After my first couple of Fiori concerts it was obvious that there was a gap in my classical and baroque knowledge. I can easily enjoy the music without knowing the technical bits but I rock the geek chic (or I'm just a geek) so I like to know the whys and wherefores.
Fiori Musicali work very hard to give you a great repertoire of beautiful baroque and classical music near you. I wanted to learn more about the players who regularly make up Fiori Musicali and what makes them tick.
On the occasion of Fiori Musicali’s performance of their ‘Vivaldi’s Venice’ at Bilton Grange Chapel, I thought I’d have a chat with one of the main instrumentalists of the evening, Heidi Fardell. Heidi’s instrument is quite familiar for many of us. It’s often the first experience that we have playing music. ‘London’s Burning’ might give you a clue.
When it comes to Fiori Musicali Penelope Rapson is the person in the know. Penelope is director (she keeps everyone in line) and founded the classical group in 1983 after studying music at Oxford. She's a clever bunny and as I know pretty much nothing about classical music, we had a chat so I could swot up!
Just a quick note to let you know some good news. You can see Fiori for free! When the Fiori Choir sings traditional Sunday Evensong during the Summer months.
For a sneak peak behind the scenes of Fiori Musicali I decided to start a series of short interviews with the people who make up Fiori.
This post we hear from Hungarian Soprano extra-ordinaire Judit Felszeghy.
Is there a misconception about classical music? It seems to me that the general public thinks that it's old fashioned or enjoyed only by older, posh people.
It may be cold and wintry in the UK but Vivaldi so easily reminds us of tempestuous summer days in his L'Estade Presto (Summer) from The Four Seasons.
You won’t just get sparkling quality music with a Fiori performance. Oh no!
To give you even more of a sense of occasion, boss lady Penelope Rapson recounts the history of the composers, their music and the times in which it was created.
I teased you last month with mention of Fiori Musicali's singing trip to the stunning Lake Como. So now you get to see what a great time was had by the choir because it turns out that it has some budding photographers.
