The Pew Center for Arts & Heritage
Tempesta di Mare
From Wealth of Tears to Cheerful Hearts: Odes by Bach and Blow
2008 Grantee
$40,000
Philadelphia Baroque Orchestra Tempesta di Mare received $40,000 to present “From Wealth of Tears to Cheerful Hearts: Odes by Bach and Blow” in collaboration with The Philadelphia Singers. The program features J.S. Bach’s rarely performed “Trauer-Ode” along with the modern world premiere of John Blow’s “With Cheerful Hearts,” an ode for New Year’s Day transcribed from the sole surviving manuscript at the British Museum.
Tempesta di Mare performs baroque music on baroque instruments with repertoire that ranges from opera with full orchestra to chamber music. The ensemble was founded in 1996, and its debut CD of recorder sonatas by Veracini, released that year on PGM, received BBC Music Magazine’s highest marks. Tempesta’s Greater Philadelphia Concert Series has enjoyed a rapid rise to prominence since its launch in 2002. Tempesta has toured from Oregon to Prague. National broadcasts of performances include NPR’s Performance Today, Sunday Baroque and Harmonia. Concerts are carried locally on WHYY-91FM’s Showcase and video of recent performances can be seen on WYBE Public Television. WHYY TV12 has also produced three short documentaries about the group. http://www.tempestadimare.org/
Tempesta di Mare’s Richard Stone, Emlyn Ngai and Gwyn Roberts, photo by Bill Cramer