PROGRAM

“Nò, di voi non vo’ fidarmi,” HWV 189
6'  
Trio Sonata in A major, HWV 396
7'30"
“Quel fior che all’alba ride,” HWV 192
5'  
Trio Sonata in E minor, HWV 398
9'30"
Armida abbandonata, HWV 105
25'
George Frideric Handel (1685–1759)

Concert Duration:
Approximately 60 minutes, with no intermission

MUSICIANS

Arwen Myers, Soprano
MaryRuth Miller, Soprano

Aisslinn Nosky, Violin
Renée Hemsing, Violin
Guy Fishman, Cello
Heather Miller Lardin, Bass
Ian Watson, Harpsichord

The anchor of this program is George Frideric Handel’s cantata Armida abbandonata (Armida Abandoned). Handel adapted it from Torquato Tasso’s epic 1581 poem on the first crusades, Gerusalemme liberata (Jerusalem Delivered). Various aspects of the poem was frequently adapted by composers shortly after its publication and throughout the Baroque era. Handel himself would return to it in 1711 with Rinaldo.

Interestingly, Handel’s cantatas were the only genre he wrote but never published. Little was known about when or why he composed them until 1967, when Ursula Kirkendale’s archival research revealed that many of Handel’s cantatas were composed for various Italian patrons (primarily Prince Francesco Maria Ruspoli of Rome​​​​​​)​, as a young Handel worked his way from his native Germany in 1706 through a number of Italian cities to Hanover, and ultimately, to England in 1710.

Handel composed Armida abbandonata in 1707 for Prince Ruspoli. While opera later brought Handel acclaim in England, the cantata was still a highly popular musical form that was ideally suited to performance in aristocratic homes (and especially so in Italy). The format allowed for the dramatic exposition of a character’s emotional turmoil in a relatively brief performance, and the subjects of anguish and lament in dramatic music—as well as the catharsis such works provided—held great appeal.

Private performances also allowed female singers a unique opportunity to display their talent, particularly in Rome, where women were not allowed to sing in public. Powerful emotion made for great music, though it should be noted that these dramatic cantatas written for female characters also reflected the belief that women were more emotionally volatile (and more voluble) than men.

Armida Abandoned by Rinaldo
Date: c. 1742–45
Artist: Giovanni Battista Tiepolo (Italian, 1696–1770)
ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO

The third scene from Giovanni Battista Tiepolo’s four-part suite of decorations, this painting shows the knight Rinaldo being persuaded by his companions, Carlo and Ubaldo, to renounce the love of the sorceress Armida. 

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OTHER WINTERFEST PERFORMANCES

THURSDAY, JANUARY 29 • 7:30 PM
The Romantic Response >

FRIDAY, JANUARY 30 • 7:30 PM
The Flute and the Cantata Tradition >

SATURDAY, JANUARY 31 • 7:30 pm
Vivaldi’s Gloria >

SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 1 • 3:00 pm
Organ Recital with Les Ackerman >

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Artists, venue, and repertoire subject to change. Visit our Ticket Policies page >