BREMF 2019

bremf.org.uk

METAMORPHOSIS

TRANSFORMATION AND WONDER THROUGH 700 YEARS OF MUSIC

PRE-FESTIVAL EVENTS

WELCOME TO THE BRIGHTON EARLY MUSIC FESTIVAL 2019 When choosing a theme for this year’s festival, Metamorphosis was an irresistible option, connecting as it does with the turbulent times in which we now live where everything feels in flux.

Yet it also opens up a world of opportunities for increasing ever further the scope and inclusiveness of BREMF. The 2,000-year-old tales from Ovid’s Metamorphoses provide thrilling stories for children as well as plots for operas, while the ancient chants of Hildegard and glorious counterpoint of Bach lend themselves beautifully to loving and respectful 21st-century transformations.

Meanwhile, The Feast of Fools will bring us all together in celebration of the ingenuity as well as the folly of mankind!

Deborah Roberts Artistic Director

We would like to thank our Sponsors and all of our Festival Friends. Without your support, Brighton Early Music Festival could not continue to bring top quality artists to Brighton. Thank you!

Brighton Early Music Festival gratefully acknowledges financial support from Arts Council National Lottery Project Grants.

We are grateful to several trusts and foundations for their support of our work at the time of publication. Concerts by BREMF Live! alumni Dramma per Musica and Improviso are funded by The Fidelio Charitable Trust. The Strozzi music-drama ‘Her Father’s Voice’ is supported by the Ambache Charitable Trust. Our early opera La Dafne is funded by The Dutton-Downing Trust. Ensemble Hesperi’s Highland dance workshop and The BREMF Ceilidh are supported by St George’s Church.

Thanks also to other donors who joined us after this brochure went to print.

Lighting design and supply for all Festival events provided by Natalie Rowland and Pitch Black.

Funders and partners:

PRE-FESTIVAL EVENTS Saturday 28 September 10.30am & 12 noon (two performances) Brighton Unitarian Church EVENT 1

Andrew Thomson

OAE TOTS – STORIES OF OLD

Kate Benjamin

A 45-minute concert ideal for 2-5 year olds but younger children also welcome (must be accompanied by an adult) Keep your youngest music lovers captivated with OAE TOTS, a magical introduction to the orchestra.

Come and join the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment to hear music by Henry Purcell from his opera King Arthur. However this is an Arthur story with a twist: he’s a lazy king who takes his subjects’ loyalty for granted, but soon learns from his mistakes and decides to change his ways.

Tickets: £5; under 12s free

EVENT 2 Sunday 29 September 10.30am-5.30pm, Ralli Hall

Workshop for experienced instrumentalists, plus choral and ensemble singers Led by Gawain Glenton When looking at renaissance music, what you see is not the whole story. The original printed versions of polyphonic music usually showed only the basic vocal lines, leading to an assumption that it was always performed a cappella. But this is far from the truth!

Come and find out some of the many ways in which it was magically transformed.

Suitable instruments: viol and violin family, cornetts and sackbuts, dulcians (curtals) with possibly some bass rackets and pommers (if you play something else or sing as well).

Music available for download from the website soon after close of registration.

Robert Piwko

POLYCHORAL TRANSFORMATIONS

Workshop registration: £18; for half price places see page 26 Book online: bremf.org.uk/workshops

Brighton Early Music Festival 2019 3

PRE-FESTIVAL EVENTS Saturday 5 October, 4pm-7pm St George’s Church EVENT 3

HIGHLAND DANCE

Workshop registration: £12; under 12s free; for half price places see page 26 Book online: bremf.org.uk/workshops

EVENT 4

Saturday 5 October, 8pm, St George’s Church

THE BREMF CEILIDH Following their workshop, Ensemble Hesperi are staying on to play for a unique ceilidh. A great social evening whether you want to dance, watch or just listen to the music and enjoy refreshments from the bar. No experience needed.

Workshop and ceilidh supported

by St George’s Church 4 visit

Tickets: £5; under 12s free

bremf.org.uk to find out more

Pieter Brueghel the Elder, Peasant Dance (1568) © Alamy

Robert Piwko

Workshop Led by Highland dancer Kathleen Gilbert and Ensemble Hesperi Learn a selection of simple dances with basic steps as well as the fascinating history of Highland dance. The workshop will be accompanied by live 18th-century music from members of the ensemble, and participants will have the opportunity to take part in the Festival event on 6 November.

PRE-FESTIVAL EVENTS

A FAMILY DAY OF MAGICAL TRANSFORMATIONS! EVENT 5 Saturday 12 October, 10.30am Friends’ Meeting House

THE MUSICAL FOREST – A BUG’S EAR VIEW For babies and young children (<6 years) and the young in spirit A musical forest grown from the fertile imaginations of the musicians, with lots of weird and wonderful musical instruments and quite a lot of greenery. Feel free to come along in your best insect costume!

