10 March - 20 April 2015 LAURENCE CUMMINGS Musical Director ADRIAN BUTTERFIELD Associate Director www.london-handel-festival.com 1 LONDON HANDEL FESTIVAL 2015 - DIARY OF EVENTS VENUES SGHS - St George’s, Hanover Square; FM - Foundling Museum; BT, RCM - Britten Theatre, Royal College of Music; QEH - Queen Elizabeth Hall; SL - St Lawrence, Little Stanmore; GC - Grosvenor Chapel MacL - MacLaren Hall MARCH 2 How to book p4 Welcome from Laurence Cummings p5 Tuesday 10 March 1.10-2.10pm SGHS Simon Williams Organ Concert p7 Tuesday 10 March 4-5pm Talk on Semele by Dr Ruth Smith p6 Tuesday 10 March 4.45-5.45pm Handel majesty, memorials Walk p6 Tuesday 10 March 7pm Handel Semele p8 SGHS QEH Tuesday 10 March Cecil Sharp Children’s Baroque Dance Project p 20 Wednesday 11 March 7pm FM Amadè Players p9 Thursday 12 March 1-2pm SGHS Trinity Laban Baroque Ensemble p 18 Friday 13 March 1-2pm SGHS Guildhall School Cantata Ensemble p 18 Monday 16 March 1-2pm SGHS Susanna Fairbairn Lunchtime Recital p 19 Monday 16 March 7pm SGHS GOD ROT TUNBRIDGE WELLS Film p9 Tuesday 17 March 1.10-2.10pm GC Weston Jennings Organ Concert p7 Tuesday 17 March 7pm SGHSHandel Catone in Utica p 10 Thursday 19 March 5-6.15pm High art and low life in London’s former hunting grounds Walk p6 Thursday 19 March 7pm Solomon’s Knot & Les Passions de l’Ame p 10 Sunday 22 March 11am/2.30pm MacL Family Concert p 16 Monday 23 March 7pm Handel Giove in Argo p 11 Tuesday 24 March 1.10-2.10pm SGHS Robin Walker Organ Concert p7 Tuesday 24 March 4-5pm BT, RCM Talk on Giove in Argo - Donald Burrows p 6 Tuesday 24 March 7pm BT, RCM Handel Giove in Argo p 11 Wednesday 25 March 1-2pm SGHS Neil McLaren & Laurence Cummings p 19 Wednesday 25 March 7pm BT, RCM Handel Giove in Argo p 11 Thursday 26 March 1-2pm SGHS Royal College of Music Baroque p 19 Thursday 26 March 7pm BT, RCM Handel Giove in Argo p 11 Friday 27 March 1-2pm SGHS Ewa Gubańska Lunchtime Recital p 19 SGHS BT, RCM Saturday 28 March from 11am FM Sing Messiah p 12 Sunday 29 March 6pm SL Chandos Anthems at Little Stanmore p 12 Tuesday 31 March 1.10-2.10pm GC Grosvenor Chapel Choir p7 Tuesday 31 March 7pm Revolutionary Drawing Room p 13 Wednesday 1 April 4.45-6.15pm From 18C to 21C travelling 300 years of music and the arts Walk p6 Wednesday 1 April 7pm The Arcadian Dream p 13 Friday 3 April 2.30pmSGHS Bach St Matthew Passion Tuesday 7 April 1.10-2.10pm SGHS Tuesday 7 April 7pm SGHSLampe Dragon of Wantley p 14 Wednesday 8 April 1-2pm SGHS Maria Valdmaa Lunchtime Recital p 20 Wednesday 8 April 7pm SGHS Red Priest p 15 Thursday 9 April 6pm SGHS HSC 2015 Semi-Final p 15 Friday 10 April 1-2pm SGHS Beauchamp Ensemble Concert p 20 Monday 13 April 1-2pm SGHS Katherine Crompton Lunchtime Recital p 20 Tuesday 14 April 1.10-2.10pm GC Richard Hobson Organ Concert p7 Tuesday 14 April 7.30pm WH London Handel Players p 16 Thursday 16 April 7pm SGHS Odissea & Suzana Ograjenšek p 17 Friday 17 April 7pm SGHS Southbank Sinfonia Baroque p 17 Monday 20 April 5-6.15pm Handel’s patrons and London’s nobility Walk p6 Monday 20 April HSC 2015 Final p 18 SGHS APRIL 7pm FM SGHS Cover illustration of Semele by Elizabeth p 14 Andrew Benson-Wilson Organ Concert p 7 Gadsby 3 TICKET PRICES Ticket prices are shown with the information about each event in this brochure. Prices are also shown on the festival website on each event page and on the booking pages. If you would like a paper Booking Form we can send you one from the office or you can download one from the festival website. www.london-handel-festival.com VENUES BRITTEN THEATRE, ROYAL COLLEGE OF MUSIC Prince Consort Road, London, SW7 2BS http://www.rcm.ac.uk FOUNDLING MUSEUM 40 Brunswick Square, London, WC1N 1AZ http://www.foundlingmuseum.org.uk GROSVENOR CHAPEL South Audley Street, London, W1K 2PA http://www.grosvenorchapel.org.uk HANDEL HOUSE MUSEUM 25 Brook Street, London, W1K 4HB http://www.handelhouse.org SOUTHBANK CENTRE QUEEN ELIZABETH HALL Belvedere Road, London, SE1 8XX http://www.southbankcentre.co.uk ST GEORGE’S, HANOVER SQUARE St George Street, London, W1S 1FX http://www.stgeorgeshanoversquare.org ST LAWRENCE, LITTLE STANMORE Whitchurch Lane, Edgware, Middlesex HA8 6QS WIGMORE HALL 36 Wigmore Street, London, W1U 2BP http://www.wigmore-hall.org.uk HOW TO BOOK SEATING Reserved = numbered seats, advance booking recommended Unreserved = choose your seat on arrival, but you can book in advance to ensure a seat. POSTAL BOOKING General postal bookings will be allocated after those for Handel supporters. All orders will be dealt with in order of priority and they should be sent to: Box Office, London Handel Society Horton House, 8 Ditton Street Ilminster, Somerset, TA19 0BQ DISCOUNTS if you are entitled to more than one discount please calculate in the order shown below. Payment may be made by cheque or signed credit card authorisation. Please do not enter a specific amount on the cheque, but state the maximum amount payable at the bottom of the cheque, in case we are not able to supply all the seats you request. A paper booking form can be obtained from the address above. 