The formation of Ensenble Claudiana in 2008 was closely linked to the project of performing the complete cantatas of Bach at the Vienna Konzerthaus (Bach-Kantaten Abonnement-Zyklus at Wiener Konzerthaus), a musical marathon that will end in 2020. It is a flexibly sized ensemble featuring some of the finest European specialists in period instruments. Its director, the lutenist Luca Pianca, is particularly interested in the works of Monteverdi and J.S. Bach, including the vast corpus of cantatas, a true monument of Western music. The group’s plans also include Monteverdi’s Combattimento di Tancredi e Clorinda and Vespro della Beata Vergine, the latter in collaboration with the Wiener Sängerknaben. Their recent performance of J.S. Bach’s Christmas Oratorio (BWV 248) in the large hall of the Vienna Konzerthaus attracted special attention. |