Vivaldi's splendid Summer from the Four Seasons is one of the Baroque era's most thrilling masterworks — but did you know he wasn't the only Italian composer to set the seasons? Join us for the Kansas City premiere of fellow Italian Giovanni Antonio Guido's own Summer, from his Four Seasons — a fascinating companion piece that invites the question: who said it first? Also on the program: Corelli's elegant Trio Sonata, Op. 3 No. 5 and Luigi Mancia's delightful Sinfonia — a perfect program of Italian Baroque splendor to launch our summer series.

Few works in the entire Baroque repertoire carry the emotional weight of Pergolesi's Stabat Mater — a setting of heartbreaking beauty that has moved audiences for nearly three centuries. This program builds toward that masterwork with purpose: Alessandro Scarlatti's luminous Sonate a quatro senza clavicembalo, a purely instrumental gem, sets the stage with elegance and depth before Pergolesi's profound meditation on grief and devotion takes hold. 

KC Baroque welcomes back two of KC's most distinguished voices whose careers have taken them to the world's finest concert halls. Soprano Hannah De Priest, and countertenor Jay Carter! Join us in one of one of Kansas City's most exquisite sacred spaces, Our Lady of Sorrows Catholic Church, a setting of rare spiritual and acoustic beauty perfectly suited to music of this magnitude.

What better way to close a summer of Italian Baroque splendor than beneath a canopy of stars — each work on this program a brilliant point of light!

The evening opens with one of the Baroque's most dazzling showpieces: Corelli/Geminiani's La Folia, a set of variations that has captivated audiences for centuries, its theme endlessly inventive and full of fire. Telemann's brooding, atmospheric Concerto for Bass Viola da Gamba follows, with guest soloist Tess Roberts who returns bringing a rare and luminous voice to this seldom-heard gem. 

KC's own Trevor Stewart is featured in Vivaldi's Recorder Concerto in C Major — a KC native and ensemble favorite equally at home on recorder, chalumeau, as clarinet, Stewart brings warmth and wit to every performance. And the evening reaches its radiant finale with Vivaldi's Concerto for Four Violins — four soloists blazing together with the full KC Baroque ensemble in a perfect last flourish of the summer sky.