1 Student - £2 discount per ticket 2 Disabled - £2 discount per ticket 3 Booked 3 or more concerts before 10 March: 5% discount 4 Group bookings - 10 or more people 5% discount per ticket for any one performance. ONLINE BOOKING from 19 January at STANDBY £6 tickets are available (if the performance is not sold out) to senior citizens, students and the unemployed at the door upon proof of eligibility, 10 minutes before the performance. Lunchtime concerts are not included. www.london-handel-festival.com TELEPHONE BOOKING from 27January on 01460 54660 Monday to Friday 10am-12.30pm and 2-4pm (unless otherwise indicated) The Box Office will open at the venue 45 minutes before each performance. TICKET RE-SALES AND REFUNDS We will exchange or refund (less an administration fee) bookings whenever possible up to 48 hours before the performance. Less than 48 hours before, the seats will be offered for re-sale once all house seats have been sold. 4 Disabled access and facilities and general enquiries - tel: 01460 53500/54660 ________________________________________________ Southbank Centre Box Office for Handel Semele on 10 March - All orders for the concert must go through the SBC. Festival discounts above will be calculated via the LHF Box Office if you buy for other events in the Festival. Wigmore Hall Box Office for 14 April concert. Booking opens 3 February. All orders should go through Wigmore - Festival discounts above will be calculated via the LHF Box Office if you buy for other events in the Festival. Dear Fellow Handelians, Welcome to our Festival programme for 2015. For this year, we have chosen a classical theme, more specifically works by Handel that focus on Jupiter, the King of the gods, and his various antics. We return to the Queen Elizabeth Hall for Semele, remembering fondly the many concerts Denys Darlow performed there in the early days of the Festival. We have many of our prize winners from the Handel Singing Competition in the leading roles with the radiant Anna Devin and Rupert Charlesworth as aspiring goddess and mollifying lover. PATRONS Dame Emma Kirkby Ian Partridge CBE Laurence Cummings Musical Director Adrian Butterfield Associate Director Catherine Hodgson Festival Director Denys Darlow Founder Conductor Richard Hopkin Chairman of LHS Giove in Argo is our opera, which finds Jupiter this time in the guise of a shepherd. This is one of Handel’s pasticchio operas and as far as we know our production will be a modern London premier. The opera is full of hit arias and we have two wonderful casts from the RCM International Opera School directed by James Bonas and designed by Molly Einchcomb. There are many other musical highlights, amongst them the London Handel Players return to the Wigmore Hall; Ann Allen directs a performance of The Dragon of Wantley; the innovative Red Priest give their take on Handel; the finalists from HSC 2014 give a programme of rarely performed duets and trios, and, of course, the jewel in our crown, the Handel Singing Competition 2015. This year, in the true spirit of Handel, please join us in reaching out with welcoming hands as ambassadors to new friends and help us make our Festival a feast for the future. I look forward to seeing you all at the London Handel Festival 2015. Warmest wishes, Laurence Cummings Promoted by the London Handel Society Ltd Charity number 269184 Photographs: Laurence Cummings Adrian Butterfield Ewa Gubańska Winner of the HSC 2014 Photographs of Arianna in Creta March 2014 by Chris Christodoulou 5 LONDON MUSICAL WALKS & TALKS TUESDAY 10 MARCH 4.45-5.45PM Meet outside Westminster tube station (opposite the Houses of Parliament) TICKET PRICE: £10 HANDEL MAJESTY, MEMORIALS AND MUSIC One hour walk from Westminster Tube station to Queen Elizabeth Hall, Southbank Centre taking in Whitehall Palace, Horse Guards Parade and the back of 10 Downing Street, Westminster Abbey, St Margaret’s, Houses of Parliament, Westminster Bridge, Red Lion Brewery, Thames Fireworks music and the Southbank Centre. Handel Semele 7pm. TUESDAY 10 MARCH 4-5PM DR RUTH SMITH will give a talk on Semele at St George’s, Hanover Square. TICKET PRICE: £8 Semele is one of Handel’s greatest masterpieces and widely regarded as his most attractive work in English. In more than one sense it was also his riskiest