Arparla: Davide Monti, violin & Maria Christina Cleary, harp
Exclusive to WWAF from Italy
Music by Turlough O’Carolan, Francesco Geminiani, Matthew Dubourgh, William Byrd, Nicola Matteis, John Playford, George Frideric Handel, John Eccles, & Francesco Maria Veracini.
This program celebrates cultural exchange through music, highlighting composers who crossed borders and enriched new musical landscapes. Nicola Matteis brought his vibrant Neapolitan style to London, influencing English music, while George Frideric Handel’s career flourished there after moving from Hamburg. Francesco Geminiani blended Italian refinement with Dublin’s musical scene, and Francesco Maria Veracini spread his innovations widely across Europe.
ARPARLA, formed in 2005 by Davide Monti on violin and Maria Christina Cleary on harp, takes its inspiration from a desire to communicate through music—parla in Italian means “speak”—by harnessing the harp’s soft, refined sonorities alongside the violin’s expressive range of colours.