• Academy of Ancient Music
• Arcady
• Apollo and Pan
• Armonico Consort
• Armonico Tributo
• Bach Players
• Bampton Classical Opera
• Birmingham Bach Choir
• Biber Ensemble
• Borromini Ensemble
• Catherine Bott
• Burning Bush
• The Cardinall's Music
• The Carnival Band
• Chamber Choir of Orthodox Sacred Music
• Chapelle du Roi
• Paula Chateauneuf
• Choir of the Chapels Royal, HM Tower
• City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra
• The Clerk’s Group
• Concanentes
• Concertante
• Consort of Seaverell Friends
• Gary Cooper
• Dufay Collective
• Etesian Ensemble
• I Fagiolini
• French Connection
• Michael Fields
• The Gabrieli Consort and Players
• The Galeazzi Ensemble
• Gonzaga Band
• Clare Guimond
• Haydn Lute Trio
• Joglaresa
• Emma Kirkby
• The King’s Consort
• Genevieve Lacey
• London Baroque
• Mediva
• The Mellstock Band
• Christopher Monks
• Musica Leonarda
• Musica Secreta
• Opera Restor'd
• Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment
• Opus Anglicanum
• Passacaglia
• Rachel Podger
• Trevor Pinnock
• Quatuor Mosaiques
• QuintEssential
• Red Priest
• The Renaissance Singers
• Ricordo
• Safar
• Savãdi
• Micaela Schmitz
• Seven Saints Vocal Ensemble
• Lucie Skeaping
• Sociall Musick
• Sonnerie
• The Tallis Scholars
• Trio Mercurio
• Evelyn Tubb
• Mark Tucker
• Venice Baroque Orchestra
• York Waits

The original Academy of Ancient Music was established in 1726 for the purpose of studying and performing ‘old’ music — defined initially as music composed at least a century earlier, but soon to include more contemporary composers, most notably Handel. The modern revival of The Academy, founded by Christopher Hogwood in 1973, created one of the first period-instrument orchestras and is now renowned worldwide for its concerts and over 250 recordings of music from the Baroque, Classical and early Romantic eras.

The Academy of Ancient Music is especially well known for its pioneering recordings under Christopher Hogwood for Decca. The orchestra was the first to record all Mozart’s symphonies on period instruments and has since recorded the complete piano concertos and symphonies of Beethoven, and is part-way through recording the complete Haydn symphonies and the complete Mozart piano concertos with fortepianist Robert Levin. Under Hogwood, The AAM has also made a number of opera recordings for Decca, in particular working closely with Cecilia Bartoli. Their prize-winning recordings include Mozart’s La Clemenza di Tito, Haydn’s Orfeo ed Euridice and Handel’s Rinaldo which was awarded Gramophone (2001) and Cannes Classical (2002) awards.

In 1996, the artistic directorship of The AAM was extended with the appointment of Paul Goodwin as Associate Conductor and Andrew Manze as Associate Director, and has subsequently been widened further through invitations to a number of guest directors. As well as working with selected choral directors — Stephen Cleobury with the Choir of King’s College, Cambridge; Edward Higginbottom with the Choir of New College, Oxford; Stephen Layton with Polyphony — The AAM will be working with Giuliano Carmignola, Richard Egarr, Pavlo Beznosiuk, Masaaki Suzuki and Paul Daniel in the near future, while continuing to work with Hogwood and Goodwin.

www.aam.co.uk

A dynamic young group whose members came together while studying at the Royal Conservatory in The Hague, Apollo and Pan explore the neglected works for violin and bassoon from the 17th and 18th centuries using both renaissance and baroque instruments. Winners of the 2001 Early Music Network International Young Artists’ Competition, Apollo and Pan has performed at festivals and concert series through the UK, as well as playing individually with many leading early music groups and period orchestras.

Armonico Consort is a new group of highly experienced young musicians, under Director Christopher Monks, specialising in Renaissance and Baroque music. Often accompanied by Armonico Tributo baroque orchestra, comprising some of the UK’s finest period instrumentalists, their popularity has soared in Central England.

Performances range from masterpieces of Baroque Opera and Oratorio to spectacular reconstructions and have gained much critical acclaim. This is particularly true of their interpretation of Francesco Scarlatti’s recently discovered choral works.

A reputation for inspired programming and energetic performances of works by a wide variety of composers has led to a considerable following and sell-out concerts. Armonico Consort is based in Warwickshire and is always interested to hear from potential new members.

www.armonico.org.uk

A Midlands-based ensemble of period instumentalists with a wide repertoire from the baroque period - c1600-1780. Informative and lively presentation is combined with balanced programmes including some rarely heard music alongside more familiar works.

Armonico Tributo is an expandable group, with core members performing trio sonatas, and larger forces performing orchestral suites and cantatas. Director Martin Perkins is co-ordinator of early music at Birmingham Conservatoire.

Formed in 1996 the Bach Players offer authentic performance of Bach’s diverse and inspirational music. Programmes vary from small scale instrumental works to larger choral works when the core group of nine instrumentalists and four singers, expands to provide chorus and soloists as Bach intended.

‘They seem refreshingly uninhibited in exploring the emotional and romantic depths inherent in Bach’s music, Their singing and playing went beyond scholarly intensity and technical virtuosity to that hard to define coalescence that makes for musical performances of the highest standards.’ Early Music Review

Bampton Classical Opera was founded in 1993 by its artistic directors, Jeremy Gray and Gilly French, and quickly gained a reputation for relaxed and informal quality opera. It gives two annual open-air summer productions and specialises in staging rarely known works of the late baroque and classical periods with young professional singers. Previous productions include the first staging of Erik Smith's edition of Mozart's The Cairo Goose; one of the first modern-day settings of Gazzaniga's Don Giovanni, Arne's Alfred, Paisiello's Nina, Storace's The Comedy of Errors and Cimarosa's The Two Barons of Rocca Azzurra; and UK premieres of The Philosopher's Stone by Mozart et al and Salieri's Falstaff, all to considerable acclaim in the national press.  Bampton Classical Opera always performs in English and is committed to relaxed, non-elitist opera at affordable prices. An annual concert is also given, on the feast-day of Bampton's patron saint Beornwald, and occasional concerts at other times of the year.

Bampton Classical Opera is committed to providing a local community with a high standard of opera and other music. We are creating and educating new audiences, through our policy of affordable ticket prices and a relaxed and accessible atmosphere in beautiful surroundings. We perform our operas in English, to enhance understanding and enjoyment.

The Biber Ensemble is a versatile young ensemble specialising in attractive programmes from the 16th to 19th centuries using period string instruments. The combination of violin and a variety of plucked instruments has proved especially popular with audiences and critics. Concerts do not require a specialist audience-although early music specialists will find plenty of period detail in the instruments, playing techniques and preparation of repertoire! The ensemble is equally at home performing full-scale recitals in the Purcell Room or performing for music clubs societies and festivals with spoken introductions to the music and instruments. The Biber Ensemble made their Purcell Room debut in 2001 and recently completed a year long residency at Blackheath Halls in London. The ensemble has appeared on Radio 3's In Tune programme and on the ITV network and Channel 4.

