Baroque Connections: A Musical Journey Between Europe and Latin America
It’s with great enthusiasm that we invite you to a deep dive into the rich history and vibrant interconnections of Baroque music! The Associação Ruspoli de São Paulo do Brasil, under the artistic direction of Giorgio Monari, proudly presents a series of concerts celebrating musicological research and high-level performance, uniting the Old and New Worlds through their melodies.
Concert 1: “String Quartets and Folklore: From Europe to Peru”
When: Wednesday, July 8, 7:00 PM
Where: Oratorio San Felipe Neri
This concert promises a fascinating sonic journey, exploring Baroque and early Classical chamber music with a special focus on the fusion between European tradition and rich Latin American folklore.
The evening will feature the first performance of the intriguing Quartet Op. 55 by Peruvian composer Pedro Ximénez de Abrill (1786?–1856). Ximénez’s work, recently rediscovered through manuscripts and studied by José Manuel Izquierdo König, is part of the first Cuaderno Ruspoli de Estudios Musicales Euro-Latino-Americanos (LIM 2016). Izquierdo’s research demonstrates how Ximénez, influenced by European masters like Joseph Haydn and Ignaz Pleyel, innovatively incorporated Andean folk elements, such as the yaraví. This “intrusion” was not a nationalist gesture, but rather an approach to local traditions, an “exercise for contact between two worlds,” echoing how Haydn himself used folk melodies in his compositions.
The program includes:
Franz Joseph Haydn (Rohrau, 1732 – Vienna 1809)
Quartet Op. 20 No. 4
Allegro di molto – un poco Adagio affettuoso – Allegretto alla zingarese (Menuetto) – Presto scherzando
Pedro Ximénes de Abrill (Arequipa 1786? – Sucre 1856)
Concertante Quartet Op. 55
Allegro – Adagio con sordina – Minuet and Trio – Rondo Allegro
Featuring the Cuarteto de Cuerdas from Cuba:
Alejandro Vázquez Zaldivar, violin
Camila Martel Perez, violin
Anolan González Morejón, viola
Roberto M. de la Masa Morales, cello
This concert is presented in collaboration with the II Ruspoli Itinerancy of Baroque Music in Latin America and the Ruspoli Competition for Baroque Music and Musicological Studies.
Concert 2: “Naples, Rome, Madrid, and Córdoba: The Harpsichord and Dance”
When: Thursday, July 9, 7:00 PM
Where: Old Church of San Francisco de Paula
Prepare for a magnificent harpsichord recital that will explore the deep connections and artistic influences between Italian music, the Iberian Peninsula, and colonial Latin America. The role of dance, as a cultural bridge, will be a central element.
The stage will feature Deniel Perer (Feltre, Italy), a renowned harpsichordist and winner of the VIII Ruspoli Prize for Baroque Music in 2016. He will guide us through works by great masters, highlighting how the Italian Baroque style spread and transformed, and how Iberian music, especially its dances, influenced Italian composers.
A highlight of the concert is the presence of Domenico Zipoli, a composer symbolizing the Euro-Latin American musical relations of the era. After his training in Rome, Zipoli moved to what was then Paraguay (Córdoba, Argentina) as a Jesuit, and his scores, disseminated through the Jesuit missions, were found in archives in Bolivia, revealing an immense repertoire and a rich portrait of colonial musical life.
The program includes:
Alessandro Scarlatti (Palermo, 1660 – Naples, 1725)
Toccata per Cembalo d’ottava stesa (Naples, 1723)
Preludio – Adaggio – Presto – Fuga – Adaggio – Folia
Domenico Scarlatti (Naples, 1685 – Madrid, 1757)
Sonata K. 513 «Pastorale»
Bernardo Storace (1637 – 1707)
Aria sopra la Spagnoletta (1664)
Domenico Zipoli (Prato, 1688 – Córdoba, Argentina, 1726)
Suite III in C major (1716)
Preludio – Allemanda (Allegro) – Sarabanda – Gavotta (Allegro) – Giga (Allegro)
Performer:
Deniel Perer, harpsichord
This concert is also part of the II Ruspoli Itinerancy of Baroque Music in Latin America and the Ruspoli Competition for Baroque Music and Musicological Studies, organized by the Associação Ruspoli de São Paulo do Brasil, whose aim is to promote cultural exchanges between Italy and Brazil.
Come celebrate the richness and diversity of Baroque music and its fascinating stories!
