Summer days, Baroque nights

Is there anything more sublime than listening to Baroque in the summer? The soothing, languid pace of the music is a perfect match for the season. And when the performances are by some of Europe's best early music ensembles, in Prague's most captivating venues, the combination is enchanting.

For the 11th season of Collegium Marianum's Summer Festivities of Early Music, the organizers have chosen "The Rise of Virtuosity" as a theme. In modern musical parlance, the term "virtuosity" is used to describe exceptional technical skill. But in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries, it had a much broader connotation.

"It was about more than technical ability," says festival spokeswoman Žaneta Nováčková. "It was about musical ability as well. To show how well they could play, musicians of that period very often improvised, filling out the music with ornamentation and diminutions. The closest modern comparison is probably jazz."

Improvising was even harder on early instruments, which had less range and flexibility than their modern counterparts. Some of those instruments disappeared entirely in the 18th and 19th centuries. The festival will showcase a number of them, along with music ranging from Bohemia to Spain, Italy, France and Germany.

As always, the festival opens and closes with comparatively large productions, this year featuring Prague's premier early music groups. The Collegium Marianum ensemble has opening concert honors at the Rudolfinum (July 22), led by artistic director and flautist extraordinaire Jana Semerádová. They will be joined by Russian violinist Martina Kataržnova and Italian Baroque bassoon specialist Sergio Azzolini for a program of works by Czech composer František Jiránek, who was heavily influenced by Vivaldi. To close the connection, the program concludes with a concerto by Vivaldi for flute and bassoon.

The final concert at the Hybernia Theater (Aug. 8) offers a Baroque ballet program, with music provided by Václav Luks' outstanding Collegium 1704 ensemble. Presented last year at France's famed Festival de Sablé, the performance by the La Compagnie L'Eventail dance troupe, led by noted Baroque choreographer Marie-Genevieve Massé, features works from France, Germany, Italy and England.

The clavichord, a forerunner of the piano that fell out of use in the 19th century, will be the centerpiece of a program at stately Břevnov Monastery (July 24). Miklós Spányi, a Hungarian keyboard master who now works in Finland, is also a devotee of the works of Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (one of J.S.'s sons). Spányi will give a solo performance of two of Bach's works on the clavichord, along with sonatas by Georg Benda and Friedrich Wilhelm Rust.

Viola da gamba specialist Fahmi Alqhai (shown on the cover) has a Syrian father and Palestinian mother, but he was born and studied in Spain. He will be playing a program of 16th- and 17th-century Spanish music with his ensemble, Accademia del Piacere, at fabulous Troja Chateau (July 26). The venue alone is worth a visit; go early and tour the grounds.

Germany's Harmonie Universelle ensemble makes its debut appearance in the festival this year with a program of "Violin Art in 17th-century Bohemia," led by artistic director and violinist Florian Deuter (July 28). The program features composers who were instrumental in developing new styles for violin-playing, like Heinrich Ignaz Franz von Biber. And the performance will give concertgoers an opportunity to see a seldom-used venue, the Dominican convent on Jilská street in Old Town.

The cornetto, which looks like a curved wooden flute, is another instrument that fell out of use in the 19th century. American musician Bruce Dickey, who now lives in Italy, has devoted much of his career to its revival. He will be joined by Dutch viola da gamba player Paulina van Laarhoven and her La Violetta ensemble for an evening of madrigals and other music that showcases period instruments at St. Agnes' Convent in Old Town (July 29).

There are two vocal programs this year. The first is an homage to Italian divas of the 17th century, with Polish soprano Maria Skiba singing works written expressly for the female voice, some by female composers - a rarity at that time. She will be accompanied by German harpsichord player Gerd Amelung at Martinic Palace (Aug. 2). A few nights later, Belgian tenor Jan van Elsacker will explore treatments of the myth of Orpheus with the Il Trionfo del Tempo ensemble at Břevnov Monastery (Aug. 5).

And in between those two concerts, you can take a trip to the 18th-century Potsdam court of King Frederick the Great, who enjoyed having composers like Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach and Johann Joachim Quantz around. Their works and more will be performed by flautist Jana Semerádová and harpsichordist Barbara Maria Willi at the sylvan Hvězda Summer Pavilion (Aug. 4).

"We're very proud to be offering musicians of this caliber," Nováčková says of this year's lineup. Mix in exotic instruments and resplendent historic venues, and you have a recipe for some very sweet summer evenings.

Frank Kuznik can be reached at
fkuznik@praguepost.com