FESTIVAL CONCERT
FESTIVAL CONCERT
Earthly Delights for Angelic Voices
A Tribute to Anne, the Princess Royal and Handel’s favorite pupil
Amanda Forsythe, soprano
Dorothee Mields, soprano
Cecilia Duarte, mezzo-soprano
Erik Bosgraaf, recorder
Boston Early Music Festival
Francesco Corti, harpsichord
Continuo Ensemble
Paul O’Dette & Stephen Stubbs, Musical Directors
Sonata in C major George Frideric Handel for Recorder and Basso Continuo, HWV 365 (1685–1759)
Larghetto — Allegro — Larghetto — A tempo di Gavotta — Allegro
Folle cor
Grave — Allegro — Sarabanda. Grave — Giga presto
Domenico Mazzocchi (1592–1665)
Sonata terza in G minor Count Unico Wilhelm van Wassenaer for Recorder and Basso Continuo (1692–1766)
Mio core languisce Luigi Rossi (ca. 1597–1653)
Suite in D minor for Harpsichord, HWV 428 Handel
Prelude — Allegro — Allemande — Courante — Air & Double — Presto
Dorothee Mields
Sonata in G major, Op. 9, No. 7 Jean-Marie Leclair (l’aîné) for [Voice] Flute and Basso Continuo (1697–1764)
Speranza al tuo pallore Rossi
Amanda Forsythe & Cecilia Duarte
Andante — Allegro ma non tanto —
Aria. Affettuoso; Altro — Giga. Allegro moderato
Disperate speranze Rossi
Sonata seconda in G minor Van Wassenaer for Recorder and Basso Continuo
Sdegno, campion audace Virgilio Mazzocchi (1597–1646)
Grave — Allegro — Adagio — Giga presto
Amanda Forsythe
Sonata in B minor Handel for Voice Flute and Basso Continuo, HWV 367a
Largo — Vivace — Furioso — Adagio — Alla breve —
Andante — A tempo di menuet
The Boston Early Music Festival extends heartfelt thanks to Joan Margot Smith for her leadership support of tonight’s performance by Amanda Forsythe, Dorothee Mields, Cecilia Duarte, and the Boston Early Music Festival Continuo Ensemble
Sonata in E major, Op. 30, No. 7 Johann Christian Schickhardt for Recorder and Basso Continuo (ca. 1681–1762)
Allegro — Siciliano — Allegro — Allegro — Giga — Allegro
Occhi belli Rossi
Amanti piangete
Cecilia Duarte
A Tribute to Anne, the Princess Royal and Handel’s favorite pupil
Di questo sen la piaga Marazzoli
Ai sospiri, al dolore Rossi
Dorothee Mields & Amanda Forsythe
Erik Bosgraaf, recorder
Fan battaglia Rossi
Francesco Corti, harpsichord
W Double-manual German harpsichord by Allan Winkler, Medford, Massachusetts, 1989, X after Fleischer, property of the Boston Early Music Festival.
Sonata in C major George Frideric Handel for Recorder and Basso Continuo, HWV 365 (1685–1759)
Larghetto — Allegro — Larghetto — A tempo di Gavotta — Allegro
W Italian “Nuovolone” triple harp (after the painting La familia del artista Brera) X by Claus Henry Hüttel, Düren, 2023, property of the Boston Early Music Festival.
Sonata terza in G minor Count Unico Wilhelm van Wassenaer for Recorder and Basso Continuo (1692–1766)
Boston Early Music Festival Continuo Ensemble
Paul O’Dette, lute
Grave — Allegro — Sarabanda. Grave — Giga presto
Stephen Stubbs, chitarrone & Baroque guitar
Charles Weaver, chitarrone
Suite in D minor for Harpsichord, HWV 428 Handel
Maxine Eilander, Baroque harp
Prelude — Allegro — Allemande — Courante — Air & Double — Presto
Michael Sponseller, harpsichord
David Morris, viola da gamba & lirone
Sonata in G major, Op. 9, No. 7 Jean-Marie Leclair (l’aîné) for [Voice] Flute and Basso Continuo (1697–1764)
Andante — Allegro ma non tanto —
Notes on the Program
Aria. Affettuoso; Altro — Giga. Allegro moderato
The idea of a group of three “singing ladies” may be a Platonic ideal residing deep in the human psyche to judge from cultural artifacts ranging from Egyptian wall paintings through Botticelli’s Muses and on to well-known emanations in our own time including the Andrews Sisters and the Supremes. A particular focus on three women as a vocal performing unit was given by the Este court of Ferrara in the latter part of the sixteenth century where the music master Luzzasco Luzzaschi (1545–1607) composed music for a treasured, secret cappella comprised, at its height, of Laura Peverara, Anna Guarini, and Livia d’Arco, and known far and wide as the Concerto delle donne. Of course, it was no secret that they existed and that their performances were breathtaking, but they were kept as
Sonata seconda in G minor Van Wassenaer for Recorder and Basso Continuo
Grave — Allegro — Adagio — Giga presto
Sonata in B minor Handel for Voice Flute and Basso Continuo, HWV 367a
Largo — Vivace — Furioso — Adagio — Alla breve — Andante — A tempo di menuet
a musica secreta, and the pleasure of hearing and seeing them was reserved for the lucky few esteemed worthy by the Este rulers. The development at this time of the arts (music, poetry, acting, dancing) as a professional career path for women had much to do with the emergence of the modern woman in Western history. For the first time, an occupation other than that of wife, nun, or courtesan opened entirely new vistas of female accomplishment. Collectively the Italians called the new professional female artists “le cortegiane honeste,” and a wonderful legacy of music for their performance forms the bulk of tonight’s program.
At the nearby court of Mantua, Monteverdi served as court composer, and along with his groundbreaking achievements in the first years of the seventeenth century
Sonata in E major, Op. 30, No. 7 Johann Christian Schickhardt for Recorder and Basso Continuo (ca. 1681–1762)
Allegro — Siciliano — Allegro — Allegro — Giga — Allegro