I first visited Poland in July 2011 to play cornetto in Mikołaj Zieleński’s Offertoria et Communiones Totius Anni (1611), alongside David Staff (cornetto), with Emma Kirkby (soprano), Joel Frederiksen (bass), and a group called Collegium Zielenski directed by Stanisław Gałoński (who is now 93 years old) in Krakow. David Staff and I returned to Krakow several times for recordings and performances

After a wonderful Handel Festival in Göttingen, I returned home for just a few days before returning to Germany with a case full of cornetti and trumpets. I joined the Freiburg Baroque Orchestra, under the conductor René Jacobs, for their rehearsals and performances of Christoph Willibald Gluck’s Orfeo Ed Euriduce in June 2023. We began with rehearsals in the beautiful city of Freiburg, in

I played cornett with His Majestys Sagbutts and Cornetts and the St Cecilia Players for a performance of Monteverdi’s Vespers at The Oratory on Brompton Road in London on Wednesday 10th May 2023. The performance was directed by Charles Cole and featured the exceptional singers of the Schola Cantorum of the London Oratory School and the tenor soloists Peter Davoren and Mark Dobell. We performed

I played cornetto (in 465 Hz) in Bach's motet O Jesu Christ, meins Lebens Licht [BWV 118] for a recording with Andrew Parrott and the Taverner Consort and Players, which took place at SJE Arts in Oxford on Tuesday 9th May 2023. The recording will be released very soon to celebrate the 50th anniversary of this esteemed ensemble. Andrew Parrott & his incredible team, including 4 brilliant

I played natural trumpet and cornetto with the Gabrieli Consort & Players, directed by Paul McCreesh, in a performance at Westminster Cathedral which took place on Tuesday 10th January 2023.The performance at Westminster Cathedral was the last in a run of eight concerts; I was deputising for this performance only, and the other members of the ensemble had performed in the cathedrals or minsters

It was great to return to Stour Music Festival in East Kent to revisit Spiritato’s programme entitled ‘Inspiring Bach’, with the Marian Consort. We picked up from where we left off after our performance at St Giles Cripplegate in October 2021. I last performed at the Stour Music Festival in 2019, for I Fagiolini's performance of Monteverdi's L'Orfeo.On Sunday 19th June 2022, we performed

I returned to Oxford on Saturday 16th April 2022 to perform in the Oxford Bach Soloists’ Easter Festival at New College. I played the cornetto part in Christ lag in Todesbanden [BWV 4] and I played trumpet in Bach’s Der Himmel lacht! Die Erde jubilieret [BWV 31] and the Easter Oratorio [BWV 249]. Tom Hammond-Davies directed the choir and orchestra. There were excellent vocal and instrumental features

After yesterday’s recording of Bach’s Easter Oratorio [BWV 249] and Der Himmel Lacht! Die Erde jubilieret [BWV 31], and last week’s recording of the B Minor Mass [BWV 232], I was invited back to Oxford to perform Christ lag in Todes Banden [BWV 4]. I play the Cornetto for a video recording at the chapel of New College, Oxford as part of Oxford Bach Soloists’ Easter festival. I played the Cornetto

I had the pleasure of mentoring for ‘Future Talent’ at the Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM) on Sunday 9th February 2020. The extreme weather of Storm Ciara made some of the travel arrangements a bit of a challenge. Fortunately my route to and from Manchester was largely unaffected but there was more debris on the roads than normal, and at one point I had to ford a deeply-flooded road on

Here lies the man who boldly hath run through More villainies than England ever knew; And ne'er to any friend he had was true. Here let him then by all unpitied lie, And let's rejoice his time was come to die.  - Colonel Thomas Blood’s Epitaph I performed on the cornetto at the Tower of London for a day of events centred around the year 1671 and Colonel Thomas Blood’s (1618 - 1680)

I performed Monteverdi’s Vespers in the Swedish capital city of Stockholm on Sunday 24th March 2019. Prior to this visit I had spent only a few hours in Sweden (in Malmö, on a day trip over the railway bridge from Denmark) so I took the opportunity to extend my visit over a long weekend that tied in with the cheapest flights. This opportunity had arisen at fairly short notice and my Mum (who lives

Andrzej Kosendiak and the Wrocław Baroque Ensemble performed music by Marcin Mielczewski in two cities alongside the Vistula river in central Poland. The first concert took place in Płock Cathedral (the Bazylika Katedralna Wniebowzięcia Najświętszej Maryi Panny) on Saturday 2nd February 2019, and the second concert took place in the Great Hall of the Royal Castle in Warsaw on Sunday 3rd February

Inspired by the Medieval manuscript the Chronicles of Mann, two Manx-born musicians Russell Gilmour (trumpet) and David Kilgallon (organ) performed in the duo ‘Chronicles’ at St. Paul’s Church in Ramsey on the Isle of Man on Friday 28th December 2018. The Chronicles of Mann mentions various locations including: the Isle of Man, Wales, Scotland, Ireland and even places as far away as Norway and

Situated on the south bank of the River Thames (just 230 metres away from the site of the original) is the modern reconstruction of the Globe theatre. The name of the theatre (reconstructed in 1997) comes from the original theatre, which was built in 1599, and rebuilt in 1614 after a fire, on Maiden Lane (now Park Street) in Southwark. The original Globe theatre was initially owned by Richard Burbage

I first encountered The Torbay Singers prior to their performance of Bach’s Christmas Oratorio on Saturday 7th December 2013 at St Matthias’ Church in Torquay. Although I did write occasional blog articles back then, I had a tendency only to do so after long tours and even then I kept only the briefest of notes as an aide-memoire. In July 2013, for example, I wrote just seventy words after making

The Teatru Manoel presented a concert on the occasion of the European Day of Early Music (Wednesday 21st March 2018) at the Basilica of St. Dominic in the European Capital of Culture 2018: Valletta. Valletta is on the island of Malta in the Maltese Archipelago. I have been very fortunate to visit on two previous occasions (January 2013 and January 2015). It was great to return two subsequent times

I performed on the cornetto and natural trumpet for a murder mystery corporate function at the Tower of London on Thursday 11th January 2018.Performing firstly in the White Tower and later in the New Armouries, Sam Goble, Russell Gilmour, Nick Perry and Jamie Akers performed Tudor Music, wearing appropriate costume (provided), upon cornetti, natural trumpets, pipes, recorder, curtal, guitar, hurdy

I performed Tudor music on the Cornetto as part of a high-profile corporate function in the Great Hall, at Hampton Court Palace on the evening of Wednesday 11th October 2017. The Great Hall at Hampton Court Palace features a highly decorated hammer-beam ceiling with King Henry VIII’s fine tapestries of 'The Story of Abraham' hung all around the room. The group of musicians wore Tudor regalia bearing

I performed with the Oxford Bach Soloists on the cornetto and natural trumpet. The group performed two contrasting works by Johann Sebastian Bach: ‘Christ Lag in Todes Banden’ (BWV 4) and the Easter Oratorio (BWV 249). The performance was conducted by Tom Hammond-Davies and took place at New College, Oxford on Easter Saturday: 15th April 2017. The concert began with the première of ‘Roads

I performed Tudor music from the time of King Henry VIII at Hampton Court Palace on Saturday 16th and Sunday 17th of July 2016. I played the natural trumpet and the cornetto in several different formations of ensemble, in various locations around the palace and grounds. Other colleagues played upon the sackbutt, lute, tenor drum, tambourine, bagpipe and hurdy-gurdy, showing a selection of the instruments