Tickets: £5; under 12s free

EVENT 6 Saturday 12 October, 12 noon Friends’ Meeting House Saturday 12 October, 2.30pm Whitehawk Library

PERSEUS, ANDROMEDA AND THE SEA-MONSTER A monstrous Greek myth in words and music, with audience participation for children (c. 5-12 years) and the young in spirit.

Music by Dittersdorf (Perseus & Andromeda – a programmatic symphony) with live improvisations and audience participation. Find out how Andromeda almost ended up being eaten alive by the seamonster, had it not been for the brave Perseus and his rather handy special flying powers...

Devised and narrated by Jonathan Rees with thanks and apologies to Ovid.

Tickets for 12 noon performance: £5; under 12s free Tickets for 2.30pm performance: Free tickets for East Brighton residents are available via Eventbrite (search ‘Perseus’ or enter ID ‘64169628085’) or from Whitehawk Library

METAMORPHOSIS Festival introduction and preview day Chaired by Flora Dennis (University of Sussex) A behind-the-scenes look at some of the planning and exciting new research behind this year’s Festival and its theme. Why is early music so special? This is your chance to ask questions and join the discussions!

Illustrated by live music from Festival artists.

Tickets: £5

Refreshments including home-made cakes

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Chloris transforms into Flora: detail from Botticelli’s La Primavera (c. 1477-1482)

EVENT 7 Saturday 19 October, 10.30am-6pm Friends’ Meeting House

David Lefeber

MAIN FESTIVAL

EVENT 8 Friday 25 October, 8pm St Martin’s Church

DARKNESS INTO LIGHT The making of music – new discoveries in the digital age Musica Secreta

Hannah Ely, Deborah Roberts, Yvonne Eddy sopranos Sally Dunkley, Katharine Hawnt, Victoria Couper mezzo-sopranos Kim Porter, Caroline Trevor, Laurie Stras altos Alison Kinder bass viol Claire Williams organ

Biffoli-Sostegni manuscript, Florence (1560). Detail showing a nun’s face in the capital.

Celestial Sirens

Deborah Roberts and Laurie Stras directors Presented by Laurie Stras BREMF opens with a new way of exploring the making of music; a live ‘docu-concert’ which includes the first public performance in modern times of Antoine Brumel’s complete set of Lamentations for Good Friday, recently identified by Laurie Stras in a Florentine manuscript.

The programme also features other rare gems of renaissance convent music from a Florentine manuscript by the same copyist, but this time clearly commissioned by nuns; and a chance to interact with copies of pieces from this convent choirbook.

Tickets: Premium £26; A £20; B £12; for half price tickets see page 26; Prom Ticket/RVS or SP (on door only) £5 6 visit

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MAIN FESTIVAL Saturday 26 October, 1pm St Paul’s Church EVENT 9

METAMORPHOSES Stories from Ovid Dramma per Musica

Ovid’s 2,000-year-old masterpiece, Metamorphoses brought to musical life. Dramma per Musica explores the influence these epic stories and characters had across Europe in the 17th century. Despite the many ways in which each European culture has evolved, we can still share the same passions and emotions.

Includes music by Lully, Purcell, Gagliano, Caccini, Lawes and Monteverdi.

Robert Piwko

Rory Carver tenor Jonatan Bougt theorbo Harry Buckoke viola da gamba

Supported by The Fidelio Charitable Trust Tickets: £12; for half price tickets see page 26; Prom Ticket/SP (on door only) £5

EVENT 10 Saturday 26 October, 7.30pm St George’s Church

METAMORFOSI TRECENTO

Alberto Molina

Transformations of Ovid’s myths in the 14th-century Ars Nova La Fonte Musica

Alena Dantcheva and Francesca Cassinari sopranos Gianluca Ferrarini tenor Teodoro Baù and Efix Puleo medieval fiddles Michele Pasotti lute, director We welcome from Italy the renowned ensemble La Fonte Musica in a thrilling programme of music from their latest Diapason d’Or-winning recording. The same magazine also selected it among ‘the top 100 albums all music lovers need to know’. Accompanied by projections of mysterious and fantastical images from medieval manuscripts.

‘The album paints a Middle Ages together alive and imbued with a veracity … it also expresses in an equally eloquent way our contemporary tastes… The young Italian group [has] a force that echoes that of the pioneer interpreters of medieval music…’ Diapason Tickets: Premium £26; A £20; B £12; for half price tickets see page 26; Prom Ticket/RVS (on door only) £5

Apollo and Daphne, from Christine de Pisan, L’Epistre d’Othea, Paris ca. 14101414 (BL, Harley 4431, fol. 134v)

Brighton Early Music Festival 2019 7

Robert Piwko

MAIN FESTIVAL

EVENT 11

Sunday 27 October, 7.30pm, St Martin’s Church

TRANSFORMERS BREMF Consort of Voices Deborah Roberts director

Tickets: £18; for half price tickets see page 26; Prom Ticket/RVS or SP (on door only) £5

Composers frequently reworked their own music into later compositions, but this programme looks at some substantial transformations and expansions of earlier works by later composers. Includes music by Josquin, Rore, Senfl and Gombert; with movements from Monteverdi’s 1610 Mass In illo tempore, based on Gombert’s motet.

