The Valley Concert Society opens its 36th season with the Pacific Baroque Orchestra on Friday, Sept. 28.
The concert starts at 7:30 p.m. at Matsqui Centennial Auditorium, 32315 South Fraser Way.
The performance features guest conductor and violin soloist Enrico Onofri in a performance of violin concertos by Antonio Vivaldi.
The Pacific Baroque Orchestra is developing an increasingly prestigious reputation under the leadership of Alexander Weimann.
They have collaborated with major international stars such as the American soprano Amanda Forsythe, who amazed an Abbotsford audience two years ago with her vocal pyrotechnics.
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Onofri, who is from Palermo, Italy, is one of Europe’s leading Baroque violinists. He got his start when he was invited to be the concert master of La Capella Reial by the great Catalonian director Jordi Savall.
Onofri went on to collaborate with major ensembles around the world as diverse as the Orchestre de l’Opera de Lyon and the Orchestra Ensemble Kanazawa.
He has formed his own group, the Imaginarium Ensemble, which performs music of the Italian Baroque.
This program showcases the sprightly and engaging music of the Venetian priest Antonio Vivaldi, who taught orphan girls at the Ospedale della Pietà.
Vivaldi demonstrated his technical skill by writing the violin concertos to feature one, two, and four violin soloists.
The concertos are masterpieces, which some of his contemporaries said were impossible to play.
J.S. Bach learned from the Italian master when he transcribed many of Vivaldi’s violin concertos for organ and harpsichord.
There will be a pre-concert talk in the foyer at 6:50 p.m.
Tickets are available online at valleyconcertsociety.com. The cost is $28 for adults and $15 for students.
