Viva il caro Sassone!

Baroque is the art of overwhelming its beholders. Opulent palaces, gold-laden churches, theatrical music. In the 17th century, the Italians were the undisputed masters of drama – and yet it was a young organist from Halle an der Saale who captured the hearts of Rome in 1707: “There has arrived in this city a Saxon who is an excellent harpsichord player and composer of music...”, reads the description of a certain George Frideric Handel. At the age of 22, he travelled through Florence, Venice and Naples, studying with masters of the Italian style such as Arcangelo Corelli and Alessandro Scarlatti, and was inundated with commissions from rich cardinals and princes.

At that time, “Viva il caro Sassone!” rang out across the Italian countryside. In Göttingen, the music of the beloved Saxon is still celebrated today – and brought to life by today’s stars of the scene, Mayumi Hirasaki, Christoph Dangel and Kristian Bezuidenhout.