"Ms. Tan showed herself to be a convincing interpreter of the later Baroque repertoire. Michalak's subtle theorbo accompaniment was most effective..a talented duo." Early Music Review

The Birmingham Bach Choir has 70-80 members. Its core repertoire is music by J S Bach and the baroque period in general. In addition the Choir has developed a repertoire of 20th century music and regularly commissions new works. In recent years it has given premieres of music by John Joubert, Aaron Jay Kernis, Eleanor Alberga, Adrian Partington and Paul Spicer. The Choir enjoys performing in Symphony Hall, Birmingham - having performed Bach's B minor Mass to capacity audiences in 2000 and 2002, it is now planning to perform Bach's Christmas Oratorio and St Matthew Passion there. Other venues include the Adrian Boult Hall, Birmingham Cathedral, St Paul's church (in Birmingham), St Mary's Church, Bridgenorth and Great Witley.

www.birmingham.bachchoir.com

Taking its name from a celebrated baroque architect the Borromini Ensemble specialises in Italian music of that period, as well as English music of Purcell and his contemporaries. Sarah Westwood , a young soprano joins with harpsichordist Richard Silk, recorder player Alan Westwood and cellist and viola da gamba player Jean Gubbins, in offering a wide repertoire of interesting and contrasting programmes.

One of the most versatile singers before the public today, Catherine Bott is equally celebrated as a virtuoso of early vocal music as well as the most taxing contemporary scores. It is a luminous voice allied to a rare intelligence. Bott began her career in a traditional way with studies at the Guildhall School of Music in London with renowned teacher Arthur Reckless. However, she graduated at a time when the early music movement was taking off and she found she had an affinity for this special repertoire which demanded flexibility and a sense of improvisation not cultivated by strictly 'classical' opera singers.

The demands of making her way as a young professional also brought Catherine Bott into the world of modern music and soon she found herself in demand not only by the likes of Philip Pickett and the New London Consort, but also by cutting edge composers Michael Nyman and Michael Torke, among others.

Bott has concentrated on orchestral, chamber and recital programs although she has participated in opera recordings, most tellingly in the L'Oiseau Lyre recording of Purcell's Dido and Aeneas with Christopher Hogwood. Her recording career on the Universal labels has included no fewer than four solo recitals and scores of ensemble recordings.

Lucie Skeaping vocalist, violin, Robin Jeffrey oud, laouto, guitar, mandolin, Roddy Skeaping violin, accordion, Ben Harlan clarinet, zurna, darabukka, Jon Banks cimbalom, kanun, accordion, Rob Levy double bass

"An absolute joy - grace, passion and virtuosity" (Glasgow Herald), "A celebration of Jewish culture - flair and infectous gaiety" (The Times), "The life-blood of living" (Ambience, Australia), "A burning revelation" (Venue USA).

The Burning Bush is Britain's most widely acclaimed group playing traditional music of the old Jewish world. Mystical dances of the Hassidim, haunting ballads of the old Ottoman world, foot-tapping Klezmer, heartrending songs of the Yiddish theatre and ghetto - our repertoire embraces music of the Ashkenazi, Sephardi and Oriental Jews. A spectacular variety of instruments and styles from the familiar to the exotic, all introduced by the performers. Programmes can also include traditional Turkish shadow puppets. Tours include South America, Finland, Germany Slovenia and Slovakia. UK venues include Queen Elizabeth Hall, Barbican Concert Hall, St Alban's Cathedral, St John's Smith Square, many festivals and cultural events.

www.theburningbush.co.uk

The Cardinall's Musick could "start a blaze in the Antarctic" (The Times) with their particular mix of stimulating programming and engaging performance. The singers are encouraged to "preserve their vocal personalities ... resulting in a vibrant texture of timbres" (Daily Telegraph). The group's academic research and editions which result are highly regarded. The partnership between research and performance is the bedrock of the group's success. Embracing a wide range of styles and periods, The Cardinall's Musick is well known for its thoughtful, themed programmes designed to stimulate and enlighten, to broaden horizons but also to look at standard repertoire with a fresh eye. The Cardinall's Musick has recorded over 20 CDs to great critical acclaim including works by Fayrfax, Ludford, Cornysh, Palestrina and Victoria and is currently engaged in a remarkable and groundbreaking project to record the works of William Byrd. Awards have included the Gramophone Award for Early Music, a French Diapason d'Or, a German Schallplatten Kritik Preis and the Schallplatten Echo Award.

The summer of 1983, and The Medieval Players, a touring theatre company, mount an open-air production of Rabelais' 'Gargantua' featuring actors, giant carnival characters, puppets, acrobatics, juggling and music. The sixteenth century music is provided by a mixture of actors and musicians - a scratch band or 'carnival band' as they begin to call it. Their songs and dance tunes are rough and ready, far removed from the neater versions of the specialist early music groups of the time, but the players more than make up for it with theatricality, humour and sheer energy, and audiences love it. At the end of the production, the musical director, Andy Watts, decides that this is too good to lose and sets about putting together a band to do occasional gigs as a spin off from the main company.

From its beginning the Carnival Band has ignored neat categories, preferring instead to turn the music upside down in true carnival spirit. Not only upside down, but inside out, and back to front. Falling between 'early music' 'world music' 'folk music' and 'classical' their discs don't fit easily in record shop pigeonholes. Most of the music is popular, much of it anonymous and traditional, but composers such as Pelham Humfrey and Thomas Arne elbow their way in. The band like to confuse styles, blur edges, mix categories. Macedonian Reggae, Balkan Bransles, Noel Coward meets James Brown, John Dowland shakes hands with Hank Wangford. It's all part of the carnival ethos. It's also a refusal to be pinned down as in 'you can't use vibrato in that style', 'they didn't have electric guitars in the sixteenth century' , 'you can't play music from ------- unless you were born there/ studied it for fourteen years/ heard it from a seventy-six year old mangold kibbler'. The Carnival Band know they are not 'authentic' and they love it! They love and respect the traditions on which they draw and they just want to have fun with the music and share their enjoyment with an audience.

So what do they play? The repertoire covers periods from the middle ages to the middle of the twentieth century and occasionally beyond. The music comes from England, France, Spain, Sweden, Croatia, Louisiana, Tanzania, Macedonia, Bolivia, in theory nowhere is excluded! The instrumentation is idiosyncratic, several of the band being multi-instrumentalists, and includes period instruments such as shawms and renaissance bagpipes, modern folk instruments such as electric and acoustic guitars, and instruments from non-european traditions such as the 'ud and the djembe. The band also burst into song from time to time with great enthusiasm if not with 'bel canto' beauty. But who said music has to be beautiful?

The choir was founded in 1989 by Valery Petrov, a graduate of the Estonian Academy of Music. Its members are all professional musicians with a dedication to sacred music. Their repertoire included sacred chants of different styles from 16th to 21st centuries. Almost all compositions are original and performed unaccompanied, always seeking to express the spiritual basis of the music.

The choir has performed in many cathedrals throughout the Baltic region, and churches as well as festivals in Scandanavia, Hungary and Poland.

Formed in 1994 and directed by Alistair Dixon Chapelle du Roi is an ensemble of eight singers, many of whom are in the first few years of their professional careers. The choir specialises in performing and recording sacred music of the late medieval, and Renaissance periods.

Chapelle du Roi has two aims. First, to unearth music that has previously languished unseen and unheard on library shelves and that is deserving of greater prominence. Second, to help re-establish Renaissance music as repertoire that can be enjoyed by everybody by bringing it to wider audiences. Whilst the first aim is achieved by careful research and preparation of new editions (many of which are published by the group's director, Alistair Dixon, through The Cantiones Press the second is met by giving live concerts in the U K and abroad and by making recordings and broadcasts. Chapelle du Roi places great emphasis on presenting programmes that are appealing and engaging and which allow the development of a strong rapport between audience and performers.

Chapelle du Roi is based in London, England, and in addition to accepting concert engagements it also promotes occasional concerts in and around London each year.