As a striking contraction the programme includes a recent version of Tallis’s 40-part motet, Spem in alium arranged for 11 voices by Mick Swithinbank.

CLO

OTHER WORLDS 2019/20 season in Brighton

21 September 2019 – Beethoven Symphony No. 7 and Violin Concerto 2 November 2019 – A Celebration of British Cinema 15 February 2020 – Dvořák Cello Concerto and Sibelius Symphony No. 2 18 April 2020 – Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 4 and ‘Pastoral’ Symphony 01273 709 709 brightondome.org Series discounts of up to 20% available

8 visit

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MAIN FESTIVAL

DRAMA AT BREMF EVENT 13 Friday 1 November 8pm, St George’s Church

HER FATHER’S VOICE A play with music exploring the early years of composer Barbara Strozzi (b.1619) Fieri Consort

Robert Piwko

Helen Charlston, Hannah Ely, Josh Cooter, Ben McKee singers Harry Buckoke bass viol Toby Carr theorbo Aileen Henry harp

Actors from Wise Child Theatre Henry Bauckham writer, director

Thursday 31 October, 8pm St George’s Church EVENT 12

BURYING THE DEAD London transformed through the eyes of Henry Purcell Ceruleo

Emily Owen and Jenni Harper sopranos Satoko Doi-Luck harpsichord Kate Conway viola da gamba Toby Carr theorbo, guitar Niall Ashdown as Henry Purcell Clare Norburn writer Thomas Guthrie director Hannah Pearson costume designer

At a time when opera was being birthed and women were commonly trapped into lives of prayer or servitude, a 17th-century Venetian woman, Barbara Strozzi, became one of the most prolific published composers of her age, transcending the normal fate of women.

This immersive theatre experience tells the true story of Barbara’s life: the support of her libertarian father, her loves, losses and success. It challenges the slanders against her reputation and highlights the plight of female composers throughout history.

Music by Strozzi, Nicolò Fontei and Claudio Monteverdi.

Supported by the Ambache Charitable Trust – raising the profile of music by women

An imaginative piece of music theatre taking the audience on a journey around 17th-century London as composer Henry Purcell reviews his all too short life.

Tickets: Premium £26; A £20; B £12; for half price tickets see page 26; Prom Ticket/RVS (on door only) £5

Ben McKee

Suffering feverish hallucinations in his final illness, he reflects on two major events that transformed the city of London – the Great Plague and the Great Fire – as well as his relationships with his wife and other women.

Tickets: Premium £26; A £20; B £12; for half price tickets see page 26; Prom Ticket/RVS (on door only) £5

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BREMF LIVE! EVENT 14

Saturday 2 November, 11.30am-1.30pm, Friends’ Meeting House

BREMF LIVE! ORNAMENTATION MASTERCLASS With Gawain Glenton A new development from our BREMF Live! scheme. Auditioned singers work on ornamentation, both improvised and within embellished versions of songs popular in the 16th century.

This was one of the most common ways in which music was magically transformed, much as jazz musicians work with ‘standard’ songs in modern times.

Examples of ornaments between rising tones from Giovanni Bassano, Ricercate, Passaggi et Cadentie (1585)

Tickets: £12; for half price tickets see page 26

EVENT 15

Saturday 2 November, 3pm, St Paul’s Church

BREMF LIVE! 2019 SHOWCASE BREMF Live! sits at the heart of all of our Festival work. Each year we hold several days of auditions to select the most promising young ensembles and solo singers and provide them with a year of guidance and opportunities.

Ben Tomlin

David Wilson

This Showcase presents 20-minute sets from this year’s chosen ensembles.

SCARAMELLA

MELISMATA

Renaissance vocal ensemble

Renaissance/baroque duo

Tristram Cooke countertenor Matthew Pochin tenor David Le Prevost baritone Geoff Williams bass

Emily Owen soprano James Bramley lute

A Kiss Transformed

Risqué medieval folk song ‘Baisez moy’ is transformed into an innocent kiss, a setting of the Divine Office and distant tributes to beauty, in music by Josquin, Roussel, Lassus and Jannequin.

Musick for a While

An intimate programme of songs to the lute and theorbo, exploring the transformative power of music.

English and Italian works by Dowland, Croft, Campion, Castaldi and Monteverdi range from the devotional to the theatrical, culminating with Purcell’s masterpiece Musick for a While.

10 visit

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Thomas Jacob

BREMF LIVE!

ENSEMBLE THÉODORA

APOLLO’S CABINET

Baroque ensemble

Baroque ensemble

Mariamielle Lamagat soprano Louise Ayrton and Conor Gricmanis violins Alice Trocellier viola da gamba Lucie Chabard harpsichord

Teresa Wrann recorder Sophia Prodanova violin Francisco Javier González Navarro cello Thomas Allery harpsichord

Folies Françaises: Couperin, Rebel & Rameau

Shadows of the Night

An exploration of metamorphosis in both form and content in French 18th-century repertoire.

