Mediterranean Baroque: Liam Byrne (viola da gamba) and Jonas Nordberg (lute)

Early music explorers Liam Byrne and Jonas Nordberg test the boundaries between ornament and improvisation, in early baroque gems by Kapsberger, Marais, Sainte-Colombe and more.

The music of the late renaissance was meant to be experienced live: an exuberant celebration of the performers’ virtuosity, imagination and improvisational skill, in which no piece ever sounded the same twice. There’s a wonderful freedom and fantasy to this concert of instrumental music from early baroque Spain, France and Italy.

It’s a perfect showcase for two of the hottest and most inventive instrumentalists on the current early music scene. Gamba player Liam Byrne and lutenist Jonas Nordberg are 21st century artists with a profound understanding of an earlier age: sonic time travellers who bring the same insight, energy and expressive power to whatever they play. This should be magical.