composition. Why did he do it? What was he aiming for? What happened in the process? Ruth Smith explores possible answers to these questions, taking in the King’s mistress, Handel as a hog, Semele’s unfortunate family history, the young men who ‘have undertaken to middle with harmony’ and what was done to arguably the greatest ever English opera libretto. With readings from Handel’s contemporaries by the ever-popular Oliver Soden. TUESDAY 19 MARCH 5.00-6.15PM Meet outside Piccadilly Circus tube station at the Regent’s Street entrance TICKET PRICE: £10 HIGH ART AND LOW LIFE IN LONDON’S FORMER HUNTING GROUNDS A 75 minute walk from Piccadilly Circus tube to St George’s, Hanover Square taking in Surgeon Hunter, Golden Square, Meard Street, Handel’s amanuensis and the mural of Soho. Solomon’s Knot and Les Passions de l’Ame 7pm. TUESDAY 24 MARCH 4-5PM Britten Theatre, Royal College of Music, Prince Consort Road, London, SW7 2BS. TICKET PRICE: FREE DONALD BURROWS will give a talk on Giove in Argo at the Britten Theatre, RCM. WEDNESDAY 1 APRIL 4.45-6.15PM Meet outside the main entrance to King’s Cross station. TICKET PRICE: £10 FROM 18C TO 21C TRAVELLING 300 YEARS OF MUSIC AND THE ARTS A 75-90 minutes walk from Kings Cross station to Foundling Museum. Strolling to view the very latest changes in this major redevelopment area including St Martin’s at the Granary and amazing new buildings plus King’s Place, history of the Regent’s Canal, the much older infamous Panharmonium Gardens and St Chad’s Well and Bowling Green before arriving at the Foundling Museum. The Arcadian Dream 7pm. MONDAY 20 APRIL 5.00-6.15PM Meet at the entrance on the Green Park side of Piccadilly. TICKET PRICE: £10 HANDEL’S PATRONS AND LONDON’S NOBILITY A 75 minute walk from Green Park underground to St George’s, Hanover Square. A meander and insight into the life of the rich in 18C London – from coaching inns and shops frequented by the nobility to life at St James’s Palace, St James Square, Burlington House and much more including secret square and the best dressed man in London. Handel Singing Competition Final 7pm 6 TICKETS: £10 per walk or £8 if you come to the concert afterwards as well. The walks need to be booked in advance. MAYFAIR ORGAN CONCERTS We are delighted that the Mayfair Organ Concerts are part of the Festival again this year. They will take place on the highly acclaimed Richard Fowkes organ at St George’s, installed in 2012, and the fine William Drake organ of 1991 at the Grosvenor Chapel. The programmes will feature works by Handel, together with related repertoire and is performed by a mixture of established players and rising talent. The series is part of the MOC’s year-round programme. TUESDAY 10 MARCH 1.10-2.10pm Simon Williams GROSVENOR CHAPEL South Audley Street London, W1K 2PA ST GEORGE’S, HANOVER SQUARE St George Street London, W1S 1FX Venue: St George’s, Hanover Square Organist and Director of Music at St George’s, Hanover Square TUESDAY 17 MARCH 1.10-2.10pm Venue: Grosvenor Chapel Weston Jennings Organ Scholar at Royal Festival Hall Apollo Baroque Consort (dir. Joe Waggott) TUESDAY 24 MARCH 1.10-2.10pm Venue: St George’s, Hanover Square Robin Walker TUESDAY 31 MARCH 1.10-2.10pm Grosvenor Chapel Choir & Christopher Strange organ TUESDAY 7 APRIL 1.10-2.10pm Andrew Benson-Wilson Assistant Organist at St George’s, Hanover Square Venue: Grosvenor Chapel Organ Scholar at Grosvenor Chapel Venue: St George’s, Hanover Square TUESDAY 14 APRIL1.10-2.10pm Venue: Grosvenor Chapel Richard Hobson Organist and Director of Music at Grosvenor Chapel TICKETS: There will be a retiring collection. Doors open from 12.30pm - unreserved seating 7 TUESDAY 10 MARCH 7PM Southbank Centre Queen Elizabeth Hall Belvedere Road, London, SE1 8XX HANDEL SEMELE HWV58 Semele ANNA DEVIN Athamus / High Priest ROBIN BLAZE Ino EWA GUBAŃSKA Somnus / Cadmus GEORGE HUMPHREYS Apollo / Jupiter RUPERT CHARLESWORTH Juno LOUISE INNES Iris MARIA VALDMAA Laurence Cummings conductor London Handel Orchestra London Handel Singers Adrian Butterfield leader More than any other among Handel’s English works, Semele marries the dramatic and musical potencies of opera and oratorio. Writing at the top of his form, to a hilarious libretto by one of Britain’s greatest playwrights, Handel explores intimate and fraught personal relationships amid collisions of human and immortal, parent and child, wife and mistress, the individual and society, ambition and power – with some of his most glorious melodies and stirring choruses. No wonder Semele perplexed some of Handel’s original audience and has delighted those of our own day. LHF’s performance as Handel intended – not staged, not cut – gives us a rare opportunity to hear the work for what it is, a poignant, witty, compelling drama of the heart and mind. TICKETS FOR SEMELE Tickets are for sale from 3 December 2014 from the Southbank Centre box office only. 0844 847 9910 and online from www.southbankcentre.co.uk TICKET PRICES: £60 £55 £50 £45 £40 £35 £20 Dr Ruth Smith will give a talk on Semele at St George’s, Hanover Square from 4-5pm on 10 March. TICKETS PRICE: £8 8 WEDNESDAY 11 MARCH 7PM Foundling Museum 40 Brunswick Square, London, WC1N 1AZ HAPPY BIRTHDAY MR HANDEL Handel GP Telemann CPE Bach Handel Ode for the Birthday of Queen Anne: Eternal Source of Light Divine HWV74 Concerto for Trumpet in D major TWV51:D7 Concerto for Violoncello in A major Wq.172 Coronation Anthem: Zadok the Priest HWV258 THE AMADÈ PLAYERS David Blackadder trumpet Carina Drury violoncello Nicholas Newland director Rebecca Ramsey soprano Rosie Middleton mezzo-soprano Joe Bolger counter-tenor Matthew Duncan baritone The Amadè Players return to the Foundling Museum with a programme of celebratory music marking 330 years since the birth of Handel, and our London Handel Festival début. The concert opens with the exquisite Ode for the Birthday of Queen Anne, better known by its opening line, ‘Eternal Source of Light Divine’, featuring guest soloist David Blackadder, joined by four solo voices and chorus. After 2014’s sold-out performance of Handel’s Rodelinda at the Foundling Museum, we welcome the same cast of soloists for a second season. TICKET PRICE: £12 - unreserved seating www.amadeplayers.com MONDAY 16 MARCH 7PM St George’s, Hanover Square St George Street, London, W1S 1FX GOD ROT TUNBRIDGE WELLS A TALE OF WOE AND BLOODY-MINDED PERSISTENCE Directed by Tony Palmer Tony Palmer will introduce the film and take questions afterwards. This film was originally shown in 1985 on Channel Four, to commemorate the 300th anniversary of the birth of that honorary ‘British’ composer, Georg Frederic Handel. It caused a predictable furore. It was written by John Osborne, and what the hell did he know about music? ‘A trashy comic strip’, was among the more generous of reviews. Only the music escaped criticism. Mackerras (another honorary ‘Brit’) and his fiery cast – Emma Kirkby, James Bowman, Elizabeth Harwood, John Shirley-Quirk, Simon Preston, Anthony Rolfe-Johnson, Valerie Masterson, Andrei Gavrilov, the English Chamber Orchestra - were rightly praised. Mackerras adored the film, and for a time went round slightly misquoting one of Handel’s speeches from the film. ‘What have I done for the Georges of England?’ Mackerras said: ‘What have I done for the Handels of England? Rescued them, great Sir. Rescued them.’ Why the title? Well, for the answer you have to see the film! TICKET PRICE: £10 - unreserved seating www.tonypalmer.org 9 TUESDAY 17 MARCH 7pm St George’s, Hanover Square St George Street, London, W1S 1FX HANDEL CATONE IN UTICA 1732 OPERA SETTECENTO Marzia ERICA ELOFF soprano Emilia CHRISTINA GANSCH soprano Arbace EMILIE RENARD mezzo-soprano Catone ANDREW WATTS counter-tenor Cesare CHRISTOPHER JACKLIN bass-baritone Tom Foster musical director The first modern performance of a Handel pasticcio, based on Leonardo Leo’s Catone in Utica (Venice 1729.) As impresario, Handel would programme one pasticcio per season. It enabled him to introduce the genre of Italian opera to his London public. Catone also showcases arias by Hasse, Porpora, Vivaldi and Vinci. TICKET PRICES: £45, £40, £35, £30, £32, £12, £10 - reserved seating www.operasettecento.com THURSDAY 19 MARCH 7PM St George’s, Hanover Square St George Street, London, W1S 1FX DIE TAGESZEITEN JS Bach GP Telemann Orchestral Suite No 3 in D major BWV1068 Motet ‘Singet dem Herrn ein neues Lied’ BWV225 Cantata Cycle Die Tageszeiten TWV30:39 LES PASSIONS DE L’AME SOLOMON’S KNOT Meret Lüthi Artistic Director Jonathan Sells Artistic Director The ‘Die Tageszeiten’ project is the first collaboration between the professional ensembles Les Passions de l’Ame from Bern and the innovative and exciting group, Solomon’s Knot. The focus is the performance of Telemann’s cantata cycle ‘Die Tageszeiten’ as well as the cultural exchange between the musicians. TICKET PRICES: £35, £30, £25, £22, £20, £12, £10 reserved seating www.solomonsknotcollective.com www.lespassions.ch/cms/en 10 HANDEL GIOVE IN ARGO HWV A14 MONDAY 23 MARCH 7PM TUESDAY 24 MARCH 7PM WEDNESDAY 25 MARCH 7PM THURSDAY 26 MARCH 7PM Britten Theatre, Royal College of Music Prince Consort Road, London, SW7 2BS The confirmed cast lists will be posted to the website Licaone Diana Iside Arete Calisto Erasto MATT BUSWELL TIMOTHY CONNOR ROSE SETTEN HE WU KEZIA BIENEK ANGELA SIMKIN GYULA RAB PETER