From the allegorical sonatas of Jean-Féry Rebel to the heroic madness of Rameau’s Platée, the mythological palette will be explored through evocative drama, inviting performer and listener alike to make believe.

A journey through different facets of the night in music

by Vivaldi, Hotteterre and Lully.

After cheerful evening festivities on the Seine, the last glimpse of daylight vanishes and the nightingale starts to sing. Heavy sleep comes, but be on the watch: madness and restlessness will quickly conjure up nightmares, spirits and ghosts and peaceful tranquillity turns into horror and dread.

Tickets: £14; for half price tickets see page 26; Prom Ticket/SP (on door only) £5 Interval refreshments including home-made cakes

EVENT 16

Saturday 2 November, 9pm, The Rose Hill

CLUBNIGHT 1: BREMF LIVE! Highlights from the afternoon showcase presented informally in a pub setting.

Standing event (very limited seating) Tickets: £5

Brighton Early Music Festival 2019 11

MAIN FESTIVAL

BACH TRANSFORMED DAY

EVENT 17 Sunday 3 November, 4pm St Paul’s Church

BACH: A MUSICAL OFFERING The Bach Players

Marion Moonen flute Nicolette Moonen violin Reiko Ichise viola da gamba Silas Wollston harpsichord

Tickets: £14; for half price tickets see page 26; Prom Ticket/SP (on door only) £5 12 visit

Daniel Ferri

The first of three concerts today featuring the music of JS Bach and his contemporaries seen in new and transforming guises. Opening with music by Buxtehude displaying the quasi-improvisatory stylus phantasticus, this hour-long concert explores the full emotional spectrum of Bach’s highly rhetorical style, providing a chance to hear his famous piece ‘A Musical Offering’ with fresh ears.

Refreshments including home-made cakes available from 3.30pm

bremf.org.uk to find out more

MAIN FESTIVAL

EVENT 18 Sunday 3 November, 7.30pm St Martin’s Church

THE ART OF MOOG 21st-century hyper-Bach on synthesizers Robin Bigwood, Martin Perkins, Steven Devine keyboards Annabel Knight wind synthesizer Looking more like a Kraftwerk gig than a classical concert, and with boundary-crossing audience appeal, this event brings Bach’s eternal music to everyone. The band is made up of some of the UK’s finest harpsichordists and baroque specialists who bring their combined skill and imagination to this thrilling re-colouring of Bach’s masterpieces. A fine tribute to Wendy Carlos and her pioneering work with Switched-on Bach 50 years ago.

10-minute interval but bar open throughout the event.

Performance will end by 9pm to allow attendance at Clubnight.

Tickets: £18; for half price tickets see page 26; Prom Ticket/RVS or SP (on door only) £5

EVENT 19 Sunday 3 November, 9.30pm The Rose Hill

CLUBNIGHT 2 : GROUND BASS Damon Oliver tenor saxophone Joseph Erber keyboard Joe Downard double bass Chill after all the excitement of The Art of Moog to a jazz trio improvising on famous baroque ground basses… over a pint. Standing event (very limited seating)

Tickets: £5

Brighton Early Music Festival 2019 13

Gabriel M Isserlis

MAIN FESTIVAL

EVENT 20

Wednesday 6 November, 8pm, St George’s Church

FROM FOLK TO FASHION: DANCING THE SCOTTISH BAROQUE Ensemble Hesperi

Mary-Jannet Leith recorder Magdalena Loth-Hill violin Florence Petit cello Thomas Allery harpsichord with Kathleen Gilbert Highland dancer Tickets: A £20; B £12; for half price tickets see page 26; Prom Ticket/RVS (on door only) £5

Award-winning early music group Ensemble Hesperi present a taste of 18th-century Scotland through this unique collaboration. Inspired by the haunting traditional melodies and infectious dance rhythms around them, Scottish composers created a new ‘fusion’ of folk and high baroque fashion to save Scottish musical culture from extinction! This timeless music will be brought to life with special choreography by Highland dancer, Kathleen Gilbert.

Supported by a Lottery Grant from Arts Council England Cabaret format (price B seating mostly in Gallery) EVENT 21

Thursday 7 November, 9pm, The Rose Hill

CLUBNIGHT 3: BAROQUE IMPROVISATION

Robert Piwko

An evening of early improvisation with 2019 BREMF Live! artists. Bring your instruments to join in a live jam on a popular renaissance tune!

Standing event (very limited seating) Tickets: £5

14 visit

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Jim Fedrick

MAIN FESTIVAL

EVENT 22

Friday 8 November, 8pm, St Martin’s Church

Tabitha King

HILDEGARD TRANSFIGURED

A medieval trance for the 21st century Voice

Victoria Couper, Clemmie Franks, Emily Burn singers with Mystic, philosopher, artist, scientist and musician, the nun Hildegard of Bingen has become a household name. Composed in the 12th century, when only a single line was normally notated, her soaring and haunting melodies lend themselves to countless transformations from simple drones and improvised organum to new arrangements and compositions.

