Handel: Salve Regina / Trio Sonata in G Minor / Laudate Pueri

Featuring

Dame Emma Kirkby
London Baroque
George Frideric Handel

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Composer Biography

Handel's best-loved trio sonatas were published in two sets, Op. 2 and Op. 5, with much of their material reworked from other compositions.

Performer Biography

London Baroque, formed in 1978, is considered a leading exponent of baroque chamber music, performing around 50 concerts annually and appearing at major festivals worldwide.

Compositional Technique

In his motet Salve Regina, Handel remarkably uses every conceivable combination of the few instruments available, including the organ as a solo instrument, continuo, or even omitted for effect.

Composer Biography

At 21, Handel moved to Italy, initially under the patronage of Ferdinand de Medici, after his operatic successes in Hamburg were threatened by new trends and religious purges.

Instruments

The violins used by Ingrid Seifert and Richard Gwilt on this recording are Jacobus Stainer instruments from Absam, dated 1661 and c.1660 respectively.

Performer Biography

Emma Kirkby, the soprano on this recording, is known for her clear, agile voice and has over 100 recordings, making her one of the 'treasures of the music world'.

Composition History

In Rome, Handel worked for Marchese Ruspoli, providing music for Sunday 'conversazioni' where many new cantatas and motets were premiered, suggesting he had access to the best musicians.