Conducting Conversation Rather Than An Orchestra

SANTA MONICA, Calif. Even those who would not necessarily call themselves classical music devotees have more than likely heard of Johann Sebastian Bach, widely regarded not only as the preeminent composer of the Baroque era but as one of the greatest of all time. What fewer people, baroque buffs or not, may not know, however, is that Bach was a huge fan of coffee – such a fan, in fact, that he composed the Coffee Cantata around 1732. "How sweet coffee tastes!" the composer wrote. "Lovelier than a thousand kisses, sweeter than Muscatel wine!"

Those wishing to learn more about Bach, the Coffee Cantata, or baroque music in general will have an opportunity to meet one of the most renowned baroque scholars and conductors worldwide, Martin Haselböck, Music Director of Musica Angelica, at "Coffee with the Maestro" on February 13 from noon until 2 p.m. at Jones Coffee Roasters in Pasadena.

"This is a unique – and wonderful – opportunity for our audience to get to know a different side of Martin," explains Laura Spino, Executive Director of Musica Angelica. "While Martin is an extraordinary musician who works very hard at his art, he also likes to have fun. There is nothing he enjoys more than talking with people who share his love of baroque music, Bach…and coffee. He loves espresso. He usually has four per day."

"Coffee with the Maestro" is taking place in Pasadena, Spino adds, because Musica Angelica has received so much favorable response to its Pasadena-based performances. "Nothing is finalized yet," says Spino, "but there´s a strong possibility that we´ll hold even more concerts in Pasadena next season."

The baroque orchestra´s next concert in Pasadena will take place on Saturday, March 27, at 8 p.m. at First United Methodist Church in Pasadena, when Musica Angelica presents Bach´s St. John Passion. The Easter masterpiece will be performed as Bach originally intended – with eight solo singers. These include: sopranos Mary Wilson and Catherine Webster; tenors Tilman Lichdi and Pablo Corá; counter tenor Ian Howell; and baritones Michael Dean and Scott Graff. A second concert will be held in Santa Monica at 4 p.m. at the First Methodist Church. Tickets are available for $49 or $55/person. For more information or to order tickets, call 310.458.4504 or visit www.musicaangelica.org.

There is no charge to attend "Coffee with the Maestro." Jones Coffee Roasters is located at 537 South Raymond Avenue in Pasadena.

ABOUT MARTIN HASELBÖCK

Martin Haselböck appointed Musica Angelica's music director beginning with the premier Baroque ensemble's 2005-06 season, has distinguished himself in many ways on the international music stage. Equally at home with period- and modern-instrument ensembles, he has earned an outstanding reputation as a solo organist, an orchestral and opera conductor and composer. Haselböck's main focus lies in works of the Baroque and Classical periods.

As a solo organist, he has performed under the direction of conductors Abbado, Maazel, Muti, and Stein, has won numerous competitions and has made more than fifty solo recordings. Additionally, he has conducted over 60 recordings, with repertoire ranging from Baroque to 20th Century vocal and instrumental works. This prodigious output has earned him the Deutsches Schallplatten Critics' Prize as well as the Hungarian Liszt Prize.

While in his official role as Court Organist for Vienna, where he was responsible for an extensive repertoire of classical church music, Haselböck began an intense commitment to conducting, which led to his founding the now-famous Vienna Akademie Ensemble in 1985. With this period instrument orchestra, Haselböck established a year-round cycle of concerts for the Gesellschaft der Musikfreunde in the Great Hall of the Vienna Musikverein.

Haselböck frequently guest conducts major orchestras including the Vienna Symphony, St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, Deutsches Symphonie Orchester Berlin, Dresden Philharmonic, Hamburg Symphony, Flemish National Philharmonic, Radio Orchestra Hilversum, the Toronto Symphony and the National Philharmonics of Hungary, Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Slovenia. In the United States, he has conducted the Pittsburgh Symphony, Philadelphia Orchestra, San Francisco Symphony, the Detroit Symphony and the Los Angeles Philharmonic. He has also been a guest with his Vienna Akademie as Artist-In-Residence with numerous festivals including those of the Cologne Philharmonic, Suntory Hall in Tokyo, and MozartFest in Würzburg.

