(Photo: Amir Kaufmann) What was originally billed as a grand homecoming concert—part of the Innsbruck Festival’s 50th-anniversary celebrations, which, much like with former music director Alessandro De Marchi, was set to mark the return of René Jacobs alongside his loyal musical partners and the Freiburger Barockorchester—ultimately met with a shift that brought a note of poignant regret to his many {…}
(Photo: Anna Kolata) History is not entirely devoid of female composers. Similarly, history books readily note reigning monarchs who successfully wielded the musical quill. Yet, the convergence of the two remains an exceedingly rare phenomenon. Under the baton of Attilio Cremonesi, the Handel Festival Orchestra Halle brought this rarity to vibrant life. Their performance of Maria Antonia Walpurgis’s 1760 opera {…}
(Photo: Felix Grünscloß) Although “Siroe, re di Persia” managed a good run of 17 performances, following its premiere at the King’s Theatre, London in 1728, Händel never revived the work. Apart from a couple of productions in Brunswick in 1730 and 1735, it lay dormant until the 20th century, has never managed to establish itself in the repertoire, and remains {…}
