Lutesong Consort presents a concert performance of the French allegorical mini-opera Les arts florissants by Marc-Antoine Charpentier (1643–1704). In this hòmage to Louis XIV (self-styled arts patron, warlord and ultimate monarch), 'the arts' are the characters: 'La Musique' (Music), 'La Poèsie' (Poetry), 'La Peinture' (Painting) and 'L'Architecture' (Architecture) resolve a dispute between 'La Paix' (Peace) and 'La Discord' [...]

A popular genre during the baroque period was so-called ‘sets of variations’ or ‘divisions’: Composers often composed variations and embellishments on songs, folk melodies or hymns. Members of the Cape Town Baroque Orchestra, Ralitza Macheva (baroque violin), Erik Dippenaar (harpsichord) and Lynelle Kenned (soprano) present a programme of expressive sets of variations from the baroque, [...]