A COUPLE who started hosting professional classical music recitals in their living room to make full use of their grand piano, are holding their 100th event with a Handel cantata outdoors.
Breinton, the home of Kumi and Lionel Smith-Gordon in Hook Heath, will stage Clori, Tirsi and Fileno, in their garden in Heath House Road.
It will be the largest and most prestigious event at Breinton so far with three sopranos, eight musicians and a conductor, all from Bampton Classical Opera.
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The company has been described by Opera Now as “Britain's unchallenged champion of 18th-century opera” and the conductor, Julian Perkins, is an acclaimed Handel specialist.
The Breinton recitals began in spring 2009 with professional musicians invited to play the Smith-Gordon’s grand piano to a few friends.
The events then started to include other instruments and singers and Kumi and Lionel set up a not-for-profit community organisation to run regular recitals in their living room.
After a pause during the pandemic, the events restarted, initially in the garden.
“We have a patio that faces the garden and found that, because of the design of the house, it provides very good acoustics for people sitting on the lawn. This year we’ve also resumed our indoor events,” Lionel said.
Breinton also holds annual events for local young musicians as a way of reinvesting the income into music.
Handel’s 1707 comic cantata, believed lost for many years, will come alive on Saturday 24 September at 4pm.
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“This comic opera in miniature shows off the best of Handel’s understanding of the voice and is a gem of a work,” Lionel said. “Breinton is a fitting location for this engaging story of pastoral pleasure and pain.”
The gates at Breinton, near the junction with Bagshot Road, will open at 3pm with a gala reception starting at 3.30pm. The audience can bring their own seats, or borrow some from the venue, and can bring picnics.
Lionel added the 100th event is a very special occasion and thanked the regulars who have attended over the past 13 years.
“We reached this milestone together and we hope to share the enjoyment of music with as many of you as possible,” he said.
FOR more information, visit www.breinton.com, email [email protected] or call 0300 075 0199