thu 28/03/2024

Sophie Daneman, Apollo's Fire: Cleveland Baroque Orchestra, Wigmore Hall | reviews, news & interviews

Sophie Daneman, Apollo's Fire: Cleveland Baroque Orchestra, Wigmore Hall

Sophie Daneman, Apollo's Fire: Cleveland Baroque Orchestra, Wigmore Hall

A European debut tour from a North American Baroque orchestra

Sophie Daneman: Vivid vocal colour for mythology's heroines

Visits from the pick of Europe’s Baroque orchestras – Concerto Köln, Europa Galante, Le Concert d’Astree, Les Musiciens du Louvre – are a blissfully frequent occurrence in London, an alternative and supplement to our own ever-growing roster of period talent. A tour by a North American ensemble is, by contrast, something of a rarity, and I can’t have been alone last night in hearing the much-lauded Apollo's Fire (otherwise known as the Cleveland Baroque Orchestra) live for the first time. “Hearing”, however, rather fails to encompass the visually charged, minutely stage-managed musical theatrics on display from Jeannette Sorrell and her irrepressible team of musicians.

Visits from the pick of Europe’s Baroque orchestras – Concerto Köln, Europa Galante, Le Concert d’Astree, Les Musiciens du Louvre – are a blissfully frequent occurrence in London, an alternative and supplement to our own ever-growing roster of period talent. A tour by a North American ensemble is, by contrast, something of a rarity, and I can’t have been alone last night in hearing the much-lauded Apollo's Fire (otherwise known as the Cleveland Baroque Orchestra) live for the first time. “Hearing”, however, rather fails to encompass the visually charged, minutely stage-managed musical theatrics on display from Jeannette Sorrell and her irrepressible team of musicians.

Every phrase a Baroque curlicue, dipped in gold and then embellished still further

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