Tallis Scholars, Reginald Mobley, Le Consort, and more as Early Music Vancouver announces 2023-24 season

A new mini-winter fest called LUMEN and appearances by North Indian and Afghani virtuosos also fill out the roster

Tallis Scholars. Photo by Hugo Glendinning

BAROQUE STARS like The Tallis Scholars, Le Consort, and countertenor Reginald Mobley share a roster with North Indian dhrupad master Uday Bhawalkar and Afghani-American rubab virtuoso Homayoun Sakhi in a globe-spanning Early Music Vancouver 2023-24 season.

Just announced today, the 54th season, dubbed “Luminescence”, kicks off on September 15 at Christ Church Cathedral with Handel’s cantata Apollo e Dafne, based on Ovid’s Metamorphoses.

The 2023-24 season also includes a new mini winter festival called LUMEN—three concerts from January 12 to 14, 2024, aimed at bringing light to the darker days and bridging early music, contemporary works, jazz, and improvisation. On January 12, acclaimed countertenor Mobley returns to Vancouver after his hit debut here last season. The Luminous Hour features the music of English Baroque master Henry Purcell alongside compositions by jazz greats Duke Ellington and George Gershwin, as well as a new commission by contemporary composer Edward Top for Chinese and Baroque instruments. A Prayer for Peace, on January 13, features Alexander Weimann improvising on the organ at West Vancouver United Church. Cellist Elinor Frey closes LUMEN with a performance of Bach Cello Suites.

Other highlights include Silver Apples of the Moon, featuring fortepiano virtuoso Mélisande McNabney in works by C.P.E. Bach, Mozart, Koželuch, Beethoven, and McNabney, presented with the Chopin Society on September 28 at Christ Church Cathedral,

November 18 features Golden Road, with Homayoun Sakhi on rubab lute; Shashank Subramaniam on bamboo flute; Hamin Honari on percussion; and Kiya Tabassian on setar, with traditional music from India, Afghanistan, and Iran. The show is at the Kay Meek Arts Centre. November 28, catch Dhrupad Fantasia: Take me out of the darkness into the light, with Uday Bhawalkar, Pratap Awad, and The Hathor Consort directed by Romina Lischka. The show is in The Sanctuary at the Unitarian Church of Vancouver.

Elsewhere, acclaimed Ensemble Mirabilia performs L’Eterno Ritorno, with founding soprano Myriam Leblanc in a program of works by Vivaldi, Monteverdi, Legranzi, Merula, Rossi, and Grégoire Jeay at Christ Church Cathedral on February 16. Le Consort returns with Hidden Gems of the Baroque on March 2, 2024, at Christ Church Cathedral. Ensemble Caprice presents Handel’s Eternal Source of Light Divine on March 24 at the Chan Centre for the Performing Arts, and The Tallis Scholars travel from Darkness to Light on April 21 at the same venue.

There's much more on the roster, including a rousing holiday Messiah. Find the whole schedule here, and note that subscriptions and single tickets go on sale August 15.

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