Once again, the festival is the fruit of painstaking research: the alto Xavier Sabata brings to life one of the numerous “capones” (a Spanish term for castrati) who were employed by the Spanish cathedrals. A regular associate of William Christie and Les Arts Florissants, on 7 March Sabata is accompanied by Forma Antiqua under the direction of Aarón Zapico in “Memorias de un Capón”. 

If one of the festival’s concerts features the cathedral trebles and contraltos, the organizers have set out to explore the full potential of the “human voice” in a concert by the soprano Karina Gauvin and another by the contralto Sara Mingardo The festival will open on 29 February with concertos and motets by Vivaldi, performed by the Canadian soprano Karina Gauvin and Modo Antiquo under the direction of Federico María Sardelli.

The contralto Sara Mingardo and Rinaldo Alessandrini’s Concerto Italiano will continue the Vivaldi theme with the cantata Cessate o mai cessate and the Stabat Mater on 8 March. On 1 March there will be two concerts, one in the morning featuring works for wind instruments, with La Caravaggia directed by Lluis Coll, the other an evening concert including Buxtehude’s Membra Jesu Nostri given by Capella Angelica and the Lautten Compagney. On 2 March, Diabolus in Musica, conducted by Antoine Guerber, will perform their programme “Paris Expers Paris”, devoted to the school of Notre Dame.

The closing concert on 9 March will focus on the education of castrati at the cathedral schools from childhood and the role that they played in the divine offices. To close the festival, Les Pages & les Chantres de Versailles, the adult and children’s choir of the Versailles Baroque Centre, directed by Olivier Schneebeli, will perform a programme of music by the French composer Etiénne Moulinié.