Sept 2, Lutheran Church
[12] Stile Antico
"The Dow Partbooks"
Sept 2, St Catharinakathedraal
[13] Ratas del Viejo Mundo/Floris De Rycker
"The Choirbook of Margaret of Austria IV"
Sept 2, Pieterskerk
[14] Sollazzo Ensemble/Anna Danilevskaia
"La Flamboyance: Festive Ceremonial Music From 1425"
Sept 2, TivoliVredenburg (large hall)
[15] Margret Koell, harp
"Stravaganza on strings"
Sept 2, TivoliVredenburg (Hertz)
[16] André Lislevand, viola da gamba; Jadran Duncumb, lute; Emil Duncumb, fortepiano
"The Gallant Swan Song of the Viola da Gamba"
Sept 3, TivoliVredenburg (Hertz)
[17] Contre le Temps
"The Kiss of the Rose"
Sept 3, Pieterskerk
[18] Cappella Pratensis/Tim Braithwaite
"The Choirbook of Margaret of Austria V"
Sept 3, Cathedral
[19] Capriccio Stravagante Renaissance Orchestra/Skip Sempé
"Dancing with Terpsichore"
Sept 3, TivoliVredenburg (large hall)
[20] Jean Rondeau, organ
Louis Couperin: "Oeuvres complètes II"
Sept 4, Tuindorpkerk
[21] Le Miroir de Musique/Baptiste Romain
"Chansonnier du Roi"
Sept 4, Pieterskerk
[22] Cappella Mariana/Vojtěch Semerád
"The Choirbook of Margaret of Austria VI"
Sept 4, Cathedral
[23] Stéphanie Paulet, violin; Elisabeth Geiger, harpsichord
"Moving Violin Sonatas from the Minoriten Convent"
Sept 4, TivoliVredenburg (large hall)
[24] Jean Rondeau, organ
Louis Couperin: "Oeuvres complètes IV"
Sept 5, Tuindorpkerk
[25] Cappella Mariana, Capriccio Stravagante/Skip Sempé
"Doulce mémoire: profano / sacro"
Sept 5, Pieterskerk
[26] Huelgas Ensemble/Paul Van Nevel
"The Choirbook of Margaret of Austria VII"
Sept 5, Cathedral
[27] St Florianer Sängerknaben, Ars Antiqua Austria/Gunar Letzbor
"Aufschnaiter & Biber: Grand Austrian Baroque"
Sept 5, TivoliVredenburg (large hall)
[28] Ricercar Consort; Jean Rondeau, harpsichord
Louis Couperin: "Oeuvres complètes VI"
Sept 6, TivoliVredenburg (Hertz)
[29] Le Poème Harmonique/Vincent Dumestre
"Music in the Louvre"
Sept 6, Jacobikerk
[30] L'Apothéose
"Stamitz's Gallant Jousting"
Sept 6, Lutheran Church
[31] La Grande Chapelle/Albert Recasens
"Victoria's Officium Defunctorum"
Sept 6, Cathedral
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