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PROJECT DESCRIPTION

SHIPWRECK!
A programme exploring the splendour of the courts of England and Burgundy, and the hazards of international travel through the chance meeting of Henry VII and Philip the Handsome.

The Linarol Consort of Viols with Héloïse Bernard, soprano & James Gilchrist, tenor

We are applying for a grant to help cover the fees for 3 concerts:

Sunday 9th November Sunday at Six, Cardiff
Sunday 7th December Worcester Concert Club
Date TBC February Early Music in the Marches Presteigne

Shipwreck!, through words and music, tells the story of the Burgundian Court travelling to Spain in 1506, getting caught in a storm near Weymouth and becoming 'guests' of Henry VIIth. The programme features music from great composers of the late 15th century; including three composers who were on the fateful voyage with Philip and his wife Joanna of Castile: Pierre de la Rue, Mabrianus de Orto and Johannes de Stokem, as well as music by Josquin des Prez, and Henry VIII.

The readings in the programme are contemporary accounts by the royal heralds and from fascinating letters that the accompanying ambassador Quirini wrote daily to his beloved Venice. Fellow voyagers, Hans Highorne and Hans Hossenet, were possibly the first violists to set foot on English soil, and later returned to serve Henry VII and VIII for many years, becoming famous as "The Kinges olde vyols”.

On instruments that are exact copies of the viols that may well have been the first to be seen in England, the ensemble will perform music that was known to Henry, Philip, Joanna and the Venetian Ambassador. The musical programme is interspersed with readings and comments, tracing the arrival of the very first viol players in England, describing the life of a musician of the court, observing the events of that fortuitous meeting and on the vicissitudes of medieval international travel that are surprisingly familiar today!

We are looking forward to playing to a new audience in Cardiff for the 'Sunday at Six’ series, run by the dynamic James Brookmyre. ‘Worcester Concert Club’ has regular classical music programme but they are keen to explore earlier music especially with James Gilchrist as a soloist. ‘Early Music in the Marches’ in Presteigne is a superb organisation which delivers several concerts each year in the border town supported by the Welsh Arts Council’s “Night Out’ scheme.