Always under the aegis of the General Council of the Alpes-Maritimes and benefiting from the support of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur Region and the City of Nice, the new season of Vieux-Nice Baroque en Musique, which will celebrate its 15th edition, will be shared, following its original directive line, between works from the repertoire and rarer pieces.
To inaugurate the season, the ensemble will return to the Saint-François-de-Paule church with the complete collection of the concerto grosso opus 7 by the composer and virtuoso violinist Pietro-Antonio Locatelli, a work recorded by the Ensemble just twenty years ago. The season will continue with a much rarer work by a little-known composer, Georg Muffat. It will be the Armonico Tributo, one of the most important productions of the composer and organist born in Savoy. In December, Italian music will again take center stage with a new collection: the concerto grosso opus 2 by Francesco Geminiani, strongly influenced by his master Arcangelo Corelli.
To start 2010, chamber music will be featured at the Sainte-Croix chapel with a more well-known composer, Josef Haydn, but in rarely played works: the trios for baryton with string, viola, and cello. It will be an opportunity to discover this practically vanished instrument, the model of which that will be played during the concert was developed in 2008 by the luthier Pierre Jaquier with the help of its performer: Etienne Mangot. In February, an orchestral program will feature Vivaldi, Torelli, and Brescianello with notably bassoon concertos, performed by bassoonist François de Rudder.
The month of March will see the second chamber music program of this season with the appearance of the great violist Jean-Louis Charbonnier in a program of sonatas by Dietrich Buxtehude, an immense German composer whose influence on Bach’s work was decisive. Finally, to close this 15th season, a lyrical concert with countertenor Pascal Bertin who will perform a sacred music program composed of cantatas and excerpts from oratorios by Bach and Scarlatti for the greatest pleasure of voice enthusiasts.
Proof of the dynamism of this ensemble, let us highlight for this year the existence of a partnership with the University of Nice to open the dress rehearsals to students and high schoolers, and a one-time cooperation with the IUT Nice Côte d’Azur within the framework of a supervised project: three students develop their project around one of the rehearsals with the task of organizing the various aspects of the evening (communication, ticketing, entertainment…). Finally, for completeness, let’s mention that the EBN toured this summer in festivals (Vendée, Abbaye de Lessay, La Chaise-Dieu…) with the show “La Giuditta,” a true trademark of the Ensemble that had a huge success (https://www.nicepremium.fr/article/la-giuditta-par-l-ensemble-baroque-de-nice-un-oratorio-pour-le-careme.2968.html). A new tour could also take place in 2010.
2009/2010 Season Calendar:
Friday, October 23 at 8:30 PM & Sunday, October 25 at 4:30 PM: Saint-François-de-Paule Church
P-A. Locatelli
Complete concerto grosso opus 7
Friday, November 13 at 8:30 PM & Sunday, November 15 at 4:30 PM: Saint-Martin – Saint-Augustin Church
G. Muffat
Complete Armonico Tributo
Friday, December 4 at 8:30 PM & Sunday, December 6 at 4:30 PM: Saint-Martin – Saint-Augustin Church
F. Geminiani
Complete concerto grosso opus 2
Friday, January 15 at 8:30 PM & Sunday, January 17 at 4:30 PM: Sainte-Croix Chapel
J. Haydn
Trios with baryton with string
Etienne Mangot, baryton
Gilbert Bezzina, viola
Frédéric Audibert, cello
Friday, February 5 at 8:30 PM & Sunday, February 7 at 4:30 PM: Saint-Martin – Saint-Augustin Church
A. Vivaldi – G. A. Brescianello – G. Torelli
Soloist: François de Rudder, bassoon
Friday, March 5 at 8:30 PM & Sunday, March 7 at 4:30 PM: Chapel of the Holy Shroud
D. Buxtehude
Sonatas for viola da gamba, violin, and continuo
Jean-Louis Charbonnier, viola da gamba
Gilbert Bezzina, violin
Vera Elliott, harpsichord
Friday, April 16 at 8:30 PM & Sunday, April 18 at 4:30 PM: Saint-François-de-Paule Church
J.S. Bach – A. Scarlatti – D. Scarlatti
Soloist: Pascal Bertin, countertenor
Baroque Ensemble of Nice
25, rue de la Croix 06300 Nice – France
T. 00 33 (0)4 93 80 08 74; F. 00 33 (0)4 93 80 21 52
Email: ebn.cg@free.fr
Website: https://www.ensemblebaroquedenice.org/