AISHER GALINA AVERINA SOFIA LARSSON TIMOTHY NELSON NICHOLAS MORTON CHORUS TARA AUSTIN KATIE COVENTRY MILO HARRIES SARAH HAYASHI CATRIONA HEWITSON POLLY LEECH JULIEN VAN MELLAERTS JOEL WILLIAMS Laurence Cummings conductor James Bonas director Molly Einchcomb designer Rob Casey lighting designer London Handel Orchestra Adrian Butterfield leader For many years Handel’s Giove in Argo (Jupiter in Argos) remained virtually unknown because through an accident of history no full score had survived. The discovery of two missing arias in 2001 made it possible to reconstruct this lost opera, which now appears on the London stage for the first time since 1739. Handel took most of the numbers from his earlier works but also supplied some outstanding new music. Giove is a classic baroque pastoral, peopled with a mix of gods and mortals, most of them in disguise, wandering in a wood as Jupiter attempts simultaneously to seduce two virtuous women with equal lack of success. The score is rich in choruses—more than any other Handel opera—dazzling virtuoso arias, and expressive accompanied recitatives. Restored to its rightful place among Handel’s last operas, Giove in Argo can finally be savored in all its colorful charm. John Roberts, Professor of Music, Berkeley Research, University of California 23rd production of a fully-staged Handel opera in collaboration with the RCM International Opera School TICKET PRICES: £60, £55, £50, £45, £30, £25, £20 Supported by the Handel Supporters 11 SATURDAY 28 MARCH Workshop rehearsal from 11AM Foundling Museum 40 Brunswick Square, London, WC1N 1AZ Timing: 11am-1pm 2-2.30pm 2.30-5.30pm 7pm Choir only Orchestra and soloists Orchestra and Choir Performance but no audience SING MESSIAH (Parts 2 & 3 omitting ‘But thanks’) Laurence Cummings conductor Marta Fontanals-Simmons mezzo-soprano Anna Gillingham soprano Joshua Mills tenor Joseph Padfield bass-baritone Little Baroque Company & the Sing Messiah Choir Come and enjoy another enormously popular day of learning and understanding Handel under Laurence Cummings’ inspirational leadership, with soloists from the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, and accompanied by the Little Baroque Company. TICKET PRICE: £25 for Choir members no public performance www.gsmd.ac.uk www.foundlingmuseum.org.uk SUNDAY 29 MARCH 6PM Whitchurch Lane, Edgware Middlesex HA8 6QS CHANDOS AND ST LAWRENCE GF Handel Overture to Esther HWV50a Chandos Anthem No 10 ‘The Lord is my light’ HWV255 Chandos Anthem No 9, ‘O praise the Lord with one consent’ HWV254 Adrian Butterfield conductor Members of the London Handel Orchestra Pegasus The Festival returns to the extraordinary surroundings of St Lawrence, Little Stanmore, with a programme of Chandos Anthems. TICKET PRICE: £12 - unreserved seating www.pegasusmusic.org.uk www.little-stanmore.org 12 www.littlebaroqueco.com TUESDAY 31 MARCH 7PM St George’s, Hanover Square St George Street, London, W1S 1FX HAYDN 7 STRING QUARTETS, OP 51 ‘SEVEN LAST WORDS OF CHRIST’ Introduzione – Sonata I: Largo Sonata III: Grave Sonata V: Adagio Sonata VII: Largo – Il Terremoto Sonata II: Grave e cantabile Sonata IV: Largo Sonata VI: Lento REVOLUTIONARY DRAWING ROOM Adrian Butterfield violin Rachel Stott viola Kathryn Parry violin Ruth Alford cello The Revolutionary Drawing Room currently celebrating its 25th anniversary, performs Haydn’s set of reflective and dramatic movements illustrating the Seven Words of the Saviour on the Cross. Commissioned as a passion for the Cathedral at Cadiz, it was originally scored for full orchestra, and was intended as instrumental music for reflection on the words delivered by the Bishop. Haydn later made arrangements of the piece for string quartet, for fortepiano and eventually also as an oratorio with SATB soloists and choir. The Revolutionary Drawing Room performs the string quartet arrangement with readings. TICKET PRICE: £10 - unreserved seating www.revolutionarydrawingroom.com WEDNESDAY 1 APRIL 7PM Foundling Museum 40 Brunswick Square, London, WC1N 1AZ THE ARCADIAN DREAM GF Handel Trio: Cantata: Duet: Cantata: Duet: Duet: Cantata: Duet: Cantata: Trio: Se tu non lasci amore, HWV201 Dolc’ è pur d’amor l’affanno HWV109a Nò, di voi non vo’ fidarmi HWV189 Dalla guerra amorosa HWV102 Tanti strali al sen mi scocchi HWV197 Giù nei Tarterei regni HWV187 Care selve, aure grate HWV88 Tacete, Ohimè, Tacete! HWV196 Lungi dal mio bel nume HWV127a Quel fior, che all’alba ride HWV200 Susanna Fairbairn soprano Maria Valdmaa soprano Ewa Gubańska mezzo-soprano Timothy Nelson baritone Laurence Cummings director/harpsichord Andrew Skidmore cello Elizabeth Kenny theorbo A delightful programme of Cantatas, Duets and