Hail, Bright Cecilia!

ABOUT

Collegium Marianum concert series BAROQUE SOIRÉES

The opening concert of the 26th season of Baroque Soirées in the beautiful Lobkowicz Palace at Prague Castle will feature the works of two giants of English music – Henry Purcell and George Frideric Handel. Henry Purcell, known as “Orpheus Britannicus,” was an extraordinarily prolific composer, with a significant part of his work consisting of music for plays and five famous semi-operas, which include not only singing, but also dancing and spoken dialogue. The best known of these is an adaptation of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream – The Fairy Queen, from which we have selected several arias and dances for this concert. As the title of the concert suggests, parts of the ode in honor of St. Cecilia, the patron saint of musicians, will be performed. Georg Friedrich Händel can rightly be considered an example of an international artist who, influenced by the works of French, Italian, and German composers, made a crucial contribution to the development of opera in England. The program will feature several of his opera arias, full of intense emotions and feelings. The masterful compositions of Henry Purcell and George Frideric Handel will be performed by Scottish-Maltese soprano Carine Tinney and tenor Vojtěch Semerád, accompanied by the Collegium Marianum ensemble conducted by Jana Semerádová.

Musicians

Carine TINNEY | soprano
Vojtěch SEMERÁD | tenor
 
COLLEGIUM MARIANUM
Jana Semerádová | artistic director, flauto traverso
Lenka Torgersen | concert master
Magdalena Malá | Baroque violin
Andreas Torgersen | Baroque viola
Julie Braná | flauto traverso
Hana Fleková | Baroque cello
Jan Krejča | theorbo
Tilman Schmidt | double bass
Pablo Kornfeld | harpsichord


 
La Concordia delle Nazioni
or music united nations

The program of the 26th edition of Baroque Soirées will present an inspiring dramaturgy presenting the intertwining of national styles in the context of important musical centers and composers such as George Frideric Handel, Johann Sebastian Bach, Georg Philipp Telemann, François Couperin, Francesco Geminiani, and Johann Adolf Hasse, who influenced entire generations of composers and musicians.