Headline works include the virtuosic concerto, La Tempesta di Mare, by Venice’s famous ‘Red Priest’, Vivaldi, which depicts a storm at sea, reminding the listener of the perils of life in a city surrounded by water. The beginnings of the Baroque in Venice itself are brought to life through an improvisatory ‘Stylus Phantasticus’ sonata by Dario Castello, who worked at the famous church of St Mark, and a fiery solo harpsichord toccata by Venetian harpsichordist Giovanni Picchi. Baroque Venice also boasted many talented musical women, many of whom attended the orphanage and music school Ospedale della Pietà, where Vivaldi was maestro di violino.

The programme also features a violin sonata, likely written by Vivaldi for Anna Maria, one of his talented female students, and a sparkling divertimento by Anna Bon di Venezia, who attended the school as a fee-paying student shortly after Vivaldi’s death. Interspersed throughout are impassioned arias and duets for soprano and tenor by Vivaldi and Monteverdi, and by Handel, whose early opera Rodrigo was premiered in Venice.