76. COFFEE CONCERT – ST BRENDAN’S CHURCH 11.00 
Camerata Øresund, Anna Devin, Peter Spissky
Handel – The Italian Cantatas
Delirio amoroso ‘Da quell giorno fatale’ HWV99 
Concerto grosso in G minor Op.6/6
La Lucrezia ‘O Numi eterni!’ HWV 145 
ADMISSION €20/€14/€10 CONCERT ENDS 12:00  

77. YOUNG MUSICIANS PLATFORM
– ST BRENDAN’S CHURCH 15.00
Merula Ciaccona Op.12
Handel Trio Sonata in G minor Op.2/6 HWV 391 
Westland Baroque 
Haydn Quartet in D major Op.20/4 
Echéa Quartet
Mendelssohn Quartet in A minor Op.13 
Ophelia Quartet 
Mendelssohn Quartet in F minor Op.80 ‘Requiem for Fanny’ 
Docklands Quartet
Schubert Quartet in D minor D.810 ‘Death and the Maiden’ 
Doolan Quartet 
ADMISSION €15 CONCERT ENDS 17.30  

78. FINALE – BANTRY HOUSE 20.00 
Hindemith Kleine Kammermusik 
Azahar Ensemble
Liszt Carnival in Pest 
Alexei Grynyuk 
Kraggerud Equinox Suite
Henning Kraggerud, Dénes Várjon
Fazil Say Sonata for Violin and Piano Op.7 
Mairéad Hickey, Alexei Grynyuk
Britten Lachrymae for Viola and Piano Op.48 
Ellen Nisbeth, Izabella Simon
Messiaen Quatuor pour la Fin du Temps 
Mate Bekavac, Henning Kraggerud, Laura van der Heijden, Alexei Grynyuk
ADMISSION €50/€40/€30/€16 FESTIVAL ENDS 23.00  

*

The Abyss, which is Time, with its sadness and weariness. The birds are the opposite of Time: they represent our desire for light, for stars, for rainbows and for joyful vocalises.
Abyss of the Birds, Quartet for the End of Time, Messiaen [1941]

Handel’s Italian Cantatas are in great vogue for they suit the small forces of period instruments for which they were written. Delirio is a re-write of the Orpheus story, La Lucrezia tells the impassioned drama of Lucretia’s torment and suicide after being raped by the son of the last king of Rome. The Young Musicians Platform gives each of the five student quartets an opportunity to showcase their talents after ten days of intensive classes and rehearsals.

Hindemith is the prescribed antidote to a surfeit of Romantic music, his Little chamber music is a witty and refreshing miniature masterpiece, providing a humorous prelude to the Festival Finale. Liszt’s Ninth Hungarian Rhapsody, Carnival in Pest, is a favourite display piece for a virtuoso pianist like Alexei Grynyuk. Henning Kraggerud is both composer and violinist. His major work is Equinox for violin and strings, a set of 24 postludes in 24 keys, a selection of which he is arranging for himself and Dénes Várjon.

Fazil Say’s uneasy Sonata is in four short movements, charting a progression from romantic melancholy through a dark, grotesque struggle to a bleak empty landscape concluding with a consolatory repeat of the gentle first movement. Britten’s Lachrymae is one of the landmarks of the viola repertoire, a set of ten reflections on a typically mournful song by Dowland,the complete melody not being played until the very end of the piece.

Angels and birdsong have featured overtly and covertly throughout this Festival - Messiaen’s Angel steps from the pages of Revelations brandishing rainbows while birdsong is everywhere in his music.

For booking, see here. For information on all 2019 events, download the festival brochure below or visit http://new.westcorkmusic.ie/chamber-music-festival.