The Playfords on ORF, concert on August 15, 2025

Tunes and Ballads from the Plays of William Shakespeare (1564 – 1616)

25th Anniversary Concert of The Playfords at the Playground Festival

with special guests

The ensemble The Playfords provides the music for the ball. The sounds that once filled London townhouses—accompanying dancing, music-making, and social gatherings—come alive again at the Berlin Early Music Festival as a spirited ball-concert. The Playfords have created varied and imaginative arrangements of these “Country Dance Tunes,” which range from cheerful and lighthearted to dreamy or even melancholic. Historic melodies meet a palpable joy in performance, inviting everyone to join in the dance.

Cast:
Mark Frenzel – Dance Master

Björn Werner – Vocals, Baroque guitar
Annegret Fischer – Recorders
Claudia Mende – Baroque violin
Erik Warkenthin – Lute, Baroque guitar, Chitarrone
Benjamin Dreßler – Viola da gamba
Nora Thiele – Percussion

Advent and Christmas music from the Renaissance and early Baroque

Under the title “Nova! Nova!” (“New! New!”), The Playfords devote themselves to Christmas music from the 14th to 18th centuries. Songs and dances from England, France and Spain are grouped around well-known German melodies.

As an ensemble of specialists in early music, The Playfords place themselves in the almost lost tradition of improvising Renaissance and Baroque musicians. With their playful and authentic approach, they allow the music of days gone by to live out the whole range of Christmas emotions, from quiet emotion to exuberant ecstasy, including tongue-in-cheek contemporary references.

Like every year, we play the program with Claudia Mende on the baroque violin.

free choice of seats, admission 5.30 p.m.

Ticket prices in advance at Weimar Tourism:
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Ticket prices at the box office:
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Ticket pre-order (purchase at the box office at around 5.30 p.m.):

Advent and Christmas music from the Renaissance and early Baroque