Remember when we were all young students sitting in history class being bored to tears by the driest lecture on history? Personally, I love history, but for you history haters, seeing the Ancient Academy of Music from Cambridge University perform Baroque music on period instruments would have sparked your interest. The Baroque sounds definitely evoked a great sense of the era.

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The Ancient Academy of Music specializes in music written from 1600 to 1850. This concert featured works by Handel, Telemann, and Bach – each selection having slightly different instrumentation. The audience was enthralled with the sound which is so different from our modern recordings. Each selection was received with thunderous applause and even a “Bravo!” here and there. The audience especially admired Pavlo Beznosiuk, the violin soloist featured in the program. He drew the audience in. They were stamping the floor to create even more applause for him!

I particularly thought that Rachel Brown performed the Telemann Concerto in D Major for Flute beautifully. Her intonation and tone were remarkably clear and precise even in low registers (very difficult on flute.)

The last selection was Telemann’s Water Music Suite in C major ‘Hamburger Ebb und Fluth. You could hear the “ebb and flow” of the sea and many other sounds referencing the waves, lakes, and rivers. This was a lovely way to end the concert.

The setting, Trinity Episcopal Church of Portsmouth, is a beautiful church. The only problem is that there is not tiered seating so the sound is marvelous but the view stinks. I couldn’t see anything, and I would not consider myself to be short. (5’7” in case you really needed to know) I was almost in the back, and the way everyone was moving seemed that no one could see anything. Then at intermission I was afraid to leave my seat because it was general admission, so I was stuck hanging out in the same spot.

The audience seemed to absolutely LOVE the concert, but by halfway through, I was somewhat bored. I have always preferred Corelli and Vivaldi to their choice of mostly Handel and Telemann. I do think it was a wonderful experience for the people who enjoy Handel & Telemann. I also attribute some of the problem due to not being able to see the performers very well. The musicians performed well, and I would attend another concert by The Ancient Academy of Music provided the program was more varied.