A baroque ensemble at Gaudeamus Festival? Absolutely. But Castello Consort is not just any baroque ensemble! The ensemble is constantly in search of new timbres and possibilities of expression, has collaborated with various contemporary composers including Martijn Padding, and once commissioned a new portable organ to be built for them by organ builder Reil.
During Gaudeamus Festival 2026, Castello Consort presents the project Leonora, centering on the Flemish composer Leonora Duarte (1610-1678), the first woman in Western European music history from whom secular, instrumental chamber music has survived. Duarte’s surviving work will be performed, along with contemporary responses to it by Celia Swart, Katherine Teng, and William Knight.
Programme:
Celia Swart – new work *
Katherine Teng – new work **
William Knight – new work
Leonora Duarte – 7 Sinfonia’s
* Commissioned by Gaudeamus
** Commissioned by Wonderfeel