Vokalprojekt 31 is a groundbreaking ensemble of five vocalists, performing 31-tone music from the Renaissance, early Baroque, and the present century. The ensemble is accompanied by Ere Lievonen on the 31-tone organ, also known as the Fokker organ. Together they perform microtonal music with great drive, aiming to showcase the unique possibilities of the 31-tone system and meantone tuning in both early and contemporary music. In this way, Vokalprojekt 31 once again guarantees performances of idiosyncratic works from the Renaissance and the 21st century.
The 31-tone madrigals from 1555 by the Italian composer Nicola Vicentino are, of course, an essential part of the programme. This time, all four of his enharmonic madrigals from this collection will be sung, noting that only one of these madrigals has survived the centuries completely intact. A recent expansion of the ensemble to five singers has also made it possible to perform several famous madrigals by Carlo Gesualdo.
Alongside early vocal music, this morning will also feature fresh compositions from the 21st century, including a dreamlike 31-tone work by the composer/lutenist Andreas Arend, entitled Faictz ce que vouldras, and the organ piece Fantazia by the Finnish composer Olli Virtaperko, who drew inspiration from the contrapuntal keyboard music of the 17th century. Furthermore, a special arrangement of sections from the fascinating Koerikoeloem by the Dutch composer Miranda Driessen is on the programme, in which electronic sounds mystically complement the ensemble.