Boston Early Music Festival Orchestra

Robert Mealy, Orchestra Director
Caroline Copeland & Hubert Hazebroucq, dancers

Thursday, June 12, 2025 at 8pm
NEC's Jordan Hall, Boston, MA

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Rivers of Splendor: Handel’s & Telemann’s Water Music

A highlight of every Festival, the virtuoso BEMF Orchestra led by Orchestra Director Robert Mealy offers two exuberant works full of colorful orchestrations, lively dance rhythms, and regal fanfares. Handel’s Water Music is a collection of three orchestral suites overflowing with vibrant flamboyance that were first performed in spectacular fashion for King George I as he floated up the River Thames. The king was so pleased that he had them repeated several times! Telemann’s own aquatic suite (properly titled Hamburger Ebb’ und Fluth) was written to honor the centenary of the Hamburg admiralty in 1723, and reflects its maritime theme with evocative depictions of various oceanic deities and the “ebb and flow” of Hamburg’s tides. These two great celebrations are brought to life with choreography by special guest dancers Caroline Copeland and Hubert Hazebroucq.