Trios, showcasing the finalists from HSC 2014. Chamber works that were written for Handel’s friends and patrons in Rome, ‘The Arcadian Circle’ as well as sketches for Messiah in duet form. TICKET PRICE: £20 - reserved seating www.susannafairbairn.com www.timothynelson.co.uk 13 FRIDAY 3 APRIL 2.30PM St George’s, Hanover Square St George Street, London, W1S 1FX BACH ST MATTHEW PASSION BWV244 Nathan Vale Evangelist George Humphreys Christus and arias Anna Dennis soprano Alexandra Gibson mezzo-soprano Laurence Cummings conductor London Handel Orchestra Adrian Butterfield leader Choir of St George’s Join us for the Festival’s annual performance of Bach’s St Matthew Passion, sung in German and set in the context of Vespers. TICKET PRICES: £45, £40, £35, £32, £30, £12, £10 reserved seating www.nathanvaletenor.co.uk www.imgartists.com/artist/george_humphreys TUESDAY 7 APRIL 7PM St George’s, Hanover Square St George Street, London, W1S 1FX THE DRAGON OF WANTLEY by John Frederick Lampe (1703–1751) Margery of Rotheram Green: SUSANNA FAIRBAIRN soprano Moore of Moore Hall: GWILYM BOWEN tenor Ars Eloquentiae Chad Kelly and Leo Duarte directors Ann Allen stage director A tale of deadly deeds and comic escapades in which Moore of Moore Hall vanquishes a dragon and claims the hand of Margery of Rotheram Green. Like the venerable GF Handel, John Frederick Lampe was born in Germany but moved to England at an early age, attracted by the cosmopolitan and entrepreneurial thrill of London. He played the bassoon in many of the opera houses, often under the baton of Handel himself. His dabbling with serious opera writing had little success, until his luck changed with The Dragon of Wantley, a comic parodying of the excesses of Italian opera seen on the stages of London at the time. It ran for 69 nights straight, surpassing even the ever popular Beggar’s Opera and remained in fashion for many years, being performed all around the country. Ars Eloquentiae is fast establishing a reputation as a versatile and vibrant ensemble specialising in period performance. Ann Allen is a specialist player of early wood wind instruments and also works as an opera director and has created a new style of atmospherically presented concerts. TICKET PRICES: £35, £30, £28, £25, £23, £12, £10 - reserved seating 14 WEDNESDAY 8 APRIL 7PM St George’s, Hanover Square St George Street, London, W1S 1FX HANDEL IN THE WIND GF HANDEL arranged by Red Priest Messiah Suite: Part 1, 2 and 3 Sonata in F major Op 2 No 4 Largo and Passacaglia in G minor Vo Far Guerra (from Rinaldo) for Harpsichord Solo Zadok the Red Priest Recorder Sonata in B minor Lascia Ch’Io Pianga The Harmonious Blacksmith Variations RED PRIEST Piers Adams recorders Julia Bishop violin Angela East cello David Wright harpsichord Following the success of their programmes of Bach (‘Johann I’m Only Dancing’) and Vivaldi (‘Carnival of the Seasons’), Red Priest will take us on a whirlwind tour through the music of that other titan of the baroque, Georg Frederick Handel. Their new programme includes sonatas, chaconnes and virtuoso variations, transcriptions both sublime and tempestuous and an audacious suite drawn from his most celebrated work, Messiah. TICKET PRICES: £15 - unreserved seating www.redpriest.zooglelabs.com THURSDAY 9 APRIL 6PM (Please note the time) St George’s, Hanover Square St George Street, London, W1S 1FX HANDEL SINGING COMPETITION Semi-Final Following the First Round, held from 23-25 February, the fifteen semi-finalists come together to perform at St George’s, Hanover Square, accompanied by the harpsichord. They will sing for 15 minutes each in a programme that is all Handel and which must include a recitative and aria; plus a second aria without recitative; one of the arias should be in English. The Final will take place on Monday 20 April. The adjudicators for this round are: Ian Partridge, Catherine Denley and Michael George. Photos Chris Christodoulou from the Final on 18 March 2014: Ewa Gubańska, Maria Valdmaa, Susanna Fairbairn, Timothy Nelson and Edward Grint TICKET PRICE: £10 - unreserved seating 15 TUESDAY 14 APRIL 7.30PM (please note the time) Wigmore Hall, 36 Wigmore Street London W1U 2BP ANNA MARIA STRADA AND GIOVANNI CARESTINI Elizabeth Cragg soprano Renata Pokupic mezzo-soprano LONDON HANDEL PLAYERS Rachel Brown flute/recorder Adrian Butterfield violin Clare Salaman violin Rachel Byrt viola Katherine Sharman cello Cecelia Bruggemeyer bass Alastair Ross harpsichord Adrian Butterfield and the London Handel Players are joined by Elizabeth Cragg and Renata Pokupic to sing some of the glorious arias and duets from Alcina and Il pastor fido that Handel wrote for these Italian stars in the 1730s. TICKET PRICES: £35, £30, £25, £18 Tickets are on sale from Wigmore box office from 3 February 2015. 