Ensemble Hesperi

Mary-Jannet Leith (recorders)

Magdalena Loth-Hill (Baroque violin)

Florence Petit (Baroque cello)

Thomas Allery (harpsichord)

 

James Oswald (1710-1769)

Airs for Spring: “The Anemone”

Airs for Summer: “The Honeysuckle”

Georg Philipp Telemann (1721-1767)

Six Quatuors, Concerto II, TWV 43: D1

Allegro – Affetuoso - Vivace

Francesco Geminiani (1687-1762)

Treatise of Good Taste in the Art of Musick (1749)

Trio in D Major on “Bush aboon Traquair”

George Frederick Handel (1685-1759)

Trio Sonata HWV 386b in B Minor

Andante – Allegro – Largo - Allegro

James Oswald (1710-1769)

A Curious Collection of Scots Tunes (1740): A Sonata on Scots Tunes

O Mother what shall I do? – Ettrick Banks – She rose and let me in

Cromlit’s lilt – Polwart on the Green

Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)

Trio Sonata after BWV 525

[Allegro Moderato] – Adagio - Allegro

Robert Bremner (1713-1789)

Harpsichord or Spinnet Miscellany (1760)

Variations on “Maggie Lauder”

Johann Gottlieb Graun (1703-1771)

Trio Sonata in D major, WV Cv: XV:99

Largo – Allegro

James Oswald (1710-1769)

A Curious Collection of Scots Tunes

Alloway House

Thomas Erskine, Earl of Kellie (1732-1781)

Six Sonatas for Two Violins and Bass (1769): Sonata IV

Andante – Minuetto

Georg Philipp Telemann

Triosonate g-moll, TWV 42: g9

Soave mà non adagio – Vivace – Largo – Allegro

 

Please note that this is a lunchtime concert, starting at 1pm.

Join Ensemble Hesperi for a thrilling musical journey through eighteenth-century Britain and Europe. Telemann, one of the most prolific composers of all time, had a much-envied garden attached to his Hamburg residence, on which he lavished a great deal of attention. Always searching for new and unusual specimens, he wrote on many occasions to his good friend Handel in London, asking for plants from England. “I am insatiable”, he wrote, “where hyacinths and tulips are concerned, greedy for ranunculi, and especially for anemones.” The Scottish composer, James Oswald, was also no stranger to the mid-eighteenth-century craze for plants, publishing two collections of “Airs for the Seasons”, each named after a flower or plant. His illustrious patron, Frederick Louis, Prince of Wales, and his wife, Augusta, had an impressive collection of exotic plants at Kew Palace, now Kew Gardens. Our programme presents a cornucopia of music by Telemann and his horticultural correspondents as well as music by J.S. Bach, who made Telemann godfather to several of his children. By Telemann, a sonata from his Paris Quartets, a folky trio sonata, and two virtuosic solo fantasias, alongside trio sonatas by Handel and Bach, all framed by charming airs by Oswald depicting the plants Telemann loved best. 

Ensemble Hesperi is a dynamic and innovative London-based period ensemble, with a passion for showcasing Early Music through intelligent, distinctive programming. Since 2019, the ensemble has gained a strong reputation for championing rarely-heard music, bringing forgotten stories to life through original historical research and joyful collaborations with guest artists, dancers, and actors.

In 2020, Hesperi was selected as Britten Pears Young Artists on the Chamber Music Residence scheme, and in November 2020 won first prize at the London International Festival of Early Music Young Ensemble Competition. In September 2021, the ensemble was delighted to win third prize at the prestigious International Van Wassenaer Competition in Utrecht, and released its debut album with EM Records, “Full of the Highland Humours”, later that year. In December, the ensemble was selected as City Music Foundation artists 2021. Hesperi has appeared regularly on Radio 3’s Early Music Show, recorded in studio for Classic FM, and has performed at leading festivals and venues across the United Kingdom and Europe. The ensemble received a second grant from the Continuo Foundation for its 2022/2023 project, “Then I play’d upon the Harpsichord”, an immersive concert exploring the musical tastes and talents of Queen Charlotte, consort to George III.

Ensemble Hesperi strongly believes that Early Music should be enjoyed by all, and always seeks to communicate the joy of live music to new audiences through an energetic stage presence. Hesperi’s members have extensive experience in education and outreach, performing regularly for those who have no opportunity to hear live classical music.