Carl-Philipp-Emanuel-Bach-Chor Hamburg / NDR Barock / Hansjörg Albrecht

»The most remarkable music here in Venice is that of the hospitals,« reported the French scholar Charles de Brosses in a letter dated August 1739. »There are four of them, all inhabited by illegitimate daughters or orphan girls, or those whom their parents are unable to bring up. They are brought up at the expense of the state, and are trained to excel in music. They sing like angels and play the violin, flute, organ, oboe, violoncello, in short, no instrument is so big that it would frighten them. They live in seclusion like nuns. About 40 of them take part in every concert. I assure you, there is nothing more attractive than the sight of a pretty young nun, in a white habit and with a bunch of pomegranates behind her ear, conducting an orchestra and beating time with the greatest grace and precision.« The eroticising effect of such women’s concerts can also be seen in the fact that a not inconsiderable number of male concertgoers use these events to look for a bride...

Such depictions of girls and young women as both talented musicians and objects of male desire reveal a deeply rooted patriarchal view. The male gaze reduces the female figure to a projection surface for fantasies – a perception that was reinforced in Vivaldi’s time by the staging of the girls in the concerts of the Ospedale della Pietà, where they had to play behind metal bars. Against this backdrop, the concert will focus on and honour the artistic achievements of the young women.