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The following is issued on behalf of the Provisional Urban Council:
Hailed as one of the world's leading period-instrument orchestras by The Washington Post, Toronto-based Tafelmusik - Canada's Baroque Orchestra is set to enthrall local audience with their elegant classical music when they give an evening concert at the Hong Kong City Hall Concert Hall at 8 pm on November 21.
The renowned orchestra is composed of period instruments specialists who are known for their exquisite rendition of baroque music. Their collaboration results in a delightful transparency, vitality and richness of sound, which means that their single performance in Hong Kong is one that baroque fans cannot afford to miss.
Led by their reputed Music Director Jeanne Lamon, the orchestra will perform works by famous 17th and 18th century composers which include Zelenka's Orchestral Suite in F , Bach's Concerto for Oboe, Violin and Strings in C minor, after BWV 1060, as well as Concerto for Four Violins in B flat, RV 553 by Vivaldi and Telemann's Orchestral Suite in B flat La Bourse (The Stock Exchange).
John Abberger, one of America's leading performers on historical oboes, will be principal oboist.
Tafelmusik , founded in 1979, has risen to international stature under the inspired leadership of Lamon since 1981. It is now considered the world's finest period band by some critics.
The ensemble has been orchestra in residence at the Bavarian Klang und Raum Festival since 1993. In 1996, it received Germany's highest recording accolade - the ECHO Klassik award as "Best Orchestra of the Year" in a live to air television broadcast throughout Europe.
It tours extensively around the world and is regularly invited to Europe's most prestigious concert halls such as the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, the Musikverein in Vienna, Symphony Hall in Birmingham and the Barbican Centre in London.
Lamon, who teaches at the University of Toronto and Toronto's Royal Conservatory of Music, has been praised by critics in Europe and North America for her virtuosity as a violinist and her strong musical leadership. Her solo recordings of Vivaldi's "Four Seasons" and Bach's "Violin Concertos" with the Orchestra have received wide commendations.
After Hong Kong, the group will perform a debut series of concerts in mainland China before re-visiting Japan.
For those interested in a deeper appreciation of Tafelmusik's performance, they could arrive at the Concert Hall at 7 pm for a pre-concert talk by members of the orchestra. They will introduce to the audience their baroque instruments with an illustration of the concert repertoire. The talk will be conducted in English and only ticket-holders will be admitted.
Tickets are now available at all URBTIX outlets, with half-price concessions for senior citizens, people with disabilities and full-time students. For programme enquiries, please call 2734 2007, and for reservations, 2734 9009.
Ends/Thursday, November 12, 1998
Issued at HKT 17:23
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