Winter chamber music. Dolcissimi sospiri. DUO POETICO
Gunta Smirnova (soprano)
Rafael Ter-Sahakjan (baroque violin)
Lorenzo Abate (theorbo)
Programme: H. Purcell, M. P. de Montéclair, H. I. Biber, A. Grandi, G. Bononcini, C. Monteverdi, G. F. Händel, A. Vivaldi
The Latvian soprano Gunta Smirnova is highly praised for her radiant voice and deeply moving interpretations, mainly in the field of Baroque music. She has already appeared as a soloist on concert stages like the Concertgebouw Amsterdam, the Cologne Philharmonic, the Stadtcasino Basel, the Zurich Opera House, the Teatro Olimpico Vicenza and the Gran Teatre del Liceu in Barcelona. As a sought-after specialist for early music, Gunta Smirnova regularly performs with renowned orchestras such as La Cetra Basel under the direction of Andrea Marcon, the Basel Chamber Orchestra, the B'Rock Orchestrawith René Jacobs, the Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich under Ton Koopman and the Gewandhaus Orchestra Leipzigunder Andreas Reize.
Rafael Ter-Sahakjan is a versatile musician who studied violin at the Music Academies of Lausanne and Lucerne in Switzerland. He has performed at music festivals in Switzerland, Italy and Germany and has given several masterclasses. He regularly performs with various Swiss orchestras and chamber music ensembles and has given many premieres of new works.
The duo of Gunta Smirnova and Rafael Ter-Sahakian will be joined on this programme by Lorenzo Abate, one of the most sought-after Italian theorists of the new generation, who has worked with such early music specialists as Andrea Marcon, Gabriel Garrido, Morris Steger, the ensembles Voces Suaves, La Chimera, and the orchestras La Cetra, AKAMUS and the Venice Baroque Orchestra.
In the concert "Dolcissimi sospiri" or "Gentle Sighs", the story of a loving soul will take the audience through the language of sound art from different styles and countries, showing the French, English and Italian Baroque, where sacred and secular music collide. The programme will be permeated by moving lamentations, wistful dissonances and triumphant coloratura strings.
