Celebrating the start of Autumn 🍂 with... the start of Autumn 🎶 Happy Autumn Equinox! 🎻 Adrian Chandler and La Serenissima

Have you had a chance to catch up with our latest news yet?  August's (belated!) newsletter included a message from Ade explaining all about his recent injury and recovery. 📩 Head to your inbox to read the rest... Not a subscriber yet? Sign up here: https://www.laserenissima.co.uk/

Happy birthday to the composer of this piece, Zavateri! 🥳 🎂 Born on this day in Bologna, Lorenzo Gaetano Zavateri (8 September 1690 – 1764) was an Italian baroque violinist and composer. 🎻 This is the opening of his Introducione in G Major, recorded for our album 'Forza Azzurri!'

Those of you with tickets (or planning to book) for our autumn concerts in London, Liverpool, Southampton, East Sussex or Cambridge — fear not! Although Ade is temporarily out of action, we’re still delighted to be bringing the wonderful Raffaele La Ragione to the UK for this series.

So, whilst Ade was suffering in the immediate aftermath of his little trip over the stile, he still had to somehow take part in a concert. Not just any concert, but a Music in Country Churches concert in the presence of His Majesty the King.

"Concerto for 2 Horns, Strings and continuo in F RV 539" by Antonio Vivaldi / @laserenissimauk.bsky.social, conducted by Adrian Chandler, soloists @annekescott.bsky.social, Jocelyn Lightfoot, horn / @avierecords.bsky.social sp. 2392

"Violin Concerto "Alla Rustica" in G RV 151" by Antonio Vivaldi / @laserenissimauk.bsky.social, conducted by Adrian Chandler / @avierecords.bsky.social sp. 2371

Those of you who came to our last concert in July (or who watch our videos right to the end) might be wondering how Adrian’s arm is doing... If you weren’t there, here’s the story: after a bit of a trip over a stile in the Brecon Beacons, he severed two tendons in his bowing arm.

We're back with a bit more of Vivaldi's Summer - and a challenge for you! 🤔 What bird is being imitated in this section of the concerto? 🦅🦆🦜🐥🦢🦤🦩🐓 Let us know in the comments ⬇️

Well, hello there 😍 👀 Here’s a sneak peek of the album cover for our next disc, Vivaldi Opus 8 Vol. 2, due to be released this Autumn. We can't wait to share it with you - watch this space for more about the release! 🎉

We've been really feeling the heat this week! ☀️ So, we decided it's time for a throwback to performing 'Summer' from Vivaldi's Four Seasons at St Martin-In-The-Fields in June 2023 ⏮️ 🎥 A recording of the rest of this movement is on our YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ve3LDTlNR6E

Two slow movements, one concerto. Which would you keep? 🤔 Can you see that? 🔍 On the third line, where it switches to those tiny notes in the recorder part? That’s where Adrian steps in 😏 Vivaldi wrote the whole first half then crossed it out and started something totally different.

I mean, we’ve seen the manuscripts 👀

Grab yourself a cuppa & settle in, it's a long one this evening! Since moving to Gloucester, Adrian’s been exploring the city’s musical scene (spoiler: the Cathedral choirs are fab), & it’s sparked a bit of a deep dive into some very old & intriguing manuscripts.

What would you do with a single page of Vivaldi manuscript? 🤔 Written in his own hand. Crossed out. Abandoned. Something completely different starts on the next page 😞 Well, if you're Adrian Chandler... you complete it, of course 💡 And honestly, there isn’t anyone better than our Ade for the job.

The final movement from Vivaldi’s RV 442 to round off the week! Vivaldi helped shape the 3 movement concerto. Fast, slow, fast. This one, surviving in his own hand & now kept in Turin, is lively & clear, full of those trademark rhythmic sparks and tight little phrases. A perfect closing movement.

A big thank you to Charlotte Gardner for such a lovely review of our latest album 'Crossing Borders' in this month's @GramophoneMagazine 🌟 Have you had a chance to listen yet? It's out now on all streaming platforms! 🎶

Tonight 🤩 We’re in Wiveton with Crossing Borders 2 — our brand new programme 🚗🎶 If you’re thinking, “Hang on… didn’t you just release an album called Crossing Borders?” — you’re not wrong 😂 This is the next instalment: more musical adventures from our favourite European composers.