Chapelle du Roi gave its first concert at St Pancras Church, Euston Road, London on 29th October 1994. The programme was entitled The Art of the Franco-Flemish Masters but the repertoire of Chapelle du Roi, is not limited by national boundaries; France, Germany, Portugal, Mexico, Malta, Italy, and Scotland all produced important music in the renaissance period. Some emphasis, though, inevitably falls on English music, particularly that of the English Chapel Royal. Chapelle du Roi first made a name for itself in 1996 with a series of six concerts covering the complete works of Thomas Tallis, and this led to an invitation to record the same over nine CDs on the Signum label.

Since its inception Chapelle du Roi has established a strong concert audience following and continues to build on its enviable reputation for the interpretation of Renaissance music. Following its highly acclaimed appearance at the York Early Music festival in July 1997, and the Utrecht Early Music Festival in 1998, 1999 and 2000 the group is ever increasingly in demand. 

Recent concert and radio appearances have included performances for the 400th anniversary of the Spanish composer Francisco Guerrero at St John's Smith Square, the Warwick Arts Society, Birmingham Early Music Festival, Utrecht Early Music Festival, the Festival Hall Foyer series and the St Ceciliatide Festival at Stationer's Hall, as well as three appearances on BBC Radio 3, Stour Festival, St Ceciliatide Festival, as well as engagements in Alden Biesen, the Flanders Festival. In 2000, Chapelle du Roi makes its debut tour of the United States, with return visits planned for 2002 and 2004.

Chapelle du Roi has continued to specialise in the English repertoire -  particularly that of the English Chapel Royal - with performances of the works of William Mundy, John Sheppard and William Parsons. Further afield, repertoire interests extend to Spain and the Holy Roman Empire, including the music of Francisco Guerrero, Cristóbal Morales, Alonso Lobo and the neglected Spanish aristocratic composer, Don Fernando de las Infantas.

In February 1997 Chapelle du Roi released the first in a series of nine CDs covering the complete works of Thomas Tallis: the second was selected as early music disc of the month in Classic FM Magazine. The group's discography on the Signum label now totals six discs with four in the Tallis series, music for Philip II of Spain and Francisco Guerrero. 

One of the leading lute and early guitar players performing in the UK, Paula Chateauneuf originally came to study in the UK from the USA as a Fulbright Scholar in 1982. She performed with many of the finest early music ensembles, including the New London Consort, the Gabrieli Consort, the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment and the Academy of Ancient Music. She regularly accompanies Catherine Bott, soprano, and Mark Tucker, tenor, as well as being in demand as a continuo player for early opera.

She has also recorded and broadcast widely throughout Europe. She also teaches and gives masterclasses, and is the lute tutor at the University of Birmingham’s Centre for Early Music Performance and Research.

The term ‘Chapel Royal’ dates back to the middle ages, and came to mean everything needed for the divine worship of the sovereign, choir, clergy, vestments, books and plate. The Chapel Royal would travel with the court, but in the 18th century it settled at St James’s Palace. Other chapels in the royal palaces of Hampton Court and the Tower of London continue to share the status of Chapels Royal.

In 1966 a professional choir was established to provide music of the highest standard for the two chapels Royal in the Tower of London. Some of the UK’s most distinguished musicians have begun their careers here, and composers have written specifically for the choir, which consists of a consort of 10 voices. Under Stephen Tilton, Master of Music at HM Tower since 1994 the choir has made several recordings and broadcasts, as well as establishing a winter concert series.

Founded in 1920, the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra has always had an illustrious career. In fact, the first concert was conducted by Sir Edward Elgar. Now, led by renowned Music Director Sakari Oramo, the Orchestra is reconfirming its credentials as a major player on the world stage. This season the CBSO is performing Venetian baroque works with a smaller than usual ensemble, under the direction of Nicholas McGegan.

www.cbso.co.uk

The Clerks' Group made its London debut in 1992 and has been responsible for releasing many works from library shelves or manuscipts into the performing arena. The group particularly specialises in the Flemish repertoire, and has recently completed a series of nine recordings for ASV covering the entire sacred output of Johannes Ockeghem, undoubtedly the most renowned composer of the late 15th century. These recordings have earned them three nominations for Gramophone magazine's Early Music award and, in 1997, the award itself. The group has performed extensively in the UK and in Europe: the last two years have seen trips to Germany, France, Spain, Holland, Belgium and Iceland. The group has toured the United States three times, giving concerts in, amongst other cities, Los Angeles, New York, Houston, Washington D.C., Atlanta and Chicago. The choir has been featured on the radio both in the UK and on the continent, and has made a programme for Belgian television. The group was formed, and is still directed by Edward Wickham.

www.clerks.dircon.co.uk

Concanentes specialises in the performance of music from the middle ages and the sixteenth century. The members of the group met in 1996 whilst studying at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. Carefully researched programmes of music from France, England, Spain and Italy are presented in an original and accessible way and have received much acclaim.

The Latin name Concanentes is taken from a Spanish dance song from the Llibre Vermell dated 1399. The word comes from the verb canere: to sing, play, intone or prophesy. Concanentes means 'those who sing and play together'. The group is made up of soprano voice and instrumentalists playing fiddle, recorder, viol, harp, lute (and other plucked strings such as guitar, gittern, oud and saz), symphony and percussion.

www.concanentes.org

Leading musicians from London music colleges perform together as Concertante, as well as with other groups such as the Gabrieli Consort, King’s Consort and New London Consort. They explore baroque/galant music with the emphasis on English music of mid to late 18th century. Concertante is a flexible ensemble varying the combinations of players to provide interesting and varied programmes.

The Consort is conducted by Peter Holman, founder with Roy Goodman, of The Parley of Instruments, which is now recognised as one of the leading exponents of Renaissance and Baroque string consort music. As a harpsichordist and organist Peter has performed with, among others, The London Handel Orchestra, the Tilford Bach Orchestra, the Orchestra of St John's Smith Square, and The Hanover Band. In 1985 he became Musical Director of the newly-formed Opera Restor'd which specialises in authentic productions of eighteenth-century English operas and masques. He is also the Artistic Director of the annual Suffolk Villages Festival which promotes high-quality performances of early music in a rural area of eastern England. In addition he was the joint Director (with Paul O'Dette) of the 1995 Boston Early Music Festival (USA).

Peter Holman was a professor at the Royal Academy of Music for ten years, and has also taught at many conservatories, universities and summer schools in Britain, Europe and the USA.

The Consort consists of Alex Gibson, alto, Sarah Saunders, oboe, and Sally Holman, bassoon.

Gary Cooper studied organ and harpsichord at Chetham's School of Music, the John Loosemore Centre, and was an organ scholar at New College, Oxford. Between 1992 & 2000 he was the harpsichordist with the highly acclaimed ensemble Trio Sonnerie.

During 2000 Gary made his solo debut at the Wigmore Hall, performing Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier; he has also given many performances of Bach's Goldberg Variations at venues around the world. Gary is also well-known as a conductor, and was recently appointed Musical Director of New Kent Opera, Associate Musical Director of St James's Baroque Players in London, and works as a guest director with His Majesties Sackbuts & Cornets.

Gary has made several CDs, including the award-winning recordings of Bach's Well-Tempered Clavier (ASV). His Goldberg Variations (Linn) will be released in 2004. Future recording plans include the complete Sonatas for Violin and Keyboard by Mozart with Rachel Podger (Channel Classics) and the complete solo keyboard music of JC Bach on early English instruments (Deux Elles).

During 2003 Gary gave recitals in North America, made regular appearances with the violinist Andrew Manze, and conducted highly acclaimed performances of Britten's Albert Herring for New Kent Opera. In 2004, he will be performing Bach's complete keyboard concertos with the Canadian ensemble Arion and embarking on a new partnership with Rachel Podger, playing Bach and Mozart Sonatas in England and Japan.

Gary was recently named "Best Newcomer in Classical Music" in the Times, and "a rising star in early music" in the Observer. He also teaches harpsichord at the Royal Northern College of Music and Chetham's School of Music.

