March ’25 Digest
Spring is in the air, and here's a rundown of our top posts from the past month...
This month we caught up with five fascinating musicians in our weekly features. Martin Feinstein spoke ahead of his Bach Weekend at Kings Place, Julian Perkins shared news about his new recording - John Weldon’s The Judgment of Paris - and Sarah Small told us about her upcoming concert tour of Britain… by bicycle!
For Early Music Day (21 Mar), we met salterio player Franziska Fleischanderl - the 2025 ambassador for European Early Music Network (REMA), and Steven Devine shared his passion for keyboard instruments and early music.
Our two new playlists explored early music in Latin America, and celebrated International Day of Happiness with uplifting tracks from Continuo-funded albums.
Find more on the Continuo Connect website. To stay up to date with the latest in the world of early music, be sure to subscribe to our main fortnightly newsletter. Enjoy the read!
Features
Bach’s Magnificent Legacy
A musical exploration of Bach’s secular and devotional masterpieces
‘For nearly two decades Bach Weekend has been a musical highlight of the year, not just for me but for all of the musicians involved alongside me. And this year’s programmes contain music that is very close to my heart. When we play this wonderful repertoire, we exist in a strange world where we are simultaneously performing music and experiencing it too. Being swept away by the beauty of these works can distract us from our principal duty: To transmit the glory of the music to the audience.’ Martin Feinstein
The (Mis)Judgment of Paris
Exploring John Weldon’s setting of ‘The Judgment of Paris’
‘In 2013, I had the good fortune to record Daniel Purcell’s setting of William Congreve’s The Judgment of Paris. Dating from 1701, his operatic masque was written for the Musick Prize. Sponsored by a group of wealthy aristocrats, this was a competition to compose and perform a setting of Congreve’s libretto, and was probably intended to rekindle the fire of English opera following Henry Purcell’s early death in 1695. Nobody was to know then that a young Handel would soon erupt onto London’s opera scene with Rinaldo, so the question was: Who would be the next English Orpheus?’ Julian Perkins
Sarah Small: Viola da gamba pedalare
Gearing up for 'Good Again?' – a cycling concert tour
There is often a price to pay for demonstrating convictions. When Sarah Small tours Britain this summer with her viol, she will be paying in discomfort, but will be paid back by visiting venues that even the most intrepid wandering minstrels rarely reach. She will be cycling to every one, from Northamptonshire to Stornoway, and from Unst at the top of Shetland down via Cumbria and Wales to Southampton in Hampshire. The whole 2,500-mile journey is scheduled to start on 7 May, and to take 69 days.
A unique sound from the past: Franziska Fleischanderl and the Italian salterio
Every year the European Early Music Network (REMA) celebrates Early Music Day (21 Mar) and appoints an Ambassador for the occasion. The idea is not just to appoint someone famous, but to choose a musician who demonstrates the vitality and breadth of the early music movement. This year it is the Austrian musician and researcher Franziska Fleischanderl, who is making an impressive career playing an instrument that most people will barely have heard of and the music world has all but forgotten: the 18th-century Italian salterio.
Steven Devine: A Man of Many Keyboards
There are few keyboard players who have a more comprehensive knowledge of the instruments’ history than Steven Devine. He spent 29 years involved with the collection built up by Richard and Katrina Burnett at Finchcocks in Goudhurst, Kent, the Georgian house they turned into the most chamber of chamber music museums. He first visited when he was twelve and only left, “in 2015 because it was becoming obvious that the future was unsure”. Finchcocks closed in 2016 but the Burnetts kept 15 instruments and these are now housed nearby at Waterdown House in Tunbridge Wells, where they can be used for training, research and small concerts.
Playlists
Early Music from Latin America
Explore the rich array of early music from Latin America written between the 16th and 18th centuries! We start with two anonymous tracks, followed by a chronological survey work by composers who lived and worked in Brazil, Mexico, Peru, Bolivia and Argentina. Some of them were born there, whilst others made the journey across the Atlantic to the New World from Spain, Portugal and Italy.
International Day of Happiness
We have put together a playlist of some of the most uplifting tracks from a wide range of Continuo-funded albums, as well as other recordings by Continuo grantee ensembles. We hope this selection lifts your spirits through some stunningly beautiful music, and provides inspiration through the boundless creativity displayed in each and every one of these recordings!
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