Zsombor Tóth-Vajna Presented by Liszt Academy

In the wake of the overthrow of Cromwellian Puritanism, under Charles II the propagation of ‘high art’ made a return to London. Based on his experiences overseas, the king established a court string ensemble, he urged his musicians to study abroad, and he re-established the highly influential music life of the Chapel Royal. Two important composers of the age, John Blow and Henry Purcell, came into their own amidst the conditions offered by the Chapel Royal. Through the work of these two, Zsombor Tóth-Vajna sheds light on a genre little known here in Hungary: the harpsichord repertoire of the Restoration. This concert features a selection of the favoured genres of English keyboard music absorbing French and Italian stylistic influences: suites containing varied dance movements, imaginative grounds founded on bass variations, all crowned by Blow’s remarkable Chacone in Faut.