Here is the repertoire we are planning for the New Year's Day concert. Since last year we were sold out and were turning people away we have added a second concert in the usual 8PM Saturday slot on the 2nd of January. The concert on New Year's Day is a matinee starting at 2PM. Doors open a 1/2 hour before concert time so come early, come often.

The Cimarosa we'll be doing is from an undated Viennese print from the very end of the 18th or even early 19th century. Of the 6 arias in the print only 2 use the low E of the guitar and there are many examples of G major chords with the low G missing. You would only do that if you didn't have the 6th course to play the low G on, I think. Anyway, Cimarosa was in Vienna in the 1790s when 5-course guitars would still have been common. Here is a picture of young Mozart with a Baroque guitarist. I wonder what they were playing together?

Cantata – Che prodigo Antonio Caldara

Caldara was a choir boy at St. Mark's in Venice (where he was born). He worked at the Imperial court from 1716. His dad was a theorbo player and violinist at St. Mark's.

Sonata on Wie schön leuchtet uns der Morgenstern Anon.

This is a very interesting piece that is mostly made up of a D major passacaglia bass with the violin playing variations on the chorale tune and there is a Bach cantata on the tune (BWV 1 in fact). The manuscript of the violin sonata is in a monastary in Vienna. It's only just been published so I don't think has been heard here before.

Guitar pieces from a manuscript from the library of the Goëss family (an Austrian noble family). There will be guitar solo arrangements of Lully as well as pieces by Count Wolkenstein-Rodenegg (obviously an amateur) and French guitarist Remy Médard. I'm pretty sure no one has played these pieces here before.

Cimarosa arias arranged for guitar and voice in the 2nd half of the 18th c. There is a picture of a very young Mozart seated at a piano with a man standing over his shoulder holding a baroque guitar.

Harpsichord pieces probably by Fux, the 1st non-Italian maestro at the Imperial court.

Cantata - Lungi dal vago volto - Vivaldi

Vivaldi died in Venice, perhaps trying to set up a commercial opera company there. His music was out of fashion in Venice and he had dedicated some concertos to the Emperor, so had been looking to move to Vienna for a little while. I'm sure this has been heard hundreds of times here before. Emma Kirkby recorded it with Tafelmusik in the late 80s. It's for voice, 1 violin and continuo.