Updated: The first paragraph was corrected.
The San Francisco Baroque ensemble Musica Pacifica opens the new year with the music of the High Baroque from 18th-century Europe, featuring "quirky and appealing" works from harpischordists Rameau and Royer in Paris, violinists Veracini and Pisendel in Dresden, balanced with what the ensemble calls "music from the ultra-polite Quantz and Telemann."
The performers — Judith Linsenberg, recorder; Elizabeth Blumenstock, violin; David Morris, viola da gamba; and Katherine Heater, harpsichord — will present this adventurous program, combining "stories of bad behavior and music of uncommon brilliance," according to Blumenstock.
She adds:
While researching our options building a program around the appealingly galant music of the High Baroque, we stumbled upon two highly unbecoming contretemps involving composers, one between keyboardists Royer and Rameau in Paris, and another between violinists Pisendel and Veracini in Dresden.
Adopting these scandals as the core of our program, and figuring we had enough animosity for one evening, we looked for music by some better-behaved composers to round out and balance the program. We had to look no further than the fantastic Paris Quartets by Telemann. They were written in the 1730's for the finest performers in Paris, and are incredibly rich and complex pieces. We also included a trio by Quantz, another colleague in Dresden, whose music is similarly sophisticated and charming.
Dates and venues are: Jan. 7, Mondavi Center for the Performing Arts, Davis (free admission), Jan. 9, St. Alban's Episcopal Church, Albany; and Jan. 10, All Saints Episcopal Church, Palo Alto.
Pacifica's March concerts are similarly unusual, presenting Baroque music from England and Scottish traditional music. The program will include arrangements of Celtic tunes from Scotland, Ireland, French Canada, and Cape Breton, in addition with music by Purcell, Locke, and Matteis. Celtic fiddler Laura Risk will join the ensemble for these concerts.
"Baroque and Celtic Traditional Music" will be performed March 18, Harrison Oaks Studio, Fair Oaks; March 19, St. Alban's Episcopal Church, Albany; March 20, with a "BachGrounder" talk, Sonoma Bach Schroeder Hall, Green Music Center, Rohnert Park.