Baroque, Meet Folk.

July 27, 2012 12:31 PM

Exploring the intersection of baroque, renaissance, and folk music, the international ensemble L'Arpeggiata's unique repertoire ranges from tarantellas to sophisticated baroque pieces. Led by the Austrian lutenist and harpist Christina Pluhar, l'Arpeggiata focuses on 17th century Italian, French, and Neapolitan repertoire. Here is L'Arpeggiata setting fire to a chiacona with famed Baroque violinist, Veronika Skuplik. L'Arpeggiata improvising on a tarantella theme in a Versailles courtyard.. If you like a more Baroque flavor, here is the first part of a concert with the incomparable countertenor Philippe Jaroussky in Metz. An impassioned blend of 17th century Italian lyricism with traditional Italian/Corsican music, with the group Barbara Furtuna et l'ensemble. Philippe Jaroussky performs an 17th century Italian song with l'Arpeggiata.
posted by Atrahasis (11 comments total)

Oh, metafilter. Just when your petty jealousies, sense of entitlement, swollen egos and mob mentality make me swear you off forever, Atrahasis has to go and do something like this. And so you drag me back to the Blue for one more round. Maybe our seemingly-doomed relationship can have one more chance. Who knows? This time maybe things will be different.

Seriously, though, great work. I've been listening, and I can already tell this will be a new a joyous favorite. I haven't been this excited about music since metafilter introduced me to Stan Rogers. Well done, Atrahasis, Well Done!
posted by seasparrow at 1:29 PM on July 27, 2012 [2 favorites]

How do exactly do you pronounce that? OK, thanks.
posted by seasparrow at 1:33 PM on July 27, 2012

Thanks, seasparrow! I have loved this group ever since I was introduced to it in a Cambridge music shop by a rather posh young Englishman who said: "Oh, you like the pop music musical structure, sort of a simple dah-di-dah kind of thing. Well. Here are a few recordings."

And behold! A musical love affair commenced.
posted by Atrahasis at 1:48 PM on July 27, 2012 [2 favorites]

I love baroque and I love folk and I'm loving this. Great post!
posted by immlass at 1:59 PM on July 27, 2012

Great post, thanks! Listening right now and really excited to go through all the links.
posted by Athanasius at 3:50 PM on July 27, 2012

This is wonderful! Thanks for posting this.
posted by homunculus at 4:20 PM on July 27, 2012

The critics’ pick of the best non-Olympic events: "Other Proms highlights will take place at the t (whose acoustic is infinitely better than the Albert Hall's): theorbo-queen Christina Pluhar will lead her L'Arpeggiata ensemble in a concert of Baroque music composed in the Tarantella mode (30 July)"
posted by homunculus at 4:34 PM on July 27, 2012

Oh, and here is another Ciaconna that did not make it into the FPP; also with the Veronika Skuplik and a bad-ass cellist.
posted by Atrahasis at 4:55 PM on July 27, 2012 [1 favorite]

Pluhar plays Kapsberger: Toccata l'Arpeggiata. Part of a series, Icônes du Seicento, which includes more Jaroussky.
posted by homunculus at 5:01 PM on July 27, 2012 [1 favorite]

Not all that directly related, but my favorite piece of early music is Montserrat Figueras singing "La Mare de Déu", an old Catalonian lullaby. It was on the soundtrack of a movie I worked on, and I instantly fell in love with it, it's fantastically haunting.
posted by Joakim Ziegler at 11:46 PM on July 27, 2012

Yes, thank you, thank you, Atrahasis. Exquisite beauty.
posted by Surfurrus at 10:35 AM on July 28, 2012