Specialists in medieval European music of a wide variety of styles, the Dufay Collective has performed at many major festivals and venues around the world, as well as broadcasting and recording widely too.

The formation of the Etesian Ensemble in 2000 brought together five musicians committed to performing the great wealth of chamber music from the classical and romantic periods for fortepiano and winds. Performances of this exciting repertoire are rarely heard on today's concert platform therefore the Etesian Ensemble set out to bring their vibrant, explorative performances of such works to a wider audience. The ensemble presents established classics such as the exquisite Mozart Quintet for Fortepiano and Winds, which Mozart himself described as "the best thing I have ever written in my life", alongside recently discovered, obscure and sadly neglected works that deserve the attention of today's audience. "Superb period performance by the youthful Etesian Ensemble. The sound world they communicate is far from dry and academic, but a pulsating expressive recreation of early music"

American Record Guide called I Fagiolini 'first-rate musical actors' reflecting their focus on bringing to life classics of the Renaissance and early Baroque by staging them, making this amazing repertoire accessible and entertaining for audiences of all backgrounds. The project is continuing with Vecchi's masked tragicomedy L'Amfiparnaso or 'Twin Peaks'. Their CDs for Chandos continue with the Venetian series and two important English madrigal collections. Such straight recitals continue to be an important part of the group’s concert life too, often incorporating 20th/21st century music. Concerts are generally introduced by Robert Hollingworth ('witty introductions' The Independent).

The Gabrieli Consort and Players came to critical attention during their first decade with their mould-breaking reconstructions of music for the great historic occasions of the Renaissance. Since then, they have captivated audiences with their bold readings of the masterworks of the Baroque period.

A predominantly young group of players and singers, Gabrieli take a vibrant and engaging approach to the masterworks of the Baroque period. Their distinctive style, coupled with director Paul McCreesh's expertise in the performance practice of earlier periods, gives Gabrieli's music-making a wide and decidedly twenty-first century appeal.

The Gabrieli Consort and Players have made numerous television and radio appearances in a variety of repertoire and are regular visitors to the major festivals and concert halls of Europe. They have also undertaken four major tours to the USA, performing repertoire from Gabrieli to Praetorius, and plan to return in 2002/03.

The Gabrieli Consort and Players have made many award winning recordings with Deutsche Grammophon Archiv (DG Archiv), including Venetian Vespers, music by Palestrina and Praetorius, Morales, Purcell and others, and Handel’s Soloman with soloist Andreas Scholl.

The Galeazzi Ensemble was formed in 1995 in order to explore classical and romantic chamber music on instruments of the period. Since they were finalists in 1999 International EMN Young Artists' Competition, they have gone from strength to strength. They have appeared on BBC and Meridian Television and have broadcasted on Radio 3. In Early Music Review, they were described as 'a talented lot' whose playing was 'delicate and sensitive with a good sense of light and shade'. Their debut CD was awarded 4 stars for performance and 5 stars for sound in the the BBC Music Magazine, and of it Gramophone wrote that the ensemble 'produce a wonderfully intimate dusky sound' and 'they play with a directness that is refreshing - always with elegance and wit'.

The Gonzaga Band is a cornett and sackbut ensemble, supported by lute or theorbo and chamber organ. Members of the ensemble also play natural trumpets, recorders, bagpipes and percussion, and the group may be augmented to embrace an extended family of period instruments including shawms, dulcian, and strings. The Gonzaga Band was formed in 1997 to explore the rich variety of instrumental music of the 16th and early-17th centuries; the group aims to make this music accessible to all through imaginative programming while maintaining the highest artistic standards. The ensemble takes its name from the Dukes Gonzaga of Mantua, who were important and influential patrons of the arts during this period. They employed Monteverdi as Maestro di Cappella, and one time possessed a wind ensemble that was the envy of the world. Naturally The Gonzaga Band has a strong interest in Italian music, but also maintains an extensive repertoire of music from other European countries.

The Gonzaga Band was selected to join the recital scheme of the Countess of Munster Musical Trust for the 2001-2002 season, and this resulted in a number of concerts for festivals and music clubs and societies throughout the UK. The ensemble also regularly collaborates with choirs and choral societies on projects such as Monteverdi's Vespers (1610), the poly-choral music of Andrea and Giovanni Gabrieli, and Schütz's Christmas Story.

The Gonzaga Band has participated since 2000 in the Live Music Now scheme, which was founded by the late Yehudi Menuhin in 1977 to enable people without access to live music, particularly those with special needs, to experience and participate in high quality performances and workshops by young professional musicians. The ensemble also has experience of delivering educational workshops to mainstream schools.

Individually, members of The Gonzaga Band have performed and recorded with some of Europe's finest period instrument ensembles, including His Majesty's Sagbutts and Cornetts, Concerto Palatino, La Fenice, the Orchestra of the Renaissance, the Gabrieli Consort and Players, the King's Consort, and at Shakespeare's Globe Theatre. The Gonzaga Band is constantly striving for still higher standards of performance and research in 16th- and 17th-century music. To this end, several members of the ensemble pursued specialist postgraduate study abroad at the cutting-edge institutions of the Schola Cantorum in Basel, and the Royal Conservatory in The Hague. In addition, members are actively involved in research, including doctoral research at the country's highest-rated university music departments.

Claire Guimond is a leading baroque flautist, and promoter of early music. She is artistic director of Ensemble Arion which has toured extensively in Europe and North and South America, and made over 20 recordings. Claire also performs regularly with Barthold Kuijken, Monica Huggett, Jaap Ter Linden and Stephen Stubbs. She has featured in many radio and TV broadcasts.

www.early-music.com

The Haydn Lute Trio was formed to explore the large body of 18th century chamber music written for lute and strings. In addition to the little known masterpieces of Haydn, many contemporaries such as Kohaut and Hagen also wrote high quality works for this combination. "Hagen's music habitually transcends the stylistic clichés of the period and thus leads the Lute into a realm of expression that verges on the romantic and is quite without precedent in the prior literature of the instrument." Early Music Review. The Haydn Lute Trio contrasts this early classical style with virtuoso violin repertoire from earlier in the century by Handel, Veracini and others, the theorbo providing basso continuo.

Joglaresa specialise in medieval music from Western Europe and Arabic cultures. This unique ensemble performs medieval music with prestigious artists drawn from the improvisational spheres of jazz and world music in addition to those of classical music. Their infectious enthusiasm, combined with peerless skill and musicianship, produces concerts that are lively, expressive, full of Mediterranean passion and colour, poignant, spontaneous and highly improvisational.

Emma Kirkby had originally no intention of becoming a professional singer. She read Classics at Oxford and was a schoolteacher for a while, but after a period as a member of various choirs and small ensembles mainly specializing in Renaissance and Baroque music she joined The Taverner Choir, and two years later began her long-lasting association with The Consort of Musicke. Emma Kirkby participated in the early Florilegium recordings with The Consort of Musicke and The Academy of Ancient Music. Working here with original instruments she became aware of the need to develop a new kind of vocal tone, a problem that she had to solve herself with the help of Jessica Cash in London and various Early Music specialists, including instrumentalists and conductors as well as fellow-singers.

Emma Kirkby has more than a hundred recordings to her name. They range from the sequences of Hildegard of Bingen to Italian and English madrigals, Baroque cantatas and oratorios, and works by Mozart and Haydn. But her preferred platform is still the concert platform, especially in revivals of previous programmes with colleagues from The Consort of Musicke, London Baroque, and the leading period orchestras, where nothing ever turns out quite like the last time. Three of Emma Kirkby's most recent recordings include music by the eighteenth-century English composer Maurice Greene, by Vivaldi and Handel, and by lesser-known Italian bel canto composers of the seventeenth century.

