Concert series: Sir John Eliot Gardiner & Quintet

Sir John Eliot Gardiner, renowned conductor, author, and one of the world's most innovative and dynamic musicians, returns to Monteverdi for a special concert alongside five outstanding musicians: harpist Gwyneth Wentink, soprano Silvia Frigato, mezzo-soprano Helen Charlston, Thomas Dunford on the lute, and Kinga Gaborjani on the viol di gamba.

Moving from the expressive world of Monteverdi, Purcell, Merula and Handel to the lyricism of Berlioz, Schubert, Schumann and Duparc, the concert’s programme traces different expressions of love, longing, devotion and consolation across three centuries. Conceived as a sequence of musical encounters, the programme will contrast the sacred and the secular, tenderness and humour, stillness and passion.

Gwyneth Wentink is an internationally acclaimed harpist and entrepreneur, the initiator for Foundation Harp, and concurrent guest professor at the Conservatory of Amsterdam and the Royal Academy of Music in London. A seasoned performer, Gywneth has given concerts at prestigious venues around the world, including Carnegie Hall, the Lincoln Center, and the Royal Albert Hall. Silvia Frigato is one of the most prominent sopranos in the field of Baroque music, a frequent performer at Teatro La Fenice in Venice, and an instructor at the “Santa Cecilia’ Conservatory of Music in Rome. English mezzo-soprano Helen Charlston performs classical repertoire across Europe and won awards from both Gramophone and BBC for her debut album Battle Cry. They are joined by Thomas Dunford, a multi-instrumentalist specialized in the lute and founder of the renowned, dynamic musical ensemble Jupiter. Kinga Gaborjani, an skilled viola di gamba and cello player was the principal cellist for the English Touring Opera for 8 years and is currently the guest principal cellist with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment and the English Concert after having completed her postgraduate degree with distinction at the Royal Academy of Music in London.