Photo by John Budz
Last time out, at the Berkeley Exhibition, Musica Pacifica brought you a breezy, delightful set of folktunes from the British Isles. For its upcoming concert, sponsored by the San Francisco Early Music Society, the group goes in the opposite direction, with music about love in all its oft-dysfunctional splendor.
Soprano Dominique Labelle, a frequent soloist with the Philharmonia Baroque, will be on hand, singing a cantata by Handel, arias by Bach, and other works. That in itself is a recommendation to see this concert. Labelle has a gorgeous voice, one that can compass the delicate ornamentation of Baroque music but is also thrilling, not at all what you think of as an early music voice. And she identifies deeply with whatever she sings. Musica Pacifica could hardly win a better recommendation than the fact that she is singing with them.