Includes new works by Stevie Wishart, Marcus Davidson, Ivan Moody and the world premiere of a new commission from local composer Tim Young.

In an atmospheric first for the Festival, Hildegard’s striking images are combined with lighting visuals to reproduce some of the transfiguring visions she experienced.

Flashing images and other lighting effects will be used in this performance Tickets: £18; for half price tickets see page 26; Prom Ticket/RVS or SP (on door only) £5

Illumination accompanying the third vision of Part I of Scivias

Innerstrings: Chris Tomsett lightshow artist

‘Hildegard’s writings resonate with many people around the world today. I am proud of the opportunity to keep these writings alive and bring them into the 21st century.’

Tim Young

Brighton Early Music Festival 2019 15

MAIN FESTIVAL EVENT 23

Saturday 9 November, 1pm, St Paul’s Church

MUSICAL ALCHEMY Improviso

Bertrand Pichene

Fatima Lahham recorder Elin White violin Florence Petit cello Johan Löfving chitarrone, guitar Alchemy is the ultimate metamorphosis, a transformation of base metal into gold; and in music, repeating bass lines are the foundation of some of the most imaginative musical transformations both composed and improvised.

Improviso explores some of the most popular repeating ostinato – literally ‘obstinate’ – bass lines of the 17th and 18th centuries, presenting a varied programme of composed and improvised music by composers including Bertali, Leclair and JS Bach.

Supported by The Fidelio Charitable Trust

16 visit

‘A baroque feast from Improviso... they’re so good they have halos’ BBC Radio 3 Tickets: £12; for half price tickets see page 26; Prom Ticket/SP (on door only) £5

bremf.org.uk to find out more

EVENT 24

Saturday 9 November, 7.30pm, St Martin’s Church

OVID AND HANDEL Elspeth Piggott and Lucy Cox sopranos Bethany Horak-Hallett mezzo-soprano Sebastian Maclaine tenor John Lee bass

Ovid’s eternal stories set to music by Handel, to include his chamber cantata Apollo and Daphne and selections from his oratorio Semele, including the famous aria ‘Endless pleasure, endless love’.

The BREMF Players

All of the talented young soloists were selected by audition and are part of our BREMF Live! scheme.

Alison Bury leader

The BREMF Singers

John Hancorn director

Tickets: Premium £26; A £20; B £12; for half price tickets see page 26; Prom Ticket/SP (on door only) £5

Brighton Early Music Festival 2019 17

Cornelis de Vos, Apollo chasing Daphne (1630)

MAIN FESTIVAL

© Alamy

MAIN FESTIVAL

EVENT 25

Sunday 10 November, 7pm, St Martin’s Church

Additional performances on Saturday 4 and Sunday 5 January 2020 (see Events 28 & 29)

THE FEAST OF FOOLS Where medieval and modern times meet!

Leah Stuttard harp, musical director Clare Salaman bowed strings Ian Harrison winds, percussion, voice Jeremy Avis voice, education lead

BREMF Community Choir

Andrew Robinson voice, director

BREMF Consort of Voices Deborah Roberts director

Streetfunk

A highly apt ending to our festival of so many transformations, the Feast of Fools originated in 11th-century France and spread throughout Europe until as late as the 16th century when it was finally banned. During this much-loved festival, with its roots deep in antiquity, much of society was inverted; in particular the young were empowered, a child crowned Bishop and the noble ass revered!

Join our merry party in the ultimate metamorphosis, and enjoy a wide range of medieval and renaissance music as you’ve never experienced it.

JP Omari choreographer

Community and family-friendly event suitable for Children from Westdene & Goldstone Primary Schools children allowed to stay up a bit later!

Thomas Guthrie consultant director Saskia Wesnigk-Wood co-director

Tickets: £18; for half price tickets see page 26; Prom Ticket/SP (on door only) £5

18 visit

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DECEMBER 2019 & JANUARY 2020 EVENT 27

Sunday 8 December, 6pm, St Martin’s Church

YULETIDE! A TUDOR CHRISTMAS Hans Schäufelein, Marien- und Passionsaltar, Geburt Christi © Alamy

PIVA the Renaissance Collective Eric Moulder director, rauschpfeife, shawm, curtal, crumhorn, recorders, bagpipes Mary Mohan viol, recorders, voice, percussion David Jarratt-Knock cornett, recorders, bagpipes, renaissance guitar Jane Moulder renaissance winds, bagpipes Tony Millyard hurdy gurdy, renaissance woodwinds, bagpipes, percussion

Saturday 7 December, 6pm St Paul’s Church EVENT 26

MYSTERY, TRANSFORMATION AND CELEBRATION BREMF Consort of Voices

Winter, in the 16th century, could be a harsh time with long nights and little fresh food, but the Twelve Days of Christmas were filled with feasting, music, dancing, singing, games and revelry. PIVA will capture this flavour by playing and singing music of the period and telling tales from the time.

