27th October, 6pm, Lithuanian Embassy in London

Limited Number of Free Tickets ( Registration Required) https://tinyurl.com/yt352vad

This recital celebrates the Polish-Lithuanian violinist and composer Felix Yaniewicz (1762-1848) and his long musical partnership with the soprano Angelica Catalani (1780-1849).  

Drawing on original concert programmes and reviews, it includes songs and keyboard pieces by Yaniewicz, together with arias illustrating the progression of Mme Catalani’s performing career.  

Running through the programme is the theme of variations and ornamentation that were central to the musical fashion of the day.  Yaniewicz’s compositional dexterity can be seen working a Handel aria into a violin concerto, fashioning decorative rondos out of popular tunes, and writing elaborate keyboard variations on Polish folk dances and even an Indian war whoop. 

The evening will begin with a welcome from the Ambassador and a brief talk on Yaniewicz’s life and legacy.  There will be a reception after the concert at around 7.30pm

Kate Semmens (soprano) is in demand as a soloist specialising in historical performance. She has sung operatic roles from Monteverdi to Mozart, and regularly performs with Steven Devine in song recitals with harpsichord and pianoforte. Their recordings together include two CDs of seventeenth-century English song, and Music from Anna Magdalena Bach’s notebook.

Steven Devine (piano) is Principal Keyboard Player with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment and performs regularly with early music ensembles all over Europe. He has recorded over 30 ensemble discs, and 6 solo discs including widely acclaimed recordings of Bach’s Well-Tempered Clavier and Goldberg Variations. As a conductor, he has directed the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment at the Proms, the Mozart Festival Orchestra, New Chamber Opera, and the English Haydn Festival

Tabitha Appel (violin) has led the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain and the Oxford County Baroque Ensemble, and is a winner of the Oxford Philharmonic’s Young Artist Platform and Junior Concerto competition.  She is currently studying in Cambridge. 

Limited Number of Free Tickets (Registration Required), register here: https://tinyurl.com/yt352vad