PERFORMERS

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Dorothee Mields, soprano

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Pacific Baroque Festival Ensemble

Marc Destrubé, violin and artistic director

Kathryn Wiebe, violin

Paul Wicke, viola

Natalie Mackie, viola da gamba

Marco Vitale, harpsichord and organ

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PROGRAMME INFORMATION

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The painting “Allegory of Friendship” (1674), by the Dutch artist Johannes Voorhout, not only offers a fascinating insight into the cultural life of the 17th century, but also serves as a musical testimony to a remarkable artistic community. In an ornately designed salon, we see four important musical personalities of the era making music together: the famous composer Dietrich Buxtehude, the poet and musician Johann Theile, the gambist and composer Johann Adam Reinken, and another musician whose identity remains controversial but could possibly be Philipp Heinrich Erlebach. At the centre of this friendly scene, music represents a unifying element as we hope it will be at this concert.

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By performing works by Erlebach, Buxtehude, Theile and Reinken, this program exemplifies the connection between friendship and music as depicted in the painting. Through the presence of these composers, Hamburg established itself as a centre of music while the Thirty Year’s War raged throughout Europe. A free city sheltered from war, Hamburg became a refuge for many musicians and through its relative wealth supported a vibrant musical scene, ‘Not the least ornament and embellishment of this city’ as Hamburg town council described the status of music in the city’s public life in the year 1615. 

 

This program is a musical journey into the world of baroque friendship and artistic collaboration. By listening to works by these composers, we enter into the dialog that these musicians had with one another - a dialog about art, music and the common pursuit of beauty. In this spirit, the canon "Ecce Quam Bonum” which begins the program, brings alive the spirit of friendship that was once present in Voorhout's salon.

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