‘Kirkby’s voice retains the youthful clarity and suppleness that have been characteristic of her style over the years, but now has a bloom and ease with Baroque idiom that only years of experience can bring.’ BBC Music Magazine ‘Superb vocal dexterity plus pureness of tone is the hallmark of this committed, fresh-as-ever artist’ Birmingham Post

For twenty-one years The King's Consort has presented an adventurous variety of repertoire from the baroque and classical eras in many of the world's greatest concert halls, touring to almost every European country, in Japan, Hong Kong and the Far East, as well as North and South America. Highlights have included four appearances at the BBC Proms, performances of the spectacular new programme The Coronation of King George II, Bach Mass in B Minor to capacity audiences across Europe, the opening concert of BBC TV's Purcell celebrations, Mozart Requiem in the glorious Alhambra Palace in Granada, and staged operas in Paris, London, Tokyo, in Germany and Spain.

The orchestra is especially regarded for recordings of music by Purcell and a dozen Handel oratorios and operas, but TKC's catalogue also includes music by Bach, Schütz, Mozart, Haydn, Pergolesi, Boccherini, Telemann, Albinoni, Vivaldi and many more.

Major concert projects this season include stagings of The Coronation of King George II and Lo Sposalizio, tours in Europe and North America, and concert performances of Handel's Judas Maccabaeus and Messiah, Haydn The Creation, Mozart Requiem and Mendelssohn Elijah

Recorder player Genevieve Lacey gave a remarkable solo recital at last year's Lichfield Festival. This year she returns with distinguished support – two previous members of the British baroque ensemble Florilegium, now resident in Sydney – for a program which features 17th and 18th century music by Banister, Bach, Fontana, Handel, Matteis, Telemann and Vivaldi, and a special reworking of festival composer Peter Sculthorpe’s Night Songs.

Genevieve Lacey – recorder; Daniel Yeadon – cello; Neal Peres da Costa – harpsichord

Charles Medlam director, Ingrid Seifert violin, Richard Gwilt violin, Irmgard Schaller viola, Charles Medlam violoncello, Terence Charlston keyboard

London Baroque was formed in 1978 and is regarded worldwide as one of the foremost exponents of baroque chamber music, enabling its members to devote their professional lives to the group. A regular fifty or so performances a year has given the group a cohesion and professionalism akin to that of a permanent string quartet. Their repertoire spans a period from the end of the sixteenth century up to Mozart and Haydn with works of virtually unknown composers next to familiar masterpieces of the baroque and early classical eras. Programmes range from early English music to Mozart and contemporaries. Aside from their many appearances with just 4/5 players (tours of the US, Japan) there will be concerts with Emma Kirkby in England, France and Spain, Deborah York in Germany and Lorna Anderson in France and Germany as well as appearances with leading instrumentalists.

A seven-strong ensemble specialising in medieval music, with singer, recorders and shawms, fiddle, oud and saz, harp and percussion, Mediva are an outstanding new medieval music group who burst onto the early music scene in October 1998 with acclaimed concerts and performances as part of the Radio Three Early Music Day at the Royal Academy of Music. In 2001, the group made their international debut with a series of concerts at the Barcelona Early Music Festival and were finalists in the International Young Artists Competition at the York Early Music Festival. In November 2002 they made their Purcell Room debut as part of the South Bank's Fresh Young Artists Series.

www.mediva.co.uk

Named after the fictional name that the poet and novelist Thomas Hardy gave to his home parish of Stinsford in Dorset, the Mellstock band has been inspired by his detailed and vigorous portrayals of music, song, and dancing, as well as performing music from his family’s collection of manuscript books.

The band usually use instruments in their nineteenth-century forms for the sake of their distinctive authentic sounds, such as the clear incisive tone of the C clarinet, the warmth of the “classical” oboe and its tenor cousin, the vox humana, the purity of the English concertina's tone, and the “rich deep note” of the serpent.

Their musical backgrounds include folk, jazz and early music, and they use their skills to create a vital present-day musical experience rather than a dry, museum-like reproduction of something past and gone. Though our repertoire is rooted in the village bands of the last two hundred years, we occasionally include music and instruments from much earlier, and from more recent times, bringing in the twentieth-century sounds of accordion, saxophone and trombone.

The band has performed at Festivals and arts centres throughout England, including appearences at the Purcell Room, Sidmouth International Folklore Festival, and conferences organised by the Thomas Hardy Society. They have toured in America, Europe and Africa, including tours organised by the British Council. On television, the band was featured in recent adaptations of Pride and Prejudice, The Return of the Native and Tess of the d'Urbervilles. and in several of the Songs of Praise series. They have also been regular contributors to BBC radio, and have provided music for theatre productions at the National Theatre and the Chichester Festival Theatre, and for film soundtracks

Christopher Monks is Assistant Director of Music at the Collegiate Church of St Mary, Warwick. He also leads a successful career as a freelance conductor and solo performer, and is in great demand as a private teacher and accompanist. Born and educated in Solihull, West Midlands, he was organ scholar at Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge, were he studied under Dr Geoffrey Webber, David Sanger, Iain Simcock, and Nicolas Kynaston. Subsequently he was organ scholar at Winchester Cathedral and assistant organist at Winchester College studying conducting under David Hill. He performs regularly as a recitalist at home and abroad. Recent venues have included Oxford Town Hall, Coventry Cathedral, Westminster Cathedral, and venues in Germany. He has made twelve CD recordings, mainly for ASV and Hyperion, either as a performer or accompanist, and has undertaken successful tours with choirs and as a soloist to America, Bulgaria, Germany, and throughout the UK. He records and broadcasts live regularly for the BBC, and has recently been heard on BBC 1 and on BBC Radio 2, 3, and 4, whilst his recordings are regularly played on Classic fm. Future engagements include tours to Germany and America, a performance of Handel's Messiah with period instruments, and several CD recordings including "The Most Comprehensive Guide to Wedding Music Ever". Since arriving in Warwick, Christopher has formed the St Mary's Scholars chamber choir, which has performed several concerts of Baroque music with period instruments. They have also toured to Paris, where they were privileged to sing High Mass at Notre Dame.

Deborah Roberts, Tessa Bonner soprano, Catherine King mezzo soprano, Penny Vickers alto, Frances Kelly harp, David Miller lute, chitarrone, Matthew Halls organ, harpsichord.

Regular guests: Emily van Evera and Sally Dunkley soprano, Caroline Trevor alto, Mark Levy viols

Musica Secreta presents some of the finest solo and consort singers in the country, along with leading continuo players. In addition to the core members, regular guests include Caroline Trevor and Sally Dunkley. We are probably the most established female vocal ensemble in this country and we can offer an extremely wide range of programmes: from Palestrina masses arranged as they would have been performed in convents, via ornamented Italian madrigals written for the legendary Singing Ladies of Ferrara, to music composed by cloistered nuns, or the poignant and passionate love songs of Barbara Strozzi. Musica Secreta has received substantial research funding enabling the group to explore further the madrigal repertoire for female ensembles in 16th century Italy. During 2003/04 we will continue offering a rich mixture of programmes to fit any budget requirement.

Please visit our website for more details.

The only touring company specialising in seventeenth and eighteenth century English opera and music theatre, Opera Restor'd has attracted considerable acclaim for re-creating and making accessible the rich musical life of earlier centuries. By concentrating principally on small-scale, flexible productions of eighteenth century comic operas supported by a small orchestra, the company has been able to adapt to a large variety of venues from barns to opera houses and has performed all over Great Britain and in France, Spain, Holland, Belgium, Austria, and Turkey. Productions are fully staged and sung in English. Opera Restor'd was the first opera company to tour on the Early Music Network, has provided music and performers for the feature film Princess Caraboo and featured in the BBC radio series Opera out and about.

