Catherine Getches

“It is somewhat unexpected when a small company like Festival Opera takes on a very grand opera like Turandot. The size of the piece and the enormous role of the chorus make it a challenge,” says Artistic Director Michael Morgan.

The Catacoustic Consort delves into an intriguing era in musical history with music of the French Baroque for the rare pardessus de viole, a hybrid that blends violin and viola da gamba. While the viola da gamba first appeared around 1480 in Italy, the pardessus did not appear until the early 1700s in France, when it became a staple of Versailles heyday.

In a concert titled "Ye Sacred Muses — Music of the Chapel Royal" the choral group Clerestory gets back to its cathedral roots and music that inspired the ensemble's name. On the program are lesser-known a cappella works by Purcell, Byrd, Tallis, and Handel, side by side with a few compliations devoted to great Queens, and more familiar works by other greats (composers, that is).