Le Jardin Secret
The ensemble Le Jardin Secret presents the wonderful treasure of Baroque solo vocal literature accompanied by the full colour and beauty of original continuo and obligato instruments. With soprano Elizabeth Dobbin, the ensemble performs a wide range of 17th and 18th century repertoire with dedicated attention to historical context and to the possibilities of creative continuo playing and improvisation.
The music is intimate and highly expressive, exploiting the powerful and contrasting affects of the poetry to which it is set, welcoming the listener into the most secret places of the heart. Le Jardin Secret (in French a metaphor for the heart) is a place of sensual beauty and delight, of mystery and contemplation, of lament, grief and suffering, of amusement and assignation.
In 2007, the ensemble won both the first prize and the audience prize in the Early Music Network International Young Artists’ Competition in York, England. Their first CD for the English label CORO (entitled "Musique pour Mazarin! - qui a le coeur a tout") was greeted with enthusiastic reviews in the press and was awarded the prestigious 5 star rating by Goldberg magazine. "Auf Wiener Art", the ensemble's second CD is due for release in September 2009.
It is the aim of the ensemble to bring to life the emotive energy of the music, opening the door to the aesthetic world of the Baroque in all its beguiling beauty.