020 7935 2141 or online www.wigmore-hall.org.uk www.askonasholt.co.uk/artists/singers/soprano/sophie-bevan www.danieltaylor.ca SUNDAY 22 MARCH 2.30PM MacLaren Hall, 11-13 Mandeville Place, London W1U 3AJ TALES THROUGH MUSIC The Little Baroque Company presents it’s first FAMILY CONCERT programme for the London Handel Festival. Tales through Music is a delightful musical journey through classic stories such as Gulliver’s Travels and Don Quixote, which is ideal for children aged 5 to 12, as well as parents and grandparents of all ages! These concerts are informal, fun and educational. After the concert you’ll have the chance to meet the friendly musicians of the ensemble! Come join us on our musical adventures! Andrew Glover tenor and narrator CHILDREN’S CONCERT Helen Kruger director & violin Claudia Norz violin Katie Heller viola Natasha Kraemer cello Tom Foster harpsichord TICKET PRICES: £15 adult; £8 children/student/concession; £40 Family ticket (2 adults and 1 or 2 children) 16 THURSDAY 16 APRIL 7PM St George’s, Hanover Square St George Street, London, W1S 1FX ROMAN CANTATAS BY HANDEL AND SCARLATTI GF Handel Cantata: Cantata: Cantata: Cantata: Trio Sonata in F major Op 2 No 4 HWV389 Manca pur, quanto sai HWV129 Armida abbandonata HWV105 Il Nerone (A Scarlatti) Trio Sonata in D Op 1 No 2 (Geminiani) Agrippina condotta a morire HWV110 Suzana Ograjenšek soprano ODISSEA Benjamin Bayl harpsichord/organ Jorge Jimenez & James Toll violins Christopher Suckling cello The programme presents Handel’s cantatas from his Italian period, all probably written in Rome, and all focusing on strong heroines. The fates of Armida, the heartbroken enchantress from Ariosti’s ‘Orlando furioso’, and Agrippina, the mother of the Roman emperor Nero, were popular eighteenth-century subjects. The intensity of Handel’s settings makes his cantatas into psychological studies of heartbreak and betrayal with utmost dramatic impact. Alessandro Scarlatti’s cantata Il Nerone complements the subject of Agrippina’s demise at the hands of her son. As a lighter counterpart, Handel’s cantata Manca pur, quanto sai presents a nymph proudly dealing with an unfaithful lover. TICKET PRICE: £15 - unreserved seating FRIDAY www.suzanaograjensek.com www.benjaminbayl.com 17 APRIL 7PM St George’s, Hanover Square St George Street, London, W1S 1FX MISSA ROMANA Handel JF Rebel GPTelemann JS Bach GB Pergolesi Overture to Giustino HWV37 Les Caractères de la Dance Concerto in G major for 2 flutes & bassoon Orchestral Suite No 3 Missa Romana Soraya Mafi soprano Bethany Seymour soprano Tom Verney counter-tenor James Way tenor Southbank Sinfonia Baroque Adrian Butterfield director Vox Musica Michael Berman conductor Julian Perkins harpsichord/organ Works from the great musical centres of Europe conclude with Pergolesi’s glorious Missa Romana, written at the end of his short life and impressively scored for soloists, choir and double orchestra. Southbank Sinfonia brings together 32 outstanding graduates from all over the world to work together for a year in preparation for the professional world. TICKET PRICE: £14 - unreserved seating www.southbanksinfonia.co.uk 17 MONDAY 20 APRIL 7PM St George’s, Hanover Square St George Street, London, W1S 1FX 2015 HANDEL SINGING COMPETITION FINAL ADJUDICATORS Ian Partridge Chairman (all rounds) Catherine Denley (all rounds) Michael George (all rounds) Edward Blakeman (Final) Sarah Connolly (Final) Prizes: Regina Etz Prize £5000; Michael Oliver £2000 Farinelli Prize £2000; Selma D and Leon Fishbach Memorial Prizes for Finalists £300 each Audience Prize - Michael Normington Prize £300 Criteria for the Final: All Handel, but no arias from Messiah The Semi-Final will be held on Thursday 9 April at 6pm at St George’s, Hanover Square TICKET PRICES: £45, £40, £35, £32, £30, £12, £10 - reserved seating LUNCHTIME SERIES 2015 This series of lunchtime concerts takes place at ST GEORGE’S, HANOVER SQUARE, St George Street, London, W1S 1FX. It principally gives performance opportunities to young musicians including the finalists of the Handel Singing Competition in 2014. ALL LUNCHTIME CONCERTS - TICKETS: £10 - concessions £8 THURSDAY 12 MARCH 1-2PM TRINITY LABAN BAROQUE ENSEMBLE As part of the London Handel Festival, Walter Reiter conducts Trinity Laban’s Baroque Ensemble in works by Handel, Corelli, Purcell and Vivaldi. The ensemble performs historically informed interpretations of this exciting repertoire on modern instruments with baroque bows. FRIDAY 13 MARCH 1-2PM GUILDHALL SCHOOL CANTATA ENSEMBLE James Johnstone director Marc-Antoine Charpentier Actéon changé en biche Continuing their exploration of Charpentier’s influence on Handel through the former’s teacher, Giacomo Carissimi, the Guildhall School Cantata Ensemble consisting of voices, recorders, violins, gamba, cello, theorbo and harpsichord present possibly Charpentier’s finest piece of musical theatre. This Pastorale, in the form of a tragédie en musique, depicts the gory demise of the hunter Actéon. 