The excellent 12 Ensemble have been rapturously received by Festival audiences in recent months. Here they demonstrate their versatility, technical skill and passion once again, in an intriguing programme exploring aspects of the feminine experience.
Schubert’s Death and the Maiden is a pillar of the repertoire, by turns dramatic and poignant. This is preceded by the “blooming branch” of the Virgin Mother’s earthly fertility, as expressed in the 12-century Hildegard of Bingen’s reverential antiphon; and Anna Clyne’s moving elegy – dedicated to her mother, it is a meditation on grief and the search for solace.