Italianisme! Italian Fashion Week, c. 1700 — A Concert by Les grâces March 27, 2013

Around the turn of the eighteenth century, northern Europe went wild for anything that sounded Italian. Contemporaries complained that Italian-inspired genres like the sonata or cantata were literally “springing up under one’s feet.” This program explores the flavors of musical italianisme offered around 1700 in Paris, Amsterdam, and London. From imported works by Italians like Alessandro Scarlatti or Antonio Cesti, to cantatas by German-born composers such as Handel written while in Italy, Italian fashions captivated the European imagination.

Les grâces is comprised of Jennifer Paulino, soprano; Rebekah Ahrendt, viola da gamba; and Jonathan Rhodes Lee, harpsichord, with special guest Karen Burciaga, violin.

This concert has been made possible by the Granoff Music Fund.