Baroque & Beer. A celebration of craft beer and classical music, returns November 8th
Press Release
Following its exciting debut last fall, this unique “Baroque & Beer” event returns for two dates in Nanaimo and Victoria in November.
Join us on a beer-soaked musical journey through five regions, each with its own unique tradition of classical music and brewing. Your host, Joe Wiebe, will introduce you to the beers of each place we visit, and then you will be able to sip and savour a glass of beer while listening to musical performances by the Luchkow-Stadlen-Jarvis Trio — local early music specialists Michael Jarvis on harpsichord and Paul Luchkow on violin along with the London, UK-based viola da gambist Sam Stadlen. This year’s Victoria event also features local soprano Ai Horton, adding a vocal component to the musical presentation.
There will be a special emphasis on audience participation through the inclusion of classical drinking songs. Dancing on the tables will not necessarily be discouraged…
The Grand Tour 2019 features an entirely new line-up of beer paired with a different assortment of music from the Baroque and early Classical periods played on period instruments.
The Luchkow-Stadlen-Jarvis Trio will also be debuting their newest CD at these events:
"This is the world premiere recording of Tommaso Giordani’s Sonatas for Fortepiano, Viola da Gamba, and Violin, Op. 30, published in 1782. These stunning and virtuosic works are almost unknown today and yet represent some of the finest music composed for the viola da gamba. Dedicated to Viscountess Lavinia Spencer, herself a gamba player (she was also the direct ancestor of Princess Diana, and Princes William and Harry), the sonatas deserve wider recognition as wonderfully lyrical, inventive, and forward-looking music of the classical period. We will be featuring one of the Sonatas on our programme, and copies will be available for sale at both events at $20."
The Nanaimo event on November 8 is co-produced by the Port Theatre with support from White Sails Brewing and the Nanaimo Craft Beer Society.
The Victoria event on November 15 is a co-production with Pacific Opera Victoria with support from Vessel Liquor, which will have a pop-up store on-site selling the beers for people who want to take them home with them afterwards.
Both events are sponsored by MPI Beers, which is supplying a very special Flemish beer.
Event Locations & Ticket Links:
Both events are 19+. $45 tickets include 5 x 10-oz glasses of beer along with snacks.
Friday, November 8, 7:30pm at the Port Theatre, 125 Front Street, Nanaimo BC
Tickets: https://tickets.porttheatre.com
Friday, November 15, 7:30pm at the Baumann Centre, 925 Balmoral Rd, Victoria BC
Tickets: https://pacificopera.ca/event/grand-tour-of-beer
Beer & Music Program:
1) Germany:
Beer Pairing: Helios Dortmunder Golden Lager - Hoyne Brewing (Victoria)
Music pairing: Sonata Prima in C major (Johann Philipp Krieger, 1649-1725)
2) Italy:
Beer Pairing: IPA - Luppolo Brewing (Vancouver)
Music pairing: Sonata in D major, op. 30, no 2: Allegro spiritoso - Larghetto e sostenuto - Allegretto e spirituoso (Tommaso Giordani, 1730-1806)*
3) Flemish:
Beer Pairing: Duchesse de Bourgogne - Brouwerij Verhaeghe (Belgium)
Music pairing: Fantasia Chromatica (Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck, 1562-1621)
4) Scotland:
Beer Pairing: A Wee Angry Scotch Ale - Russell Brewing (Surrey)
Music pairing: Airs for the Seasons "Autumn": The Nightshade: Aria - Sostenuto - Hornpipe (James Oswald, 1710 - 1769)
5) New World:
Nanaimo Beer Pairing: Gallows Point Chocolate Porter - White Sails Brewing (Nanaimo)
Nanaimo Music pairing: Ouverture: Adagio - Allegro (William Selby, 1738-1798)
Victoria Beer Pairing: Axiom Plum Cherry Sour - Category 12 Brewing (Saanichton)
Victoria Music pairing: Ouverture: Adagio - Allegro (William Selby, 1738-1798)
And from the first Canadian opera, 'Colas et Colinette' (Montreal, 1788):
Ariette "Chere protecteur" & Ariette "Le tendre amour" (Joseph Quesnel, 1746-1809)
with Ai Horton, soprano
Bios
Michael Jarvis is one of Canada's finest harpsichordists, fortepianists and continuo players.
A frequent performer throughout Canada, Michael has also performed with many of Canada's leading orchestras and chamber ensembles (from New York City’s Carnegie Hall to the Walt Disney Concert Hall in LA), accompanied, conducted, or played continuo for many of Canada's finest singers and has appeared as soloist or continuo player at many festivals throughout North America.
Paul Luchkow is a versatile violinist and violist whose activities cover the range of music from the 17th Century to the present day on modern and period instruments. A long-time feature of the West Coast’s early music scene, Paul is a regular member of the Pacific Baroque Orchestra and appears frequently in concerts for Early Music Vancouver, the Early Music Society of the Islands, as well as Victoria Baroque Players and at Victoria's Pacific Baroque Festival. Paul has been drinking sour beers lately.
Sam Stadlen is a viol player, cellist, lecturer and musicologist based in London, UK. Sam has been a member of Fretwork since 2015, appearing with the group regularly live and on the radio both in the UK and internationally. He also appears as a continuo player and soloist on viol and cello with a number of early music ensembles. Sam is Viol Consort Professor at the Royal College of Music in London and has been an associate lecturer at the University of York and a guest lecturer at the Royal Academy of Music.
Joe Wiebe, the “Thirsty Writer,” is the author of Craft Beer Revolution: The Insider’s Guide to B.C. Breweries, the definitive guidebook to British Columbia’s burgeoning craft beer industry, currently in its second edition. He is a Beer Director for the Victoria Beer Society and the Great Canadian Beer Festival, and the Director of Content of the BC Ale Trail. He is a regular contributor on beer for CBC Radio and writes for The Growler and many other publications.
