Firmly established on the international scene in the meantime, the Trigonale is Carinthia’s annual summer festival of early music. It was born in 2003 with the aim of satisfying audience interest in early music, while at the same time providing a medium for the revitalising of culture and commerce in the region.

The intended “decentralisation” of the events is underlined by the fact that from the very outset, the festival was given special support from the Communities Office of the Carinthian Regional Government. In the “trigonon” (Greek: triangle) of the localities Maria Saal, St. Veit an der Glan and St. Georgen/Längsee, the festival has found venues perfectly suited to the performances, thanks to the aesthetics of their architecture and acoustical quality of the venues.

The festival opens on 16 June 2007 with a “Long Night of Old Music”, when artists of the young generation will be presented to the public at a variety of locations in the old centre of St. Veit. At the heart of this year’s festival are outstanding artists well known and held in the highest esteem by the Trigonale audience, such as the ensembles Accordone, Il Giardino Armonico, Cantus Cölln, Private Musicke, The Hilliard Ensemble, London Baroque, and Andreas Scholl.

Making their first appearance will be Europa Galante, Red Priest, Harmony of Nations Baroque Orchestra, La Fenice, Charivari Agréable, Friederike Heumann, Gaetano Nasillo and Dirk Börner. Also taking the festival stage for the first time will be two young Viennese music groups: the ensemble Mikado, performing consort songs for solo voice and instrumental accompaniment that date from the English Renaissance at the time of Elizabeth I, and the Concertino Amarilli, who will give a programme of cantatas and sonatas of the Italian baroque.

On 5 July, the ensemble Unicorn will be presenting a programme of rarities bearing the title “The Island of Aphrodite”. This will consist of love songs from the royal court in Nicosia around 1400. In contrast to established practice in the late middle ages, when it was usual for parallel manuscripts and contrafacta to be produced, these works are recorded in a single manuscript only.

The ensemble Unicorn examined the manuscript in a research project that culminated in a performance in Athens during 2005. The songs from Cyprus, alleged birthplace of Aphrodite, goddess of love, will be receiving their Austrian premiere before the Festival audience. As the quintessence of the “Elements” and bringing the Trigonale to its conclusion, the exceptionally successful ensemble Il Giardino Armonico from Milan will provide insights into the many facets of music of the classical period.

In a programme to be heard on 8 July in the Town Hall of St. Veit, they will be playing works by Bach’s sons Wilhelm Friedemann and Carl Philipp Emanuel, as well as compositions by Haydn, Pietro Nardini and Mozart.
Information and tickets on http://www.trigonale.com/trigonale