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ENSEMBLE INFO

Ensemble Contact:

Email:

info@newtrinitybaroque.org

1998

PROJECT DESCRIPTION

New Trinity Baroque kindly seeks support for a chamber-scale production of Handel’s 'Giulio Cesare in Egitto', to be presented at the Grimeborn Festival (Arcola Theatre, London) in four performances between 31 August and 5 September 2026.

The project engages eleven UK-based freelance period instrumentalists — bringing together established specialists and early-career artists — alongside six emerging vocal soloists. The instrumental ensemble comprises of three winds (oboe, bassoon, recorder), one-per-part strings, theorbo and two harpsichords, reflecting historically informed forces appropriate to the venue and festival context. All instrumentalists engaged are UK-based musicians (currently living and working in the United Kingdom). The majority of the requested grant will be allocated directly to their fees.

The production originated in a 2024 concert performance within the Belgrade Baroque Academy in Serbia, where New Trinity Baroque served as ensemble-in-residence under the musical direction of Predrag Gosta and violin leadership by Adrian Butterfield. That performance received the annual ‘Best Concert of the Year’ award from the national magazine 'Muzika Klasika' (Classical Music). The work was subsequently developed into a fully staged production, premiered in January 2026 under Gosta’s direction, with baroque violinist Simone Pirri serving as orchestral leader. The same instrumental core will be engaged for the Grimeborn performances.

As the production is musically established and performance-ready, only focused rehearsal during the festival period will be required. This reduces delivery risk and ensures that resources are directed primarily towards artists’ fees.

This project consolidates New Trinity Baroque’s UK-based activity and strengthens its engagement with the UK early music sector. The Grimeborn engagement provides a high-profile London platform while creating meaningful paid work for UK-based period instrumentalists.

Projected box office income is based on the festival’s conservative estimate of 55–60% capacity. Confirmed co-funding of £2,000 has been secured from the Makris Foundation to cover travel and accommodation costs, ensuring that the requested Continuo grant directly supports UK-based instrumentalists. Festival infrastructure (venue, marketing, technical support and box office management) allows overhead to remain minimal and ensures that funding directly benefits freelance musicians.

The production’s flexible chamber format enables potential future regional touring and broader UK presentation beyond the festival context.

NTB has previously received recognition for its staged productions of operas 'L’Orfeo', 'Orlando' and more. In the UK, its Artistic Director Predrag Gosta has been associated with Grimeborn’s artistic community as a performer and co-director: he co-directed Monteverdi’s L’incoronazione di Poppea with Marcio da Silva as part of Ensemble OrQuesta, a production that received an OFFIE nomination.

New Trinity Baroque is a UK-registered charity (Charity no. 1209719) and company limited by guarantee, dedicated to historically informed performance of seventeenth- and eighteenth-century repertoire, with particular focus on opera. The ensemble’s current personnel base and operational activity are centred in the United Kingdom.

The ensemble’s work integrates scholarship and performance. Research undertaken by its Artistic Director into eighteenth-century opera performance practice — including historical approaches to reorchestration and adaptation to theatre size and available personnel — informs the chamber realisation proposed for this project. This ensures that the reduction of forces reflects historically grounded practice and rhetorical clarity rather than modern compromise.

New Trinity Baroque develops projects through continuity of personnel, enabling UK-based freelance period instrumentalists to collaborate across productions and cultivate shared stylistic language. This long-term approach strengthens ensemble cohesion and supports professional sustainability within the freelance early music sector.

The ensemble has previously received recognition for its operatic work, including awards for both staged production and concert performance. Its Artistic Director has also been associated with OFFIE-nominated work within the UK operatic landscape. These experiences contribute to the ensemble’s capacity to deliver high-quality productions within established professional frameworks.

The present project represents not only a performance opportunity but also a structural investment in UK-based period instrumental practice. By prioritising instrumental fees and working within a secure festival infrastructure, the project balances artistic ambition with financial responsibility, reinforcing the viability of historically informed opera within the contemporary UK performance environment.