Concerti grossi

When the young Handel arrived in Rome in 1707, there was one man he was desperate to meet: Ancangelo Corelli (1653-1713). Now in his fifties, Corelli was at the height of his fame in Rome, where he was undoubtedly the city's most prominent composer. Celebrated for his instrumental pieces, he played a fundamental role in the development of new forms that brought him international renown: the sonata and... the concerto grosso.

Handel's Concerti grossi, composed in 1739 while he was living in London, bear witness to the lasting influence Corelli exerted on him. By adopting one of the Italian master's most characteristic forms, Handel - himself by then an adulated composer - was following in his footsteps. But he also asserted his originality by introducing significant changes to his Concerti, to further develop their expressive possibilities.

To close the 2025 edition of the Festival de Printemps, Paul Agnew has entrusted the orchestra's direction for this concert to Emmanuel Resche-Caserta, concertmaster of Les Arts Florissants and musical assistant to William Christie.