In 1717, Händel composed a set of orchestral pieces for a very special occasion. On that warm summer’s evening, the music brightened up a boat trip by King George I of Great Britain along the Thames. The people of London gathered along the banks of the river and listened to the music coming from one of the many boats accompanying the procession, in which musicians played horns and trumpets, oboes and bassoons, strings and percussion. Six years later, already in the city of Hamburg, Telemann’s music also sounded at a public ceremony, this time a banquet commemorating the 1st centenary of the Navy Corporation established in that port city. This explains the allusions made to mythological figures such as the sea nymph Tethys or the water god Neptune. The musicians of the Orquestra Metropolitana de Lisboa have now recovered these melodies that enchanted over three hundred years ago and which, long after the water has passed, continue to enchant.
Water Music
Music in São Roque Season
Lisbon Metropolitan Orchestra
G. P. Telemann Water Music, Overture (Suite), TWV 55:C3
G. F. Händel Water Music, Suite No. 1, HWV 348
G. F. Händel Water Music, Suite No. 2, HWV 349
Improvisations on Water *
* Soloist: Marco Fernandes percussion
Fernando Miguel Jalôto harpsichord and musical direction
Free admission, on a first-come, first-served basis, with limited capacity.
Doors open 25 minutes before the start of the shows.