Festive treats include mince pies, mulled wine and fizz.

Tickets: £16; for half price tickets see page 26

Join BREMF Consort of Voices to bring in the season with a programme that reflects both the mystery and joy of Christmas, with renaissance vocal music from composers such as Lassus, Victoria, Handl, Willaert, both Gabrielis, Banchieri and Bassano.

Festive treats include mince pies, mulled wine and fizz.

Tickets: £12; for half price tickets see page 26

EVENT 28 EVENT 29

Inta Omanbriede

Deborah Roberts director

Saturday 4 January 2020, 7pm, St Mary de Haura, Shoreham-by-Sea Sunday 5 January 2020, 7pm, St Margaret of Antioch, Rottingdean

To bring in the New Year we present two repeats of our closing Festival event, here placed at the exact time of year it would have originally happened. Join our merry New Year party, and enjoy a wide range of medieval and renaissance music as you’ve never experienced it. See Event 25 for full details.

Tickets: £16; for half price tickets see page 26

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© Alamy

THE FEAST OF FOOLS

FEBRUARY 2020 Saturday 8 February 2020, 3pm & 7.30pm Sunday 9 February 2020, 3pm & 7.30pm, The Old Market EVENT 30

BREMF Early Opera presents

MARCO DA GAGLIANO

LA DAFNE (1608) Sofia Kirwan-Baez soprano Venus Angela Hicks soprano Ninfa del coro 1 Helen Lacey soprano Dafne Laura Lopes mezzo-soprano Ninfa del coro 2 Keith Pun countertenor Cupid CN Lester mezzo-soprano Tirsi Rory Carver tenor Ovid and Apollo Sebastian Maclaine tenor Pastore del coro 1 Kieran White tenor Pastore del coro 2 TBC bass Pastore del coro 3

BREMF Early Opera Orchestra

Oliver Webber violin, leader and coach Abel Balaz violin Alice Poppleton viola Morag Johnston viola Harry Buckoke cello, lirone Claire Williams harpsichord and coach Jonatan Bougt chitarrone Sergio Bucheli chitarrone Deborah Roberts and Oliver Webber musical directors Thomas Guthrie stage director

As a new initiative for BREMF Live!, we are launching a new early opera course to provide both singers and players with the specialist training and skills for this repertoire that are not widely taught in UK conservatoires.

We have made a great start with our previous opera productions, but felt that a more concentrated period of time would be valuable to allow us to work in greater depth.

This production of La Dafne will follow a week of intensive training with an auditioned cast of highly talented young singers and selected players.

La Dafne was first performed in 1608, one year after Monteverdi’s Orfeo, with a libretto also by Rinuccini and also based on a story from Ovid’s Metamorphoses. With its rich contrasts of textures and sonorities, opportunities for expressive and at times virtuosic singing, and the important role of the intermedi-style choruses, it is the perfect vehicle for expanding the horizons of young performers; as well as being a highly entertaining and delightful work that deserves to be a lot better known.

Director Thomas Guthrie and choreographer JP Omari at BREMF 2018

Supported by The Dutton-Downing Trust Tickets: Premium £28; A £24; B £18; for half price tickets see page 26 20 visit

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Brighton Early Music Festival 2019 21 Francesco Trevisani, Apollo and Daphne Š Alamy

SUPPORT BREMF

BECOME A FRIEND OF BREMF AND PROVIDE VITAL SUPPORT Support the UK’s most innovative early music festival by becoming a Festival Friend (from £35), get involved in the creative process by joining our Artistic Director’s Circle (£500), or help us with a sponsorship donation.

BREMF is a registered charity (no 1097288). We receive no core funding and with increasing competition for both Arts Council England and Trust funds, individual support will play a growing role in our continuing to thrive.

GET INVOLVED Join our Friends Scheme.

Membership is valid for one year from the date of joining or renewal. You can join online at bremf.org.uk/friend, by calling 01273 833746 or by picking up a form at a concert.

Friends: £35 (single), £60 (couple) receive: • 2 weeks of priority booking (from 19 August) • an allocation of free programmes • an invitation to a Friends’ reception Supporters: £85 (single); £120 (couple) receive Friends’ benefits PLUS: • an option to buy 1 HALF PRICE ticket (2 for a couple) for one of a choice of daytime concerts • an invitation to an open rehearsal • the option to make seat reservations at most concerts

Contributors: £150 (single or couple) and Premium Contributors: £250 (single or couple) receive Friends’ benefits PLUS: • FREE ticket(s) for one of a choice of daytime concerts • invitations to open rehearsals • named acknowledgement in concert programmes • the option to make seat reservations at most concerts Our Artistic Director’s Circle (£500 single or couple) enables you to feel involved in the creative processes and planning of the Festival, whilst visiting some intriguing venues and meeting festival artists.

Alternatively you may like to help sponsor a concert or a young artist, or support our educational programme – see back cover for further information.

For more details, email mike@bremf.org.uk, ring 01273 833746 or visit bremf.org.uk/friend.

