BREMF – ‘To the Northern Star’ – Flauguissimo
Perfect for a sultry Sunday afternoon, Swedish Baroque music introduced by Johan Löfving on the theorbo & baroque guitar accompanying the soft, peripatetic flute of Yu-Wei Hu that could flutter so gently in trilling cadences to silence. It was the hottest Sunday of the summer so we could have drifted into a reverie but for the animated viola da gamba of Henrik Persson which gave the stately dances more pep and Magdalena Loth-Hill’s violin that provided another layer of texture and interest. Add the clear, powerful soprano of Emily Atkinson and we had an impressively dramatic entertainment.
The work of the father of Swedish music, Johan Helmich Roman, the Swedish Handel, was new to me and a very pleasant surprise. Flauguissimo’s mission to champion his music will surely succeed but they need to be bolder in their marketing if they are to perform to larger audiences.
St Paul’s Church
10 September 2023
Rating:
Andrew Connal