18 LUNCHTIME SERIES 2015 - ST GEORGE’S, HANOVER SQUARE MONDAY 16 MARCH 1-2PM Finalist in the Handel Singing Competition 2014 GF Handel Neun deutsche Arien HWV202-210 Desterò dall’empia dite from Amadigi di Gaula HWV11 SUSANNA FAIRBAIRN soprano Charlotte Fairbairn violin Ruth Alford cello Christine Garratt flute Mark Baigent oboe Robert Vanryne trumpet Adrienne Black harpsichord WEDNESDAY 25 MARCH 1-2PM NEIL MCLAREN flute LAURENCE CUMMINGS harpsichord JS Bach GP Telemann JS Bach Handel Sonata in A BWV1032 Fantasia in E for solo flute TWV40:10 Suite in B for solo flute BWV1008 Sonata in B HWV386b In 1985 I got a call out of the blue from the London Handel Orchestra’s fixer asking me to join the Festival for a performance of Bach’s Mass in A and the Matthew Passion. It was exciting to be making my professional debut on the baroque flute, and to be starting what has been a long and fulfilling career in period instrument orchestras. THURSDAY 26 MARCH 1-2PM BAROQUE FROM THE ROYAL COLLEGE OF MUSIC Students from Historical Performance at the Royal College of Music Corelli Handel Vivaldi Trio sonata Op 2 No 12 Arias from Rodelinda Trio Sonata in B minor HWV386b Organ Concerto The Cuckoo and the Nightingale HWV295 Agitata from Griselda FRIDAY 27 MARCH 1-2PM Winner of the Regina Etz Prize Handel Singing Competition 2014 EWA GUBAŃSKA mezzo-soprano Fabrizio Longo violin Riccardo Morini harpsichord Ewa Gubańska, the Winner of the HSC 2014 brings a programme of works by Porta, Gasparini, Domenico Scarlatti, Matteis, Mancini, Tessarini and Handel. ALL LUNCHTIME CONCERTS - TICKETS: £10 - concessions £8 19 LUNCHTIME SERIES 2015 - ST GEORGE’S, HANOVER SQUARE WEDNESDAY 8 APRIL 1-2PM Winner of the Michael Oliver Prize & the Audience Prize - Handel Singing Competition 2014 MARIA VALDMAA soprano Janet Forbes recorder Elsbeth Robertson recorder/oboe Lucia Capellaro cello Thomas Allery harpsichord Handel Porpora Handel Cantatas: Mi Palpita il cor HWV132 / Non sospirar, non piangere HWV141 Cantata: Fille, narromi un giorno Trio Sonata in F major / Telemann Da Jesu, deinen ruhm zu mehren FRIDAY 10 APRIL 1-2PM Finalist in the Handel Singing Competition 2014 THE BEAUCHAMP ENSEMBLE Alice Earll violin Elin White violin Alexander Rolton cello Nathaniel Mander harpsichord T Merula Ciaconna Handel Trio Sonata in B minor HWV386b H Purcell Trio Sonata Op 1 No 10 in G minor CPE Bach Sonata in C minor ‘Sanguineus and Melancholicus’ Wq 161 Nr 4 MONDAY 13 APRIL 1-2PM KATHERINE CROMPTON soprano HESPERI ENSEMBLE Mary-Jannet Leith recorder Elin White violin Ellen Bundy violin Florence Petit cello Thomas Allery harpischord Handel Salve Regina HWV241 H Purcell ‘The Plaint’ from The Fairy Queen Z.629 Telemann Trio sonata in A minor TWV 42:a4 from Essercizii Musici Handel Gloria deest learn and participate in creating their own mini opera; develop skills in performance, music and singing. HANDEL HOUSE MUSEUM AND THE LONDON HANDEL FESTIVAL The Festival works with Handel House on two projects each year to encourage children to gain an understanding of Handel; his life and works. SCHOOLS OPERA PROJECT – to actively engage a school with the Learning Programme at Handel House Museum and the London Handel Festival; to provide a school with a snapshot or taster of the full experience of composing, staging and putting on an opera; develop music workshops that focus on cross curricular links with Music, History, English and Drama; to encourage students to 20 BAROQUE DANCE PROJECT – for Primary School Children to learn about and engage with Handel and the baroque period through cross-arts. They will learn about music performance, dance performance, music history, the eighteenth century and, through pre-prepared classroom activities, arts, crafts and costumes. The children involved tend to see it as a session through which they can be very creative and I find that they enjoy casting their imagination back to an historic period of time and relating it back to the present day. A chance to play with and hear professional musicians tends to be very inspiring and engaging for young minds. If you would like to book your school for these event, please contact Claire Davies on 020 7399 1952 - [email protected]
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