Support us today at bremf.org.uk/friend

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SUPPORT BREMF

GAIN NEW SKILLS AND REWARDS You can get involved in helping the festival in a variety of ways: either as a festival volunteer or through our Festival Trainee programme for graduates. Volunteers and trainees help not just during the festival but throughout the year. In return we can provide you with the opportunity to develop new skills and experience, whatever your age, as well as access to some of our concerts.

There are a number of ways you can help: • assisting with publicity • lighting and sound • costume and make up • checking tickets • selling programmes • helping at events • driving the BREMF van

Find out more at bremf.org.uk – follow links to Volunteer. Sign up as a volunteer on the website, or by emailing volunteer@bremf.org.uk.

‘ I really feel part of it now - it has changed my life, given me something big and valuable to care about, and a new circle of smashing friends.’ BREMF volunteer

REMEMBER BREMF WITH A GIFT IN YOUR WILL Protecting your loved ones is naturally top priority when writing or updating your Will, but making a gift to a charity like BREMF is also a way of being remembered and contributing to the future of something that you love.

Every gift to BREMF makes a huge difference to a small charity like us: it enables future generations to access outstanding performances of early music in Brighton and helps us to continue our work with young artists, schools and the local community.

For further information, please contact harriet@bremf.org.uk

Registered charity no 1097288

Brighton Early Music Festival 2019 23

T he HANOVER HANOVER Band TM

TM

Patron: HRH The Duke of Kent, KG Founder: Caroline Brown

MESSIAH Friday 13 December 2019

ST GEORGE’S CHURCH, BRIGHTON

Saturday 21 December 2019

ST NICHOLAS CHURCH, ARUNDEL

Concerts start at 19.30

Erica Eloff soprano Bradley Smith tenor Edward Grint bass

THE HANOVER BAND and CHORUS Andrew Arthur director/hpd



BOOK ONLINE www.thehanoverband.com TEL: 0333 666 3366

VENUES

PRESTON PK AV

PRESTON DROVE

A23 TO LONDON

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ST

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11

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8

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5

QUEEN 'S ROA D

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ROAD DYKE

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Brighton Train Station

MON

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ROAD

A259 TO SHOREHAM & WORTHING

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A270 (27) TO LEWES

LE W ES R

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THE DRIV E NORTON

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Hove Station

9

TO ROYAL SUSSEX COUNTY HOSPITAL

ES'S S

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BRIGHTON PIER

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7 10

1 A259 BRIGHTON MARINA & NEWHAVEN

Comprehensive details of public transport and parking options for each venue: bremf.org.uk/venues General public transport information: buses.co.uk, southernrailway.com, thameslinkrailway.com General parking information: brighton-hove.gov.uk/content/parking-and-travel/parking

N

1

ll venues have wheelchair access, but regrettably The Rose Hill and St Margaret of Antioch A do not have wheelchair accessible toilets. For further information and help, please phone 01273 833746.

ST GEORGE’S CHURCH

St George’s Road (junction Abbey Road), Brighton BN2 1ED 2

ST MARTIN’S CHURCH

Lewes Road, Brighton BN2 3HQ 3

ST PAUL’S CHURCH

West Street, Brighton BN1 2RE 4

FRIENDS’ MEETING HOUSE

Ship Street, Brighton BN1 1AF



5

THE ROSE HILL

70-71 Rose Hill Terrace, Brighton BN1 4JL 6

7

WHITEHAWK LIBRARY

179A Whitehawk Road, Brighton BN2 5FL 8

THE OLD MARKET

11A Upper Market Street, Hove BN3 1AS 9

RALLI HALL

81 Denmark Villas, Hove BN3 3TH 10

ST MARGARET OF ANTIOCH

The Green, Rottingdean, Brighton BN2 7HA 11

ST MARY DE HAURA

Church Street, Shoreham-by-Sea BN43 5DQ

BRIGHTON UNITARIAN CHURCH

New Road, Brighton BN1 1UF

Brighton Early Music Festival 2019 25

BOOKING INFORMATION Pre-festival events (Events 1-7): General booking (including registration for workshops) opens on 7 August.

Main festival events (Events 8-25): Booking opens to members of the Friends of the Festival Scheme (see page 22) on 19 August and to the general public on 2 September. Prom Tickets can only be purchased on the door.

Winter events (Events 26-30): Tickets may be bought online and on the postal booking form as for Main Festival events, but will not be available from the Brighton Dome Ticket Office.

There are four ways to buy tickets in advance for concerts promoted by Brighton Early Music Festival:

HALF PRICE TICKETS FOR CONCERTS AND WORKSHOPS

1. E-tickets: you purchase these from bremf.org.uk, print them on your own printer and bring them to the concert together with the credit card with which you made the purchase. There is a £1 handling charge per transaction for e-tickets.

