Le Poème Harmonique / Vincent Dumestre

The story of the Ospedale della Pietà seems to come straight out of a fantasy novel. In the 17th century, the Venetian orphanage took girls under its wing and gave them in-depth musical training. Visitors travelled to the Italian canal city from far and wide to hear these crystalline voices. But… no one in the audience ever saw the performers at work, because they sang concealed in the darkness of the chapel gallery. No need to worry: soprano Marie Theoleyre will come out of the shadows at DE SINGEL. Together with Le Poème Harmonique from conductor Vincent Dumestre, she digs into the archives of the Ospedale in search of musical material. There they uncovered music by Antonio Vivaldi, who was linked to the orphanage in 1714 as their in-house composer - notably the world premiere of his famous cantata Nisi Dominus was entrusted to the girls’ choir, and this will certainly feature in the programme.