Among Friends

Here is a photo from the recent chamber concerts of Ignoti Dei in Venice at the Fondazione Querini Stampalia. On the right is one of our wonderful gambists (and sometimes violonists) Marcy Boelli with her husband Michiel. They have recently moved from Vienna/Venice to Newport Rhode Island, and I am very happy to have them stateside (not least because Marcy can play more often with AOT). Michiel himself is an impresive violinist, but an even more captian of several ships, including their baby the Hollander (got to love that name!). Then a wonderful Rossini tenor Daisuke who live and works in Venice and who some of you will remember from the workshop of "David et Jonathas" in 2005. Then violinist Daniel Boothe, our good Venetian friend and theater-lady Teresa Turrachio, and myself. It was a wonderful concert of German music. Dan played a fantastically beautiful Smeltzer sonata, Marcy played some solo Abel, I played a wonderfully dramatic Froberger suite (a lament on himself...marked "to be played with discretion...far more discretion then my captors showed to me"), and we ended with a Buxtehude trio sonata that is too crazy to portray here. The houses were packed and people seemed to love this rarely played but incredibly vibrant music. Next on Ignoti Dei's schedule is a concert of Spanish violin sonatas in Barcelona, and then Jesuit music in Florence. We hope to do two concerts in Baltimore/Washington next year.