Aisling Kenny, soprano | Siobhán Armstrong, Baroque triple harp

The 15th-century philosopher Marsilio Ficino described music as ‘a decoration of silence.’ In this concert, voice and harp intertwine in the beautiful acoustic of St Joseph’s Church to explore the theme of crossroads in several guises in music by English and Italian composers of the 17th-century. The music reveals crossroads between the contrapuntal textures of the renaissance and monodic songs of the early baroque, the blurring of boundaries between sacred and secular music, and the close relationship between dramatic cantatas and opera.  

We are taken to the crossroads where lovers might first meet, sorrowfully part, or perhaps live happily ever after. The programme explores music by well-known masters such as Henry Purcell and Claudio Monteverdi alongside increasingly well-known composers (and deservedly so), Barbara Strozzi and Francesca Caccini, as well as lesser known gems including a heart-rending music attributed to Queen Anne Boleyn in captivity.