"Concerto for 2 Oboes in F Op 9/3" by Tomaso Albinoni / @laserenissimauk.bsky.social, conducted by Adrian Chandler, soloists Gail Hennessy, oboe, Rachel Chaplin, oboe / Avie records sp. 2371

Sometimes less really is more. This slow movement from RV 442 says everything it needs to with the lightest of touches. It opens with full strings – then suddenly thins to just recorder & violin, floating gently in dialogue. There’s nothing complicated about it. But the effect is quietly magical.

Even we needed a map for this one 😆 Telemann’s final movement doesn’t exactly unfold in a straight line. You might have to listen a few times to work out which bit comes where. But once you’re in the zone, it’s full of sparkle & wit. We love the playful back-and-forth between flute & violin.

Ahead of our sold out concert in Norfolk (sorry if you aren't able to join us!), Adrian’s been digging into one of Vivaldi’s lesser known gems, a piece packed with familiar themes, curious cross references, and a few “which came first?” musical puzzles.

A beautiful Largo to round off your week – courtesy of flautist Katy Bircher, and Georg Philipp Telemann. It might be slow, but it’s far from plain. This movement is full of neat little turns and elegant ornaments – all delivered with poise, precision, and a touch of courtly charm.

Diaries at the ready, we've got some dates for you! 📆 🎻 Hear La Serenissima perform live over the next few months at one (or more!) of the gigs in this thread! And keep your eyes peeled for further announcements... 👀 Let us know if you've got tickets, we can't wait to see you there 👋

First impressions matter – and Telemann gets it just right. The opening of his Flute Concerto in D major is poised, spacious, and quietly elegant. No fireworks, no fuss – just music that immediately puts you at ease. It’s the first thing you hear on Crossing Borders, and honestly?

Thank you ❤️ To everyone who joined us at @wigmore-hall.org.uk earlier in the week, and to all of you who’ve come along to our A–Z of the Italian Baroque concerts this season, thank you for helping us celebrate 30 years of La Serenissima. If you missed it, here’s another snippet from the rehearsal.

Warming up for tonight’s concert at @wigmore-hall.org.uk 🎵 This one’s a bit of a niche pick – so if you’re worried you won’t know what’s going on, don’t panic. You can read Ade’s programme notes and the full translation of the text over on the Wigmore Hall website.

What’s this all about then? 🤔 A monk-turned-composer. A biblical siege. A top-tier cast of soloists. And a very dramatic oratorio you’ve (probably) never heard of.

Attilio Ariosti? Sounds pretty Italian, right? 🇮🇹 Although Ariosti was born in Bologna, Italy, he made London his home later in life, sharing the directorship of the Royal Academy of Music (the opera company, not the conservatoire!) with Handel and Bononcini from its beginnings in 1719.

Friday the 13th? Unlucky for some. But not for Crossing Borders — released on the 13th, charting at No.13 today. Let us know your favourite track... We’re quite partial to No.13 (this one) ourselves 👀

Do you know any music by Attilio Ariosti? 🎶 🎻 This Baroque composer is a real hidden gem, and we're looking forward to bringing his rarely-performed oratorio 'La Profezia d'Eliseo' to @Wigmore_Hall next week!

Last Friday, Ade was a guest on BBC Radio 3's In Tune, chatting about the launch of our new album, Crossing Borders 📀 He also spoke to host Katie Derham about the rarely performed composer Ariosti, and the hidden gem oratorio we'll be bringing to the stage of Wigmore Hall next week.

"Few other composers so successfully drew on such a broad diversity of national styles as Georg Philipp Telemann, and although he was at one stage rather sniffy about the Italianate concerto style, he came to change his mind." – from Europadisc’s review of Crossing Borders.

In the 18th century, music didn’t stay still. Composers travelled, styles collided & ideas flowed freely across borders – between instruments, cities & traditions. That spirit is at the heart of our new album. Crossing Borders features music by Telemann, Vivaldi, Brescianello, Sieber & Durante.