These are available for some events as indicated under the individual listings in this brochure to young people (age 12-25 inclusive), full time students and those in receipt of Universal Credit (or equivalent benefits) or Pension Credit (but not state pension alone). If you need to be accompanied by a carer who would not otherwise attend, we can issue the carer with a free ticket – please phone 01273 833746 to arrange this. Children under 12 are admitted free of charge if accompanied by a paying adult; however, a Child Ticket must be obtained. Unaccompanied children under 16 cannot be the responsibility of the Festival.

2. Online Box Office tickets: you purchase these online but have the tickets issued to you either by post or on the door. There is a handling charge of £2 per transaction for online Box Office tickets.

3. By post using the form on page 27 (£2 handling charge).

4. By phone (£2 transaction fee + 60p postage) or in person from the Brighton Dome Ticket Office, Church Street, Brighton BN1 1UE (01273 709709), open Mon-Sat 10am to 5pm. Workshop registration (Events 2 and 3) and bookings for winter events (Events 26-30) cannot be handled by Brighton Dome Ticket Office.

Please note that tickets, once paid for, cannot be refunded except in the event that the concert is cancelled. Seats are not numbered and are unreserved, but for most main festival events we provide an informal seat reservation service for BREMF Friends at Supporter level and above.

BOOKING FOR WORKSHOPS Pre-registration at bremf.org.uk is essential for BREMF workshops (Events 2 and 3). Deadlines are given on the website, but in all cases booking may be closed earlier if all places have been allocated.

Brochure design and production by: Kate Benjamin – katebenjamin.com Printed by: Gemini Print – gemini-print.co.uk

PROM TICKETS A £5 Prom Ticket can be purchased (subject to availability on the day) on the door only for most events, as indicated under the individual listings in this brochure. This admits you to a standing place (SP) or a restricted view seat (RVS) depending on the venue.

FESTIVAL TICKET SPECIAL OFFERS Save 30% with our Season Ticket. A Season Ticket costing £200 gives you a top price seat at all Main Festival concerts (Events 8-25, except Events 16, 19 and 21) subject to availability of tickets at the time of purchase. If the top price seats for an event are sold out, we will supply the next best available. Season Tickets can ONLY be obtained from bremf.org.uk or by using the postal booking form in this brochure.

Save up to 20% with our group rate savings for multiple tickets for a single concert – reductions start at 10% for a group of 10. Please phone 01273 833746 for group bookings.

Inside front cover image, ‘Dr Blighty’ from 2016 Brighton Festival: Kate Benjamin Festival photography: Robert Piwko

26 visit

bremf.org.uk to find out more

Date/Time

No of seats

Seat Type (Pr, A or B)

or do NOT wish to receive info by email

Under 12 (free)

Handling charge

Subtotal

Seat Price

£2

To join the Friends please go to bremf.org.uk/friend

TOTAL

Total

To purchase a Season Ticket, enter ST in the Event Number column.

Season Tickets provide top price tickets to Main Festival concerts (Events 8-25, except Events 16, 19 and 21) and cost £200.

Please give details of tickets required. Events 2 and 3 cannot be booked on this form. Prom tickets (RVS or SP) can only be purchased on the door.

Optional donation to Brighton Early Music Festival

Full or half price (see p26)

I enclose a cheque payable to Brighton Early Music Festival for £...........................................

We regret that we are unable to accept credit or debit cards for postal bookings.

Event No

Please tick here if you do NOT wish to receive our brochure

Email........................................................................................................................................................

Telephone.................................................................................................................................................

............................................................................................Postcode.......................................................

Address....................................................................................................................................................

Name........................................................................................................................................................

BREMF Tickets, Ham Cottage, Albourne Road, Hurstpierpoint, Hassocks BN6 9ES

General booking for Pre-Festival events opens 7 August. Main Festival booking opens 19 August for Friends and 2 September for the general public.

Seats are unnumbered and unreserved

Please return completed form to:

POSTAL BOOKING FORM For online booking, visit bremf.org.uk

HELP BREMF GROW AND THRIVE BREMF has a reputation for imaginative and ambitious programming, attracting artists keen to benefit from the Festival’s adventurous spirit and willingness to test new ideas.

BREMF’s generous supporters are key to this success Securing funding to support our work is crucial: • Ticket sales can only cover 25% of our costs • We have no guaranteed funding and must raise funds each year to support our work

Become a Festival Friend Join our Friends scheme from just £35 – see page 22

A new way to give Our new sponsorship scheme enables you to support the areas that interest you most. Through your donations, you can give life to some of our most pioneering ideas through three main areas: Event Sponsor Support a specific BREMF event by underwriting the shortfall or providing a contribution to costs Education Sponsor Support our education work within the local community and open young minds to the joys of music Young Artist Sponsor Support the next generation of young artists through our BREMF Live! Young Artist Programme £3,000 could pay for the artist costs for a Festival concert £1,000 could support travel and accommodation for an international ensemble to perform at the Festival £500 could support a young artists’ professional development workshop £300 could support a single artist to perform at the Festival

To find out more, please contact harriet@bremf.org.uk or mike@bremf.org.uk or visit bremf.org.uk/sponsor BREMF

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