As an opera conductor, he made his debut with the Handel Festival in Göttingen. He regularly appears at the Zürich Opera and he conducted new productions of Mozart operas at the Theatre im Pfalzbau Ludwigshafen, using historic instruments for the first time in Germany´s modern history. In 2000-01 he created new productions of Händel's "Acis and Galatea," Gassmann's "La Contessina," and Haydn's "Die Feuersbrunst" with his Vienna Akademie, following in 2002 with productions at the Festival in Schwetzingen (Benda's "Il buon marito") and Salzburg (Händel's "Radamisto"). In 2004, he led productions of Händel's "Il trionfo del tempo" (Salzburg Festival), Mozart's "Il re pastore" (Klangbogen Wien), and Händel's "Radamisto" (touring to Spain, Istanbul, Venice, Israel, and the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam). He also conducted the U.S. premiere of Porpora's "Il Gedeone" in a concert version with Musica Angelica in Los Angeles.

When not conducting, Haselböck is busy unearthing long lost vocal/instrumental works in the dusty archives of Kiev and Vienna, finding unpublished gems by Biber, Porpora, Fux, Muffat, and the Bach family, which he transcribes and resurrects in historical re-creations for his Vienna Akademie Ensemble and festivals around the world.

ABOUT MUSICA ANGELICA

Musica Angelica is led by Music Director Martin Haselböck, the internationally renowned organist, conductor, and composer. Regarded as Southern California's premier Baroque ensemble, Musica Angelica presents wide-ranging programs encompassing music from the early Baroque through the early Classical era.

Since its inception in 1993, Musica Angelica has produced an annual subscription season of orchestral and chamber concerts in venues throughout Los Angeles County, programming a mixture of known masterworks along with rarely heard gems, and featuring many of the best Baroque musicians from across the country and Europe. Guest conductors have included Rinaldo Alessandrini, Giovanni Antonini, Harry Bicket, Paul Goodwin, and Jory Vinikour, among others.

Musica Angelica's first international tour, distinguished by sold-out performances and wide critical acclaim, took place in March 2007 in a joint venture with Haselböck's acclaimed European orchestra, the Wiener Akademie of Vienna. The ensemble presented 13 performances of Bach's St. Matthew Passion in Los Angeles, New York, Savannah (Savannah Music Festival), Mexico, Hungary, Austria, Spain, Italy and Germany.

Among critical acclaim from the media for Musica Angelica is a Los Angeles Times review which said, "Musica Angelica soars in a Baroque gem… a triumph… Haselböck´s leadership was nuanced and inspiring." Musica Angelica was described as a "world class Baroque orchestra" by KUSC FM Classical Music Radio, as "L.A.'s premiere Baroque music ensemble" by Angeleno Magazine, and as "a serious and important early-music ensemble, the best of its kind in these parts" by esteemed music critic Alan Rich.

In 1998, Musica Angelica issued a well-received recording, Vivaldi Concertos for Lute, Oboe, Violin and Strings. In 2007, Musica Angelica raised its profile with a contract for four recordings on the Germany-based New Classical Adventure (NCA) label. The first, released in 2007, is Handel's Acis and Galatea.

Musica Angelica, based in Santa Monica, California, collaborates with leading performing arts institutions in Southern California including Los Angeles Opera, Long Beach Opera, the J. Paul Getty Museum, the Norton Simon Museum, and the Los Angeles Master Chorale.

Musica Angelica was co-founded by Michael Eagan, widely considered one of the foremost lute players in the country, and gambist Mark Chatfield. Eagan passed away in 2004, and Chatfield passed away in 1998.

For more information about Musica Angelica and its upcoming season, visit www.musicaangelica.org.