Vivaldi wrote some seriously tricky recorder concertos. RV 442 doesn’t go in for extreme virtuosity. Instead, it shows how much he could do with the recorder’s natural voice – light, clear, and full of character. There’s elegance here, not acrobatics. Well… maybe just a few...

How well do you know your recorders? 🤔🎶  A few years ago, recorder player Tabea Debus recorded a fascinating video for us, introducing all the different sizes of the instrument, and talking us through how they work.

Happy (belated!) birthday to Tomaso Albinoni! To celebrate, here’s a throw back to 2012, and a peek at the manuscript of Il nome glorioso in terra santificato in cielo: Sinfonia for Trumpet, Strings & Continuo.

Introducing the singers performing with us at Wigmore Hall in a few weeks! 👋 We're so looking forward to hearing this star line-up performing Ariosti's La profezia d’Eliseo (The Prophecy of Elisha). Will you be joining us for this rarely performed oratorio? 🎶

Reason #497 to play a continuo instrument: built-in dance breaks 💃 Here's a sneak peek of an unreleased track from our upcoming album, courtesy of Jan's double bass cam 🎥 🎶 Vivaldi's Concerto for recorder, strings & continuo in F, RV 442, Movement 3 Hear the full album next Friday 13th! 👻

Not the tidiest manuscript – but it doesn’t need to be. This Allegro non molto isn’t about showing off. It’s elegant, measured, and completely unbothered by a few scribbles.

Vivaldi’s Recorder Concerto in F Major (RV 442) was almost certainly written for one of the exceptionally talented girls of the Ospedale della Pietà, where he taught for many years. But he wasn’t the only one shaping the sound of the Pietà.

🔔 New release alert! 🔔 🎶 The third single from our upcoming album, Crossing Borders, is out today on streaming platforms. This is the first movement of Vivaldi's Concerto for recorder, strings & continuo in F, RV 442, 'allegro ma non molto'.

We're back at Wigmore Hall in less than a month, and Ade has been putting the finishing touches to the translation of Aristoti's oratorio, 'La profezia d’Eliseo' 🎶 Translating Italian from this period isn't straightforward, so Ade has been calling on a variety of resources to get the job done... 📚🔎

Bank holiday blues? 🌧️ The weather’s grim, your to-do list isn’t going anywhere – and it’s somehow already Monday again... Here’s something to lift the mood: a look at the score for Brescianello’s Allegro – full of bounce, clarity and charm.

Have you had a chance to listen to our latest single yet? 🎶 Here's Adrian to tell us a bit more about the Allegro from Brescianello's Concerto for 2 Violins & Continuo in Eb. 🎻 🎧 Stream now wherever you get your music - and pre-save the full album while you're there! lnk.to/Crossingbord...

If it looks like a trio sonata, and it sounds like a trio sonata… Then why is it called a concerto? 🤔 Brescianello’s Concerto in E♭ is written for two violins and continuo. A classic trio sonata line-up. But it comes from a set of twelve pieces he called Concerti a tre. 🤔

Easy, huh? Just a few quavers on the page, passed between recorder & flute. Looks simple. But this is Telemann drawing on his Polish style – developed during his time in Silesia & the Kraków region. Although this movement isn’t labelled a Polonoise like some of his other folk-inspired works...

Need a little musical lift today? 🤩 This sparkling Allegro by Brescianello is full of charm, wit and plenty of notes. Performed by Adrian Chandler and Oliver Cave, it’s out now as the second single from our upcoming album Crossing Borders. Perfect listening to ease you into the end of the week.

The recorder and flute might look like cousins, but they don’t sound like it – and they definitely don’t play the same way. Here’s a quick clip from Telemann’s Concerto for Recorder and Flute where they take turns on the same melody – but shaped perfectly for each instrument’s range.

Surely it must be nearly summer...? 🌿☀️ Adrian’s edition of Vivaldi’s Spring wraps up with such festive energy, we’re already dusting off the outdoor pizza oven and chilling the prosecco 🍕 Vivaldi sets the scene perfectly: