L'Albicastro Ensemble is an instrumental-vocal group of renaissance and baroque music, with variable members, founded in Berne (Switzerland), in the Autumn of 1978, by two prominent personalities of the international ancient music panorama: its current director and soprano, Rosa Maria Meister and the vihuelist Jorge Fresno.
Albicastro Ensemble
The founders
In the fall of 1978 soprano Rosa Maria Meister and vihuelist Jorge Fresno founded the Albicastro Ensemble in Bern, Switzerland.
Rosa Maria Meister
MEZZOSOPRANO
Born and raised in Switzerland, where she lives and works, she is considered one of the top musical personalities at the interpretive and technical level of chamber music repertoire ranging from early Baroque to Lieder. It stands out for its out-of-the-ordinary expressive ability.
Jorge Fresno
VIHUELISTA
Born in Buenos Aires to a family of Spanish descent, he came to prominence as a virtuoso guitarist from a very young age. Together with Rosa Maria Meister he created the Albicastro Ensemble for the study and dissemination of early Spanish, Italian and German music.
Albicastro Ensemble
History
L’Albicastro Ensemble is an instrumental-vocal group of renaissance and baroque music, with variable members, founded in Berne (Switzerland), in the Autumn of 1978, by two prominent personalities of the international ancient music panorama: its current director and soprano, Rosa Maria Meister and the vihuelist Jorge Fresno.
All its members are distinguished soloists, performers and Maestri who have taught in internationally renowned institutions and courses. They are known for their experience in providing an authentic interpretation of the style and aesthetic concepts typical of the periods in question.
To this end, only historical instruments, or copy of them, are used in all the Albicastro performances: vihuela, lute, theorbo, chitarrone, flute, violin, bass-viol, baroque harp, positive organ, spinet, harpsichord, percussion and, above all, the human voice pitched on its natural resonance and the performance practice of the time.
The Group dedicates special attention to the study and diffusion of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries Spanish music; of the Italian music of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries and of the German music of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.
The Group has been invited to participate in the most prominent ancient music festivals in Europe, America and Asia. Among these the following stand out: the Berlin Festival Bach, the Frankfurt Opera, the Festival Menuhin in Gstaad, the Festival de Santander, the Festival de Daroca, L’Estate Fiesolana in Florence, the Opera House in Warsaw, the Teatro Real in Madrid, the Palau de la Musica in Barcelona. Other international events have taken place in Rome, Paris and many other cities in Europe, China and South America.
The Albicastro Ensemble appears in numerous distinguished publications for didactic purposes (encyclopedias, historical-musicological studies, etc…) as well as in music periodicals and newspapers.
The Group has made recordings for national radios and televisions throughout the world (including documentaries and historical-musical programmes) often winning outstanding prizes. They also stand out for having made the first world recordings ever.