In 1986 a group of the finest exponents of period instruments in the UK pooled their resources to found their own self-governing orchestra: the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment. Currently chaired by founding-member Marshall Marcus, the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment (OAE) was quickly recognised as exceptional and, in 1992, scored a further coup when it persuaded Frans Brüggen and Sir Simon Rattle to put their names to the Orchestra as Principal Guest Conductors.

Brüggen and Rattle jointly sum up the OAE's commitment to combining period authenticity with contemporary values, a point that is reinforced by the roster of international conductors with whom the Orchestra continually collaborates. As Andrew Clements wrote in the Guardian in 1987: "perhaps the Age of Enlightenment's most revolutionary innovation has been to extend invitations to conductors from the modern instrument symphonic and opera world." This season, as ever, a great range of repertoire and approaches are to be illustrated through their performances.

An important feature of the Orchestra’s work is the performance of music not usually heard on period instruments. This is perfectly demonstrated by the first three concerts of 2001/02, which sees the Orchestra explore the Romantic repertoire through the aural vision of Sir Roger Norrington (Mahler), Mark Elder (Verdi) and Vladimir Jurowski (Glinka and Borodin), before moving on to work with esteemed French cellist/director Christophe Coin. Always seeking to explore uncharted musical territory, the Orchestra then joins forces with OAE violinist Ken Aiso to juxtapose English and Japanse works of the 17th and 21st centuries as part of the Japan 2001 Festival. After substantial involvement with the RFH’s Handel Festival during which the Orchestra works with Christie, McGegan, Jacobs, and Alessandrini, their final concert boasts a starry cast of soloists for Rattle’s interpretation of Bach’s St John Passion.

Opus Anglicanum consists of 5 unaccompanied men's voices and a BBC reader, using unique sequences of words and music to tell a story or create a meditatation.

The group has appeared on BBC Radio 3, at the Three Choirs Festival, and at Festival de Walonie. It gave the first performance of Gavin Bryars’ A Saxon Riddle. Opus Anglicanum commissions include Judith Bingham The Necklace of Light for its programme Bede in 2000, and Gabriel Jackson’s I am the Rose of Sharon for The Song of Songs in 2001.

Recordings include: Mediaeval Carols, The Seeds of Love - collecting English folk music, Chaucer’s The Canterbury Pilgrims, The Garden, and Figgy Pudding.

Opus Anglicanum is best known for its explorations of the human spirit through meditative sequences of words and music on themes such as The Tree, Mother of Life, and Angels & Archangels.

www.opus-anglicanum.com

An exciting young period instrument quartet devoted to the authentic performance of baroque chamber music. Formed in 1992 the ensemble were prize winners in the 1995 international Early Music Network young artists’ competition, and has toured widely, and broadcast and recorded in the UK and abroad.

‘Beautifully nimble interplay… bright, sparking and fresh.’ Scottish Press and Journal

‘The ensemble playing was immaculate, deft fingerwork and confident musicianship thrilled the audience with a brilliant tapestry of tonal colours.’ Gloucestershire Echo.

“Rachel Podger is a wonder" wrote one critic of her solo Bach recital in Santa Fe, New Mexico. "She engages with this music as if she were Bach's playmate." And it is Bach, the master, from whom Podger has learned most. From school in Germany, to The Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London and onwards into an increasingly successful solo career, Bach has remained the prime focus of Podger's musical attention.

Her performances and recordings of the Partitas and Sonatas for Violin Solo have been internationally acclaimed and her collaboration with the harpsichordist Gary Cooper, on the Sonatas for Violin and Harpsichord, is inspiring. In 2004 Rachel will direct the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment in the Brandenburg Concertos in the USA, and in 2005 she will renew her partnership with Pavlo Besnoziuk and The Academy of Ancient Music, playing the Double Violin Concerto throughout the UK.

2002 saw the release of Rachel Podger's CD of Telemann's 12 Fantasies for Violin Solo (1735), fascinating works of light and shade, which won the prestigious Diapason D'Or. In 2003 her recording of Vivaldi's 12 Concertos, La Stravaganza, with the young Polish orchestra Arte dei Suonatori, won another Diapason D'Or and the 2003 Gramophone Award in the Baroque instrumental category, going on to be one of only six nominees for Record of the Year. Future releases will include Mozart's complete Sonatas for Violin and Keyboard with Gary Cooper and Leclair Violin Concertos with Arte Dei Suonatori. Rachel Podger records exclusively for Channel Classics.

Over the coming season Rachel Podger will give solo recitals in England, Scotland, Switzerland and Belgium, duo recitals with Gary Cooper in England, Austria and Japan and she will visit the USA (Musica Angelica, Los Angeles) and Poland (Arte dei Suonatori, Poznan) as guest director and concerto soloist, playing works by Bach, Vivaldi and Leclair.

Rachel Podger is Professor of Baroque Violin at The Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London. She also teaches at the Innsbruck Summer Academy in Austria.

Trevor Pinnock is recognised as a leading personality in the direction of period-instrument performance and a harpsichord soloist of international reputation.

Having received his education as a chorister at Canterbury Cathedral and a scholar at the Royal College of Music, Trevor Pinnock formed The English Concert in 1973; since then, his lively and stylish interpretations with this ensemble have set new standards in the field of period performance. Based on the premise that their playing should appeal to the general listener as well as to the specialist, this partnership has established a pre-eminence among ensembles performing seventeenth- and eighteenth-century music.

Firmly established as one of the world's foremost harpsichord virtuosi, Trevor Pinnock's solo recordings include Scarlatti sonatas, Handel's Harpsichord Suites and Bach's Goldberg Variations and complete Partitas. As a soloist he has recorded the Bach Harpsichord Concerti and Haydn's Piano concerto playing/directing The English Concert, and the Poulenc Harpsichord concerto with Seiji Ozawa and the Boston Symphony Orchestra.

Trevor Pinnock received a CBE in the Queen's Birthday Honours in 1992

Quatuor Mosaiques is one of the foremost international classical string quartets playing on original instruments - the earliest being Anita Mitterer's 1588 viola by G. Devirchis of Breschia, the youngest being Andrea Bischof's 18th century violin.

Quatuor Mosaiques was formed in 1985 and since then their performances have brought them rave reviews and queues for tickets at the Wigmore Hall, Edinburgh Festival and other important venues throughout the world.

"QuintEssential were magnificent throughout. Crisp articulation and taut rhythmic playing were their hallmark....The current musical appetite for the Baroque seems insatiable, and not surprising if there are young ensembles of this calibre." (Norfolk & Norwich Festival 1997) Eastern Daily News.

QuintEssential are six young musicians with a dazzling array of musical talent. Specialising in early music with an original and unusual repertoire, they ensure that period brass instruments speak to a contemporary audience in an exciting and innovative voice. Listen to this unique ensemble and be transported back to another age through a musical programme with a fresh and vibrant insight into Renaissance brass.

www.iquint.co.uk

Red Priest is one of the major success stories on the international Early Music scene today. Named after the flame-haired priest, Antonio Vivaldi, this extraordinary English ensemble has re-defined the art of baroque music performance, combining the fruits of extensive research with swashbuckling virtuosity, creative re-composition, heart-on-sleeve emotion and compelling stagecraft. The group performs largely from memory, allowing an operatic level of freedom and interaction, and its highly imaginative programmes are drawn from myriad baroque sources to create a kaleidoscopic range of moods and colours.

