On Wednesday, Nov. 27 at 7 p.m. at ArtSpring, Salt Spring Baroque welcomes U.K. viol consort Fretwork with internationally acclaimed countertenor Iestyn Davies in an exploration of exquisite and deeply spiritual 17th-century German repertoire.
The musicians will perform a program entitled Lamento. A beloved genre in the Baroque era, the lamento’s origins lay in early 17th-century Italian opera, before finding its way into sacred music. It was quickly embraced by German sacred composers, who used its expressive nature to depict the sorrow of mankind’s sin and the tragic Passion of Christ.
Johann Christoph Bach’s Ach, dass ich Wassers gnug hätte, his best-known work that laments the sinfulness of humanity, forms the foundation of this program that traverses across Baroque Germany. In 17th-century Germany, the violin was slow to arrive and dominate the musical landscape, so the sweet sound of the viol family was the instrumental texture of musical life, in the home, the court and church. The program features music from three Saxon friends with similar-sounding names, who came from the same neck of the woods: Schein, Scheidt and Schütz; and the great Buxtehude, in the north.
Davies, widely recognized as one of the world’s finest singers, is the recipient of two Gramophone Awards, a Grammy Award, an RPS Award for Young Singer of the Year, the Critics’ Circle Award and recently an Olivier Award Nomination. He was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire in the Queen’s New Year’s Honours List 2017 for services to music.
The Independent wrote: “Iestyn Davies sings with rapturous virtuosity and uncanny beauty.”
Fretwork has been setting the standard for the viol consort performance for over 35 years. In 2026, Fretwork celebrates its 40th anniversary. In these last decades, they have explored the core repertory of great English consort music from Taverner to Purcell, made classic recordings against which others are judged, and commissioned an entirely new repertory of music for viols.
“Fretwork is the finest viol consort on the planet,” declared Stephen Pettitt in The London Evening Standard.
Tickets are available through ArtSpring, online and at the box office.