Coming up in Philly Music: Tempesta di Mare's 'Reutter's Vienna'

Tempesta di Mare’s next concert, Reutter’s Vienna, should appeal to anyone who likes the brilliance of Baroque trumpet music. The performance will open with two pieces for four trumpets and an orchestra by the last Baroque court composer of the Hapsburg empire, a regime with a notable, unabashed sense of grandeur.

A forgotten Baroque composer

The concert will be performed live and online. The live performance will be presented on Friday outdoors at the Cherry Street Pier. The online version, pre-recorded at the Fringe Theater, will stream on Saturday.

The two trumpet pieces were composed by Georg Reutter the Younger, an influential late Baroque composer who is almost forgotten today outside of Vienna. Tempesta di Mare’s co-director, Richard Stone, transcribed the scores from manuscripts during a recent research trip to Vienna. Tempesta is presenting the American premiere of both pieces, over 200 years after Reutter composed them.

The other pieces on the program will all be large-scale works by three of Reutter’s Viennese contemporaries. Tempesta di Mare is one of the few Baroque groups that can field a full orchestra with a complete arsenal of woodwinds, brass, strings, and percussion. In this case, there will be 23 musicians on the stage, a large orchestra by 18th Century standards. All the performers will, as usual, play authentic copies of the kind of instruments actually used in the period.

What, When, Where, and Accessibility

Tempesta di Mare will present Reutter’s Vienna in-person at 6:30pm on Friday, May 21 at the Cherry Street Pier, 121 North Columbus Avenue, Philadelphia; and online at 7pm on Saturday, May 22, (available on-demand through May 30).

Tickets for a limited number of seats at the Cherry Street Pier performance are available for $30. The pier is open to the public and standing room is free. Tickets are $29.99, for the online performance, pay-what-you-can for students & those affected by Covid-19. For tickets and more information visit Tempesta di Mare online.

Image Description: A black and white illustration of George Reutter in a colonial outfit, viewed from his side profile.