Ritratti: Portraits of Three 17th Century Female Composers
Portraits of three 17th Century female Italian composers performed in stunning candle light
In 1524, Gian Giorgio Trissino published I Ritratti: a collection of word portraits of women he considered to be paragons of intellect and virtue, but which focused above all on their physical beauty.
Adopting Trissino’s title but shedding his qualifiers, Musica Antica Rotherhithe present portraits of three 17th Century female Italian composers – Isabella Leonarda, Antonia Bembo and Barbara Strozzi – through their incredible music, alongside extracts from the operas of Strozzi and Bembo’s teacher, Francesco Cavalli.
This concert has been generously supported by the Continuo Foundation.
Programme
- Francesco Cavalli: Mia speranza from Elena
- Antonia Bembo: Sonetto al Rè: Gran Re che tutto a tutti
- Isabella Leonarda: Sonata Quinta
- Barbara Strozzi: L’Eraclito Amoroso
- Isabella Leonarda: Sonata Terza
- Francesco Cavalli: Ecco idolo mio from Elena
