Visiting the great cities of Hong Kong, Shanghai, Wuhan and Beijing, we set out on our second tour of mainland China, alongside British singers Mary Bevan and Tim Mead in celebration of Shakespeare in this the 400th anniversary of the Bard’s death.
“…[what] made this concert a phenomenon was the marvelous programming; every piece in the first and second half were strung together as a whole work without breaks for applause between the pieces.”
From Purcell’s magical Fairy Queen (based on ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’) and Handel’s Giulio Cesare, emerged a masque in homage to music inspired by Shakespeare’s writing, acted out by the love-struck singers.
“…unlike many other baroque orchestras, [The English Concert] plays very [sensitively] and the nuance in their playing is fantastic, one can really feel the inspiration from the music.”
