A musical pilgrimage through the centers of the Italian Baroque
Sunday, 23. 8. 2026 at 17:00
Basilica minor
klášter Geras
We invite you to another exceptional concert of this year's festival, which will take place on Sunday, August 23, 2026 from 5:00 p.m. in the impressive premises of the minor basilica in the Austrian monastery of Geras. The concert entitled "Musical Pilgrimage to the Centers of the Italian Baroque" will be presented by the renowned Hof-Musici ensemble led by a pair of excellent sopranos Eva Benett and Kamila Zbořilová. This ensemble, famous for its inventively tuned dramaturgy, will guide the audience through the musical centers of Naples and Ferrara at the time to the captivating sound of historical instruments such as the theorbo, baroque cello and Neapolitan spinet.
The dramaturgy of the evening will offer a beautiful and completely unique repertoire of spiritual cantatas from the second half of the 17th century. Listeners can look forward to the revival of the works of Italian masters, which have survived only in the archives and have not been published at all in modern times. The music will guide you through baroque reflections on the fleeting beauty or transience of human life, but will also offer downright surprising moments - for example, the musical rendition of the spiritual "Card Games" (Gioco all'Ombre) or brilliant virtuoso solos for theorba and cello.
Come and enjoy the unique acoustics and majestic atmosphere of the Basilica of Gera and let yourself be carried away by the passionate and meditative music of southern Italy. We look forward to your visit!
Künstler
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Hof-Musici is a vocal-instrumental ensemble specialized in interpreting music of the 17th and 18th centuries. The German-Latin name of the group (literally "Court Musicians") refers to the usual designation of court bands in the territory of the Holy Roman Empire during the Baroque period. This tradition is followed not only by the international composition of the ensemble, but also by its repertoire, which focuses mainly on the music of prominent Italian composers whose works were performed in palaces, churches and theaters in the countries of the former Habsburg Monarchy (A. Draghi, A. Gianettini, G. B. Viviani, A. Cesti, A. Caldara, G. Porsile, A. Vivaldi, N. Porpora, J. A. Hasse and others). At the same time, the ensemble's repertoire is almost exclusively made up of unpublished and unperformed compositions in modern times, which are preserved in manuscript in European libraries and archives.
The main interest of the group is cantata, oratorio and especially opera of the Italian Baroque. In addition to vocal performance practice, the group's singing soloists are also involved in reviving the acting style of the 17th and 18th centuries. The focus on baroque opera in contemporary production practice led to the start of the ensemble's collaboration with the Castle Theater in Český Krumlov - a uniquely preserved baroque theater from 1766. Since 2000, the Hof-Musici have performed here annually in a modern world premiere some of the stage works of the great, though often unjustly forgotten, masters of Italian opera (Alessandro Scarlatti, Antonio Vivaldi, Nicola Porpora, Johann Adolf Hasse, Antonio Caldara, Antonio Gianettini, Antonio Boroni and others). In 2008, the discovery and reconstruction of Vivaldi's Prague opera Argippo, which was considered lost until then, received international acclaim.
Hof-Musici are guests at festivals in the Czech Republic and abroad: Brno Easter Sacred Music Festival, Petr Dvorský Music Festival in Jaroměřice nad Rokytnou, Theatrum Kuks, Other Banks of Opava, Baroque Festival in Olomouc, Haydn Music Festival, Feste Musicali per San Rocco in Venice, Internationale Händel-Festspiele Göttingen, Baroque à Saint-Roch Liège (Belgium), Galuppi Festival in Venice, Varaždin Baroque Evenings (Croatia), Haydn-Tage Rohrau (Austria), Haydn Festival at Eszterháza Castle (Hungary), Il Suono & Il Sacro festivals in Caserta, Luoghi dello Spirito e del Tempo in Ravenna, Note senza Tempo in Sardinia, Giovanni Paisiello Festival in Taranto, Handel Festival Japan (Tokyo), Budapest Spring Festival, etc. Since 2008, Hof-Musici has been the resident ensemble of the Festival of Baroque Arts in Czech Krumlov. Since 2015, the ensemble has been a partner of the city of Český Krumlov in the revitalization of the local monasteries. In the newly renovated premises of the former convent of the Poor Clares, the ensemble found a background for its activities, including the organization of concerts, seminars, etc. The founder and leader of the ensemble is harpsichordist Ondřej Macek.
www.hofmusici.com - Eva Benett (CZ) – soprano
- Kamila Zbořilová (CZ) – soprano
- Dalibor Pimek (CZ) – baroque cello
- Marek Kubát (CZ) – theorbo and baroque guitar
- Ondřej Macek (CZ) – harpsichord (spinetta napoletana) / positive organ (organo di legno)
Entritt
Admission is voluntary
Programme
(cca 1638–1681)
"Fleeting Beauty"; from the collection Cantate Morali, e Spirituali, Op. 7, Bologna 1680
(cca 1640–1709)
"The transience of a restless life"; undated manuscript in Biblioteca dei Girolamini, Naples
(cca 1580–1651)
for solo theorba
(cca 1656–1716)
"The Card Game"; undated manuscript in Biblioteca dei Girolamini, Naples
(1659–1690)
for solo cello
(cca 1656–1716)
"The Angel and the Virgin Mary"; undated manuscript in Biblioteca dei Girolamini, Naples
Ort
The Premonstratensian monastery of Geras (Stift Geras) and its monastery church of the Nativity of the Virgin Mary, which boasts the honorary papal title of basilica minor, represents one of the most important sacred monuments of the Austrian Waldviertel region near the Czech border. This majestic structure seamlessly blends a deep spiritual tradition with a fascinating architectural history and is still home to an active monastic community. The monastery was founded as early as 1153 by counts Ekbert and Ulrich from Pernegg, as a branch of the Premonstratensian monastery in the Czech Želiv. The original Romanesque building went through a very eventful history. Like the church in Vranov nad Dyjí, the monastery in Geras also suffered heavily during the Thirty Years' War, when it was repeatedly looted and destroyed by Swedish troops in the 1730s and 1740s. Only the impressive main portal has survived from the original Romanesque basilica, which forms a rare architectural monument. The complex acquired its present-day magnificent form in the 18th century, when it underwent an extensive Baroque reconstruction, in which the famous Austrian builder Joseph Munggenast participated. The interior of the basilica is a masterful example of high Baroque. The main attraction of visitors is the monumental main altar, which is decorated with a painting by one of the most important Austrian Baroque painters, Paul Troger. Also worth mentioning is the great historic organ and unique acoustics, which make the church an extremely popular venue for concerts. In 1954, Pope Pius XII awarded importance of this temple by raising it to a minor basilica. In addition, the entire monastery complex is sensitively embedded in the picturesque landscape of the Geras Natural Park, which is famous for its ponds, ancient forests and traditional herb gardens, which gives the place a unique genius loci.
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