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IN THIS UPDATE:
3. CATHERINE MACKINTOSH JOINS ADVISORY PANEL
GRANTS - RECENT HIGHLIGHTS AND IMPACT
In June, our grants enabled seven live concerts, each in a different UK location, and one new recording. Four new episodes from Ensemble Augelletti’s ‘Pick a Card’ series began streaming.
Feedback from the Monteverdi String Band, who performed in the Purbeck Art Weeks Festival (please also see the lovely video clip below in June Project Highlights):
"The immediate impact of the grant was to rescue us from the risk of a second successive year of financial losses, which may well have made it unviable to continue… The grant has also allowed us to develop our musical understanding and the ensemble’s sound, which are aspects that are especially important to us as specialists in the early end of the baroque era. In short, thanks to the Continuo Foundation’s support, we have been able to connect with new audiences, develop the ensemble musically, recover from Covid-related financial losses, and consolidate a new, ongoing relationship with a festival we had not previously visited."
The impact of Continuo Foundation's activity to date:
£271,700 disbursed to 43 different ensembles 1,000 musician engagements since April 2021
549 different individual freelance musicians benefitted
ROUND 4 FUNDRAISING TARGET ACHIEVED!
We are thrilled to announce that, thanks to the generosity of our individual donors, the Maria Bjornson Memorial Fund and the Adrian Swire Charitable Trust, we have succeeded in reaching our £100,000 target for launching Grant Round 4. This will go ahead as planned on 12th July. During the month of June, we also secured additional advance commitments for 2023 grants, with £110,000 now pledged for Grant Rounds 5 and 6, scheduled for January and July 2023. Advance funding commitments allow us to increase our efficiency and effectiveness by enabling us to plan further ahead and to dedicate more time to our long term objectives. We are now focused on securing the remaining £90,000 needed to close Rounds 5 and 6. Looking ahead to our next phase, focused on long term sustainability, we have recently started raising funds to create Continuo Connect, an online hub for the UK’s world-renowned period music sector. We believe that providing a digital platform and tools to enable ensembles and musicians to magnify their visibility and marketing effectiveness, to grow audiences across the UK and to extend their reach, widening access to live period music, will be transformational. We will provide more information shortly on our financial targets and progress. If you are interested in supporting our 2023 grant rounds or Continuo Connect, please contact Tina Vadaneaux on tina@continuofoundation.co.uk to discuss how you can make a difference.
CATHERINE MACKINTOSH JOINS ADVISORY PANEL
We are delighted that Catherine Mackintosh has joined the Continuo team, adding a fifth member to our expert Advisory Panel. Former leader of the Academy of Ancient Music and the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, which she co-founded, and teacher to generations of baroque violinists, Catherine brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the group which evaluates the grant applications we receive and advises the Trustees on their relative merits.
Catherine was the recipient of the York Early Music Festival’s 2020 Lifetime Achievement Award, an award which recognises major figures who have made a significant difference to the world of early music. We are grateful to Catherine for giving her time to help Continuo select from among the many excellent projects which need our support, and we look forward to her expert contribution to the Grant Round 4 evaluation process in August/September.
JUNE PROJECT HIGHLIGHTS
Monteverdi String Band – ‘The Madrigal Reimagined’
The Monteverdi String Band, with soprano Hannah Ely and lutenist Toby Carr, gave a concert to a sold-out audience at St James' Church, Kingston (Dorset) as part of the Purbeck Art Weeks Festival. The programme, interspersed with readings from contemporary accounts, explored the madrigal’s transformative journey from gentle part song to one of the cornerstones of opera. Please click on the video below to hear an excerpt of music from this programme.
Royal Baroque – 'Italian Grounds and Skies: The Art of the Duello'
Royal Baroque presented a programme of Italian baroque music based on the most common ground basses (La Follia, La Bergamasca, Ciaccona, Passacaglia) and some of the most flamboyant virtuoso sonatas, featuring composers such as Bertali, Castello, Uccellini and Vivaldi. The concert was part of a new concert series at Bywater Meadow in Buckinghamshire, and was also filmed in the studio there for later release.
Instruments of Time & Truth – 'Summer Concert Series'
Instruments of Time & Truth gave the first of a series of six weekly concerts, on successive Tuesday evenings, over the summer. All concerts take place in Christ Church Cathedral in Oxford. This first concert featured music written by Couperin for the French royal court. For details of the remaining concerts, and the wonderful variety of repertoire across the series, please consult our Events Calendar.
Baroque in the North – ‘Baroque and Beyond’
Baroque in the North gave the first two concerts in their tour to six rural villages in Derbyshire. This initiative takes chamber concerts to communities in the North West without arts events, improving accessibility to live music for residents of all ages. The events also enhance community spirit by introducing live music followed by tea and cake. The tour will continue through the summer, travelling to four more rural villages - for details please see our Events Calendar.
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