Let the shuffling operas with their swelling casts and over-complicated plots go into hiding – in order to paint this epic drama, Henry Purcell only needed an hour and a modest ensemble of performers. In Dido and Aeneas, a masterpiece of dramatic abbreviation and succinctness, the composer uses barely a few bars to sketch out expressive profiles of the protagonists, flesh-and-blood characters endowed with their own characters and bubbling with emotion. And, after all, the plot taken from the Aeneid promises so much: it is a story of power, passion, destiny, duty, pride and loneliness. The story of the queen of Carthage, who allows herself to fall in love with a Trojan hero, but prefers to die rather than marry the man who dared to think of abandoning her, was first staged around 1689, but remains relevant today. And, when losing to fate in the finale, Dido sings the famous lament When I am laid to earth, it is hard to resist the feeling that she is so close to us... The masterpiece of the “British Orpheus”, one of the earliest English operas in a concert version will be heard at ICE Kraków thanks to Capella Cracoviensis. The title couple will be played by two outstanding young singers: Justyna Rapacz and Jakub Borgiel, and the violin part will be led by Agnieszka Świątkowska.

Henry Purcell Dido and Aeneas (concert version)

Dido: Justyna Rapacz
Aeneas: Jakub Borgiel

The Kontakt Choir (Chór w Kontakcie)
Wassim Ibrahim choirmaster

Capella Cracoviensis:
Agnieszka Świątkowska concertmaster
Olena Kholodkova violin
Anna Hara-Pióro viola
Konrad Górka cello
Martyna Bachowska double bass
Klaudia Łoboda harpsichord