The young ensemble l’Amitié Musicienne brings rarely performed music for the viola da gamba to the Commissarissenzaal of Het Nutshuis on 10 October, playing from 15:00 as part of the Haags Barokcafé series run by concert organisation Musica Antica.
The mirror programme, Tyd en Konst, sets out to show how an instrument that once held all of Europe in its grip really sounded.
The group is made up of Nino Bos and Amélie Rebeix on viola da gamba, with Nicolaas Stam on continuo and voice.
The composers on the programme
Musica Antica says the gamba is known mainly from Bach’s passion music, “but there is a treasure of works that go beyond accompaniment or atmosphere”.
In the hands of composers such as Johannes Schenck and August Kühnel, the organisers say, it became far more than an accompanying instrument: a voice with a character of its own, full of virtuosity, expression and freedom.
Schenck wrote his sonatas in Amsterdam around 1690, and his music is described as revolutionary, technically masterful and full of fireworks, giving the player every chance to test the limits of the instrument.
Kühnel, too, refused to be held back by convention, and grinding dissonances, sharp contrasts and unexpected turns give his music a pronounced dramatic freedom.
Musica Antica promises an afternoon of virtuosity, surprising tone colours and musical discoveries, with the ensemble’s fresh outlook and curiosity about forgotten repertoire matching the spirit of discovery in the music itself.
Tickets for the concert are sold through Musica Antica’s online shop.