Formed in 1997, Red Priest now gives over 50 concerts a year in some of the most prestigious festivals and venues in Europe and the USA (see below), together with Radio and TV broadcasts and CD recordings . Its debut disc, Priest on the Run, was released in 1998 to high – and somewhat alarmed – acclaim from the press, and the ensemble has now embarked on a 5-year recording project with Dorian Recordings , USA, commencing with their baroque-horror epic, Nightmare in Venice.

International music critics have described the Red Priest style as 'electrifying', 'sheer daring', 'immaculately forged', 'sonically supercharged', 'brilliant and inspired', 'deliciously twisted'… (see press comments ) - but the group's extravagantly baroque ethos is perhaps best summed up in the words of English musicologist and broadcaster George Pratt:

The Renaissance Singers were founded in 1944 by Michael Howard as the performing arm of the Renaissance Society, and led the revival of interest in Renaissance sacred polyphony-the beginnings of the "early music movement". Their first concert was on 3rd June 1944 in St Marylebone Parish Church. The Singers made many recordings and broadcast regularly-the first broadcast being on Christmas Day 1945. They often sang from hand-written and -copied parts produced by scholars such as Bruno Turner-now one of the choir's vice-presidents.

In 1992, after a gap of some ten years, the Singers were re-formed by Michael Procter as a chamber choir specialising in this repertoire. In recent years their activities have included performances at festivals in Warwick, Bath and Southwark and tours in France, Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands and the Czech Republic. These engagements, and their annual programme of concerts and workshops in central London and Oxford have earned the Renaissance Singers the reputation of being one of the best specialist amateur choirs in the country. 

In 1998, the choir made its first Compact Disc recording - of music by Willaert, Lassus and Manchicourt - released on the ASV/Quicksilver label.

Since 1995, the Renaissance Singers has been directed by Edward Wickham, whose recordings with the Clerks Group have earned international praise. 

The Renaissance Singers is registered as a charity number 1015930. Admission is by audition and the choir rehearses weekly during term time, giving six or so performances each year. In addition, workshops are hosted to encourage amateur singers who are not members of the choir to participate in discovering new repertoire from the Renaissance.

In the programming of concerts, great emphasis is laid on the investigation of newly discovered works from the Renaissance period. The Renaissance Singers have always valued the scholarly input of its members and directors: the current musical director, Edward Wickham, is a musicologist in his own right, and the current programming policy reflects a desire to continue to use the Singers, at least in part, as a means of bringing to light newly discovered repertory. This often leads to the publication of new editions of music.

The six-member ensemble known as Ricordo's breathtaking performance of music by Heinrich Ignaz Franz von Biber (plus a pastorella by Johann Heinrich Schmelzer), in which the members of this dynamite young ensemble sketch with deconstructionist intensity and incredible flashes of virtuosity music which combines innovation and imagination in equal measure, benefits from a stunning HDCD recording that upholds Linn's reputation as a leading audiophile label.

Biber was responsible in part for shifting the focus of violin supremacy from Italy to Austria and Germany. His fame as a virtuoso violinist was, as he wrote himself in a successful petition for knighthood, "well known to great many courts." Born in Bohemia, he spent most of his life in Salzburg where he worked for the Prince-Archbishop. He became a well-published, successful and moderately wealthy musician. He planted a small garden and cultivated wine. He sounds like a musician who would have fit in well today. His music is spontaneous, intense, wide-ranging in mood intended to entertain a discriminating, highly-sophisticated audience.

When they were founded in 1997, Ricordo (violinists Kati Debretzeni and Penelope Spencer, viola da gambist Alison McGillivray, lutenist Matthew Wadsworth, keyboardist Robert Howarth and trombonist Adam Woolf) focused initially on the links between Austria and Italy and the flamboyant instrumental genre known as stylus phantasticus; their concerts have from the beginning featured violin sonatas by Marini, Walther, Schmelzer and Biber.

Transylvania-born Debretzeni supplies liner notes which reflect not only the ensemble's delicious obsession with the extravagant instrumental fantasies on the CD but contribute a new word to the language: Biberesque. The outstanding recording, engulfed in warmth yet clear as a bell, was made at the National Centre for Early Music in York, England, and was produced and engineered by Philip Hobbs.

Laurence Vittes Audiophile Audition : www.audaud.com

Ricordo was formed in 1997 and has concentrated on the 17th Century Stylus Phantasticus. Heinrich Biber is now well recognised and represented on CD, but this collection focuses on his formative years, when he was probably taught by Schmelzer, whose Pastorella theme was shamelessly borrowed by Biber (both versions are included) and maybe by Bertali, who might have written one of the works here (attribution involves detective work and uncertainty).

A cross cultural fusion of musicians from Asian, African and Europe, featuring Sudanese ud player Ahmed Abd Al Rhman and Iranian percussionist Fariborz Kiani together with western musicians playing a mixture of Eastern and Western medieval instruments. They draw on a wide range of extemporisation techniques, eastern oral improvised music, and western written music. Their concerts have proved popular to a wide variety of audiences from jazz and pop to early music festivals.

Kristine Jaunalksne & Ulrike Hofbauer Sopranos
Marie Bournisien Harp

'In a different way' is the translation of the Latvian word 'Savãdi' and this talented trio from Latvia, Germany and France bring a totally new slant to familiar English and Italian repertoire. Duets by Purcell and Monteverdi are given an exciting freshness by the combination of two beautifully matched voices and the silvery and delicate sounds of the baroque harp.

Micaela Schmitz, originally from the U.S., specialises in early keyboard instruments, including harpsichord, fortepiano and clavichord. She recently finished her Doctorate of Musical Arts at the Eastman School of Music, in Rochester, New York. She spent two years studying at the Royal Conservatory in the Hague on a Rotary scholarship. In 2002, she was awarded bursaries to study with Penelope Cave at the Dartington International Summer School, and with Kris Verhelst and Joos van Immerseel at the Vleeshuis in Antwerp. Her teachers have included Arthur Haas, Jacques Ogg, and Bart van Oort, and she has had coaching with Colin Tilney, Kenneth Gilbert, and Bob van Asperen, among others. Besides running a private studio and acting as Associate Lecturer with the Open University, she is the new Editor of the magazine Harpsichord and Fortepiano. Her solo concerts feature commentary and historical readings. Through her company, Early Music in the Vale, she runs workshops and courses on Renaissance vocal music, continuo, and for young people runs workshops on music and dance, including managing and delivering education work for the Chipping Campden Music Festival.

www.earlymusica.org
www.communigate.co.uk/worcs/index.phtml

Established in 1903 at the Seven Saints cathedral in Sofia, capital of Bulgaria, the Seven Saints choir is the best known Bulgaria performers of orthodox music. Its 16 young members specialise in performing orthodox, catholic and protestant music of many style and periods. In the last three years the choir has performed at festivals in Spain, the Czech Republic, Belgium and the Netherlands. They also record and broadcast as well as singing at regular church services. The seven saints after whom the ensemble is named, are the Bulgarian saints Cyril and Methodius and their five disciples. They are visiting Britain for the first time in 2003.

Lucie Skeaping trained at the Royal College of Music and came to Jewish music through her interest in Medieval and Renaissance English music and desire to explore the music of her own roots. She presents BBC Radio 3's twice-weekly series 'The Early Music Show'. She specialises in rediscovering forgotten music.

www.lucieskeaping.co.uk

Sociall Musick specialise in energetic performance, embracing music from the theatres, playhouses and taverns to the royal courts. Their entertaining programmes incorporate lively dance tunes, sonatas, grounds and divisions, with improvisation in the various styles of baroque music being a key element. The group's diverse experience on period instruments is complemented by a keen interest in the history and performance practice of the time with programmes often including interesting historical accounts to communicate a real sense of time and place. '...an exciting virtuosity blended with musicianship and a refreshing repertoire', Andrew Wilson-Dickson, Head of Early Music at the Welsh College of Music and Drama.

