On Saturday, March 11 at 4 pm, Musicians of the Old Post Road returns to First Parish in Wayland to present Baroque Diva: A Tribute to Faustina Bordoni at First Parish and online at www.oldpostroad.org. This marks the 34th consecutive year of collaboration between the ensemble and the Wayland Museum & Historical Society.
Grammy-winning soprano Teresa Wakim will bring Faustina Bordoni’s musical essence to life for this program, celebrating one of history’s first superstar divas. Faustina performed throughout Europe for over 30 years, from her native Italy to the musically vibrant Dresden court to cosmopolitan London. Despite her incredible life and career, Faustina is not widely known today outside of niche musical circles. In their ongoing quest to shed light on overlooked musicians and works, Musicians of the Old Post Road presents a program featuring several arias and a cantata that were inspired by her immense talent, written specifically with her skill in mind, as well as instrumental selections by composers who played important roles in her life and career.
Ms. Wakim is particularly excited about this concert, explaining in a recent interview, “I love it when I am asked to sing a program based on the repertoire of a famed Baroque singer. Part of the reason I was drawn to early music is that I love the scholarship that comes with it, and although that usually focuses more on the composers, it is fascinating to dive into the lives of the singers of the time and draw parallels to the life of a singer today.”
Ms. Wakim does not shy from the challenges of tackling relatively unknown pieces; her familiarity with a range of composers and styles aids her ability to prepare for even the rarest of Baroque works. “In the past I would just sit down at the keyboard and plunk out the notes until I knew them!” she said. “But when it comes to Baroque music, fortunately, I have enough experience now that I can know what to expect, and it all comes together fairly quickly. Once you spend a little time with even the most unusual of works, there’s that magic moment in the practice room where it clicks and starts to groove.” And this program certainly promises to have many of those magic moments.
Instrumentalists for this concert include Suzanne Stumpf, traverso, Sarah Darling and Jesse Irons, violins, Marcia Cassidy, viola, Daniel Ryan, cello, and Sylvia Berry, harpsichord, all of whom will perform on period instruments. This marks the ensemble’s fifth collaboration with Ms. Wakim, who explained, “I always jump at the chance to perform chamber music. Boston is a rare place that has several such groups, so there are usually a few opportunities each season to explore this repertoire, but Musicians of the Old Post Road has a decades-long reputation of interesting programs featuring lesser-performed works, and they always have a fun rehearsal process. I like that they make me feel comfortable to explore different musical ideas. It never feels like work when I get to sing with this bunch.”
The program will feature dazzling and virtuosic arias by Pietro Torri (“Senti ti voglio ancor trafiggere quel cor”) and Jan Dismas Zelenka (“La sua disperazione”). The program will also include two arias by Handel written for Faustina from his opera Admeto (“Luce Cara” and “Io son qual Fenice”).
A tribute to Faustina would not be complete without a work by her husband, the outstanding composer Johann Adolph Hasse, so the ensemble will be performing what will likely be a regional modern-day premiere of his cantata “Pallido il volto.” Instrumental selections include the Flute Concerto in A Minor by Francesco Gasparini (which the ensemble originally revived in 2011), overtures by Handel and Hasse, and a trio sonata by Nicolo Porpora, who penned many arias with Faustina as his muse.
Single In-Person Tickets are $50 general admission, $45 seniors, $35 for under 35, Kids under 18 are free with an adult. Day-Of-Concert Rush Tickets (students and EBT Card holders only) are $10, availability permitting. Online single tickets and online subscriptions are also available. In-Person Season Subscriptions are available for $170. These include in-person and online access to all four concert programs this season, along with free admission to all five online episodes of the ensemble’s Delving Deeper series. For more information, visit www.oldpostroad.org, email musicians@oldpostroad.org, or call 781-466-6694.
The Wayland concert is co-presented with the Wayland Museum & Historical Society (members receive a $10 discount on their ticket). Programming is supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, an agency of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
