Singing, dancing, tinkering, and playing music: the yearly music holidays during Laus Polyphoniae are a hit that creative kids just love! This year kids between 6 and 12 discover Portuguese culture for a whole week. They can familiarize themselves with fado, the most popular song of the Portuguese, and learn some Portuguese words. Musica teachers Charlotte Dewindt, Marjolein Elsink, Caroline Verbrugghe and Bruno Peeters channel everything into the right direction. During this presentation moment the children show what they have learnt!

I.s.m. Musica, Impulscentrum voor Muziek

Teachers
Charlotte Dewindt, Marjolein Elsink, Caroline Verbrugghe & Bruno Peeters

26 August, 2011 14:00 -- Elzenveld

In baroque Mexico people knew better than anywhere else how to combine the solemn character of a religious feast with the merry excesses of a popular fiesta. Comical intermezzos in the vernacular Portuguese, Spanish, Basque, African and Nahuatl languages offered welcome relief from Latin liturgy during Mass. For these popular texts pieces of music were composed based on popular ballads and dances: thus originated the villancico. As music director of the cathedral in Puebla the Portuguese Gaspar Fernandes wrote a whole volume of such villancicos. The Harp Consort combines this exotic repertoire with the polyphonic Missa Veni Domine by Duarte Lobo. Thus the ensemble evokes an image full of contrast of the enthralling Mexican culture of the 17th century: the elegance of old Europe in dialogue with the energetic enthusiasm of the New World. Fiesta!

Performers
Andrew Lawrence-King, artistic direction

26 August, 2011 18:00 -- AMUZ

That the printing of music during the renaissance was an essential link in the musical connection between Flanders and Portugal, is beyond doubt. One of the important Portuguese libraries holding music from the Low Countries was the monastery of the Augustinians of Santa Cruz in Coimbra. So Pedro de Cristo, who entered the convent of Santa Cruz in 1571 and later became music master there, was certainly aware of the music culture of our area. Together with the leading wind instrument ensemble Oltremontano the artist in residence of this festival put together a nocturn programme with vesper psalms by de Cristo. This music will be complemented with instrumental works by Manuel Rodrigues Coelho and some anonymous compositions from the convent of Santa Cruz.

Performers
La Colombina: Raquel Andueza, soprano | José Hernández Pastor, counter tenor | Josep Benet, tenor | Josep Cabré, baritone & artistic direction
Oltremontano: Bart Coen, flute | Doron David Sherwin, cornett & percussion | Ole-Kristian Andersen, sackbut | Joaquim Guerra Codina, dulcian | Fernando Miguel Jalôtto, harpsichord & organ | Ellen Schafraet, harp | Andrea Bauer, vihuela | Wim Becu, sackbut & artistic direction

26 August, 2011 20:15 -- St.-Pauluskerk

The revamped formula of the International Young Artist’s Presentation was last year one of the high points of Laus Polyphoniae 2010. This year too AMUZ and Musica will take you in tow along quaint locations in downtown Antwerp, enabling you to discover the promising ensembles selected by the IYAP. After intensive coaching by the American soprano Jill Feldman these young musicians are ready to take their rightful place on the festival stage. You are welcome to attend this walking concert with or without lunch. Lunch has to be booked separately and costs €15.

Coach
Jill Feldman

De IYAP-ensembles deze editie zijn:
 
Les Esprits Animaux (FR)
Elodie Virot – Traverso | Lena Franchini – Recorder | Javier  Lupiáñez – Baroque violin | Tomoe Mihara – Baroque violin | David Alonso Molina – Baroque violin | Roberto  Alonso – Baroque cello | Patrícia Vintém – Harpsichord
 
Lux Venti (ES)
Núria Sanromà Gabàs – cornet and recorder | Xavi Boïls Ibiza – cornet | David García Martínez – tenorsackbut | Quesada Benítez –  tenorsackbut | Xavier Banegas López – bass sackbut

La Chambre du Roi (NL)
Klaartje van Veldhoven – soprano | Esther Visser – violin | João Carlos Santos – traverso | Marike Tuin – viola de gamba | Jerome Brodin – harpsichord
 
Der Musikalische Garten (DT)
Germán Echeverri – baroque violin and viola | Karoline Klemm – baroque violin | Shuko Sugama – violone | Joan Boronat – harpsichord
 
Bel Ayre (BE)
Pieter Theuns – lute, theorbo and baroque guitar | Pieter Vandeveire – double bass and viola da gamba | Lieselot De Wilde – soprano

Giovanna Urrutia and Maria Gonzalez (Colombia & ES)
Giovanna Urrutia – Soprano | Maria Gonzalez – cembalo

Listen to the demo on www.musica.be
 

27 August, 2011 08:00 -- AMUZ

Portugal was the last place where the renaissance model of Flemish polyphony enjoyed a period of genuine florescence. When the country came under Spanish domination in 1580, several Lusitanian composers were offered an opportunity to pay a visit to the famous Capilla Flamenca in Madrid. This explains why, while other areas in Europe were already exploring the baroque style, Portugal was still very much devoted to the stile antico. The Spanish-Flemish ensemble La Hispanoflmenca, specialized in polyphony from the Low Countries and the Iberian peninsula, offers a survey of the golden age of Portuguese polyphony. The group consists of singers who regularly share the stage with Collegium Vocale Gent, La Capella Reial de Catalunya and the Amsterdam Baroque Choir. Their highly attractive mix of warm, Spanish timbres and more slender, northern types of voice delivers the perfect sound colour for this concert. The artistic direction is in the hands of Bart Vandewege, a Fleming living in the Mediterranean area, who has developed a special feeling for this repertoire.

Performers
Magdalena Padilla, soprano | Griet de Geyter, soprano | Gabriel Díaz, counter tenor | Steve Dugardin, counter tenor | Vincent Lesage, tenor | Ariel Hernández, tenor | Matthias Lutze, bass | Paul Mertens, bass | Manuel Vila Rodríguez, harp | Felipe Sánchez, vihuela | Bart Vandewege, artistic direction

27 August, 2011 18:00 -- AMUZ

In the 15th and 16th century polyphony was one of the most important export products of the Low Countries. Composers, singers and compositions from this area were appreciated all over Europe, and local polyphonic traditions were confronted with French-Flemish music culture. The mutual interaction between polyphony of the Low Countries on the one hand and of Italy and Austria on the other has been adequately documented already. However, our knowledge of the exchanges with the polyphonic tradition in Portugal is rather inadequate. At an international summer school the members of Cappella Pratensis guide advanced singers through the polyphonic repertoire of Portugal. They will work both on original Portuguese music and on French-Flemish works that resounded in Portugal. This year too original notation will be the basis. During this presentation moment the ensemble of the summer school will offer the result of its voyage of discovery.

Artistic direction
Stratton Bull, Christopher Kale & Pieter Stas

More information or registration for the summer school: www.musica.be

28 August, 2011 09:00 -- Elzenveld