Concerto Armonico Budapest Presented by Liszt Academy

Collegium Musicum gave an interesting twist to music life in the city of Leipzig in the first half of the 18th century. Georg Philipp Telemann founded the ensemble in 1701 when he was studying law in Leipzig. Later on, from 1729, Johann Sebastian Bach directed the orchestra for many years. Their task was to perform music in Café Zimmermann (and its garden during the summer) at least twice a week. The evening recitals became one of the highpoints of music life in the city and gave Bach the opportunity to perform many works, including cantatas, concertos, suites and chamber pieces. The huge pedal harpsichord purchased by Café Zimmermann specifically for Collegium Musicum inspired Bach to write his harpsichord concertos. In addition to his own works, Bach and his ensemble performed works by his contemporaries and predecessors as well. Among these, pride of place went to compositions by Telemann, founder of the ensemble and a good friend of Bach. This fictive reconstruction of those concerts gives us the sort of programme the music-loving public of Leipzig might have enjoyed one evening along with a coffee, a beer or a smoked knuckle of pork: the music of two significant colleagues and two good friends.