Joy& sorrow
Pro Musica’s ‘Baroque Holy Week’ features Corelli, Bach and Vivaldi
The Santa Fe Pro Musica Baroque Ensemble will usher in Holy Week with Juilliard-based oboist Gonzalo X. Ruiz and New York contralto Avery Amereau.
The concerts will commemorate the joys and sorrows of Easter beginning on Thursday, March 29, at the Loretto Chapel. Concertmaster Stephen Redfield will lead the musicians through a program of Corelli, Bach and Vivaldi.
Corelli remains one of the Baroque era’s most important composers; scholars credit him with the invention of the sonata. The musicians will perform his Trio Sonata in E Minor, Op. 2, No. 4.
Vivaldi’s “La Follia” (“Fool’s Dance”) in D Minor for Two Violins originated with a 15th century Portuguese dance.
“It’s quite virtuosic and flamboyant and fun,” O’ Connor said.
Ruiz will perform on Bach’s Concerto in F Major for Oboe and Strings and on the composer’s Cantata No. 170, “Vergnüte Ruh” (“Contented Rest”).
“He teaches Baroque oboe at Juilliard,” music director Thomas O’Connor said. “He’s really a fantastic player. He’s well-known in Baroque music circles.”
On “Contented Rest” Ruiz will play a “d’amore” oboe, pitched slightly lower than usual.
“It’s the oboe of love,” O’Connor said. “In many ways, it was one of Bach’s favorite versions of the oboe. It has a bit more mellow sound.”
Amereau, who has sung at Pro Musica’s Baroque Christmas concerts, will join Ruiz on the cantata.
“She’s sung at the Met,” O’Connor said. “She has a natural voice in that she is a true alto; also called a contralto. It’s lower than a mezzosoprano. It’s a very big, rich voice. There are probably a dozen at most in the world.”
After originally writing it for the oboe, Bach rewrote his Concerto in F Major for Oboe and Strings for harpsichord, while the original version disappeared.
“It’s fantastic,” O’Connor said. “It has one of the most beautiful second movements imaginable.”