Sociall Musick are finalists in the Early Music Network international young artists competition at the York Early Music Festival this year.

Sonnerie, led by the world renowned baroque violinist Monica Huggett, is at the forefront of instrumental baroque performance. Their rapport and inherent musicality never fails to delight and move their audience. They often experiment with new repertoire and bring to life works that might otherwise remain undiscovered. Sonnerie is most famously known as a trio but more recently has expanded to give performances of larger chamber works including Telemann and Vivaldi Concertos, Bach's Brandenburgs and vocal cantatas.

The group has recorded widely. They marked a step into later repertoire with a recording of the Mozart Piano Quartets for Gaudeamus (CD GAU 212). Notable past engagements include Boston Early Music Festival, Gulbenkian Early Music Days in Lisbon, Vantaa Baroque week in Finland, Kothen Bachfest in Germany, Early Music festivals in Glasgow, Aldeburgh, and Birmingham, a visit to St. Petersburg and tours of the USA and Canada. Recent engagements include the Halle Handel Festival, the Ansbach Festival, the Nordic Baroque Festival in Sweden, and the Spitalfields Festival in London. Sonnerie have also performed recently at the Tudely festival, the Snape Proms, the Theatre Royal Bath, in Oxford, and at the Wigmore Hall and St Johns, Smith Square in London.

The Tallis Scholars were founded in 1973 by their director, Peter Phillips. Through their recordings and concert performances, they have established themselves as leading exponents of Renaissance sacred music. Their exploration of the depth and variety of this repertoire has reached a world-wide audience. Peter Phillips has worked with the ensemble to create, through good tuning and blend, the purity and clarity of sound which he feels best serves the Renaissance repertoire, allowing every detail of the musical lines to be heard. It is the resulting beauty of sound for which The Tallis Scholars have become renowned.

"the world's finest mixed-voice choir for Renaissance music" Gramophone - January 2002 (page 49)

Trio Mercurio specialises in the sound-world of the early baroque, performing vocal and instrumental music from the 17th century. The combination of soprano, violin and theorbo offers a rich and flexible range of colours, highly effective for the music of the period: passionate courtly music, contemplative religious works as well as dance music and more popular styles. All prize-winning specialists, the members of the group are united by their desire to make this repertoire accessible to a wider public. Exploring new ways of presentation, including performing from memory, using movement and gesture, and spoken introductions, their concerts are absorbing and colourful.

Winners of the Whittington Prize, the Duncan Award for Performance and finalists in the Bankers' Trust Pyramid Award Competition 1999, Trio Mercurio has also been selected for Yehudi Menuhin's 'Live Music Now!' scheme. All three members were finalists in the 1999 Early Music Network Young Artists' Competition.

Evelyn Tubb and Michael Fields have achieved an empathy with each other, their music and audiences which has found followers around the world. Critics have lauded Evelyn as "one of the few truly outstanding sopranos of her generation" and praised "the absolute affinity between voice and instrument" achieved by the duo. Evelyn rejuvenates recital giving, moving with authentic conviction from troubadour songs to romantic lieder, reminding her audiences that singing is a timeless enchantment.

"Evelyn Tubb's singing was not just moving - it was devastating. To bring this power to music is not a matter of technique alone - only by giving something precious of oneself can a performer so move the audience to tears. Commitment of this order is rare and priceless." The Courier, Tunbridge Wells

"Tubb is a magnificent interpreter - Fields' lute playing accompanied her voice with a precision and harmony rarely found between singer and accompanist." L'Arena, Verona

Mark Tucker, tenor, is an outstanding interpreter of baroque and classical repertoire who has performed and recorded with many leading musicians, including John Eliot Gardiner, Nikolaus Harnoncourt and Rene Jacobs. He has appeared at the Salzburg Festival and at St Mark’s in Venice, singing Monteverdi’s Vespers of 1610 and in Il Combattimento di Tancredi e Clorinda at the Konzerhaus in Vienna.

This season he has also sung The Messiah with the Philadelphia Orchestra, Israel in Egypt with the Deutsche Rundfunk Sinfonieorchester, Bach Cantatas with the Israel Camerata and Bach;s Christmas Oratorio with the Orchestra of St John’s Smith Square.

Bringing fresh energy to the rich legacy of Baroque music that endures in Venice, the Venice Baroque Orchestra – the resident orchestra of the city’s Scuola Grande di San Rocco, one of Venice’s most venerable and respected cultural institutions – has become an important new force in the field of period-instruments performance. The orchestra focuses on Italian music of the 17th and 18th centuries, and the ongoing rediscovery of Italian Baroque opera. Led by the Baroque scholar and performer Andrea Marcon, the orchestra recently released its second recording for Sony Classical, featuring the recording premieres of six late Vivaldi concertos, with Baroque violinist Giuliano Carmignola as soloist.

The orchestra made its Sony Classical debut in 2000 with a critically acclaimed disc that featured Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons and the recording premieres of three other Vivaldi concertos with Carmignola as soloist. The recording recently won Germany’s Echo Prize.

Marcon, Carmignola and the Venice Baroque Orchestra made their first U.S. appearance in August 2002, with a performance at New York’s Mostly Mozart Festival in Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center. Following their New York performance, Carmignola, Marcon and the orchestra will perform at Germany’s Schleswig-Holstein Festival and at Stuttgart’s Internationale Bachakademie. For the 2001-02 season, they are scheduled to perform in Tokyo, Lyon, Florence, Bolzano, Milan, Munich, Venice, Ferrara, Paris, Berlin and other cities throughout Europe.

The founding of the Venice Baroque Orchestra – the only Venetian orchestra specializing in the performance of early music with original instruments – grew out of a 1997 encounter between the Marcon and the Accademia di San Rocco. The connection has an important link with Venetian tradition – the Scuola is home to the paintings of Tintoretto, with a history that echoes with the music of Giovanni Gabrieli, Giovanni Battista Grillo, Giovanni Picchi and Francesco Cavalli.

In the spirit of a true Baroque orchestra, the size and composition of the Venice Baroque Orchestra varies, reflecting the demands of the repertoire, from a small chamber ensemble to the classic orchestra. The orchestra has already collaborated with a number of renowned soloists and presented the first modern performances of a number of forgotten Baroque works. At the Teatro Fenice in 1998, the orchestra gave the first modern performance of Francesco Cavalli’s opera L’Orione, revised and transcribed by Marcon.

Tim Bayley shawm, flute, recorder, crumhorn, bagpipes, hurdy gurdy
William Marshall sackbut, flute, recorder, crumhorn, bagpipes, cittern
James Merryweather shawm, recorder, curtal, crumhorn, bagpipes
Ian Richardson shawm, recorder, flute, curtal, crumhorn, hurdy gurdy
Roger Richardson shawm, flute, recorder, crumhorn
John Peel lute, cittern, curtal, bagpipes

The York Waits - a concert attraction since 1977 - recreate the repertoire, instrumentation and personnel of the salaried city band of York from the late 15th to the early 17th centuries. Drawing music from the most famous composers and publications of renaissance Flanders, Italy, Germany and France, plus Tudor and Jacobean England, they perform on virtually the full and varied range of renaissance wind instruments, from the loud shawm and sackbut band to the captivating but rarely heard flute consort. The Waits are also one of the few ensembles to specialise in the Great Consort of recorders at eight foot pitch. The sound of the York Waits is the sound that would have been most widely heard in squares, processions, balconies, towers and taverns, 400-500 years ago. The band also plays the popular instruments of the renaissance, such as bagpipes, hurdy gurdy, pipe, tabor and cittern, and specialises in popular English and Scottish music of the Elizabethan and Jacobean period.