Tag Archive for: GLA/RCS subscription

Handel’s Leading Ladies

In 18th-century London, the operatic stage was as much a site of social spectacle as of musical innovation, shaped by star performers, fashionable audiences and the ambitions of a rapidly expanding cultural scene and at its centre stood Handel.

George Frideric Handel
Concerto Grosso Op.6 No.6
Torni omai la pace from Tolomeo
No, più soffrir non voglio from Alessandro 

Giovanni Bononcini
Prelude from Il Lamento d’Olimpia 

George Frideric Handel
False Imagine from Ottone 

Giovanni Bononcini
Difese mi giurasti from Astianatte 

John Butt director
Nardus Williams soprano
Paul Whittaker BSL interpreter 

In 18th-century London, the operatic stage was as much a site of social spectacle as of musical innovation, shaped by star performers, fashionable audiences and the ambitions of a rapidly expanding cultural scene. At its centre stood Handel, whose works were brought vividly to life by leading international singers and musicians, two of whom were italian rivals, Francesca Cuzzoni and Faustina Bordoni.

Fuelled by public intrigue and partisan audiences, their famed rivalry became part of London’s cultural fabric, as did the striking contrast between their voices: Cuzzoni’s pure, expressive lyricism set against Bordoni’s brilliance and virtuosity.

This performance is part of our Deaf Season and will be BSL interpreted – further information on our Deaf Season can be found here. If you have access requirements, please contact info@dunedin-consort.org.uk and we will reserve seating for you.

Tickets: £6 – £30 (+ booking fee)

Included in Glasgow Subscription Season, save 10% when purchased with Handel: Dixit Dominus through the RCS box office – www.rcs.ac.uk

Handel: Dixit Dominus

A young Handel travelled to Italy, immersing himself in a musical world shaped by composers such as Caldara and Lotti.

Antonio Caldara Introduzione from L’olimpiade
Antonio Lotti Missa Sancti Christophori
George Frideric Handel Dixit Dominus HWV 232

John Butt director & harpsichord
Hilary Cronin soprano
Helen Charlston mezzo-soprano
Paul Whittaker BSL interpreter
Dunedin Consort side by side with students from Royal Conservatoire of Scotland 

A young Handel travelled to Italy, immersing himself in a musical world shaped by composers such as Caldara and Lotti. There he absorbed a rich and expressive style marked by clarity, balance and vitality – qualities that would continue shape his own musical language. 

Lotti’s Missa Sancti Christophori, later compiled by his student Jan Dismas Zelenka, represents Italian sacred polyphony at its finest, combining expressive depth with structural refinement, especially in the breathtaking Crucifixus. Meanwhile, Handel’s Dixit Dominus transforms these Italian roots into a work of choral brilliance and rhythmic energy, where voices and instruments combine with striking power. 

Pre-concert talk with John Butt at 6.30pm

BSL interpreted performance

Tickets: £6 – £42 

Included in Glasgow subscription, save 10% when purchasing Dixit Dominus and Handel’s Leading Ladies at the same time. Book online at rcs.ac.uk