4 Women - 40 Instruments - The Recorder Quartet Flautando Köln

Of the splendor of heaven and hellfire
“The little angels are baking Christmas cookies,” is what we like to tell our children when the evening sky turns to bright colors during Advent. And in fact, one of the first associations with the term angel that many people in our culture have is that of guarding and protecting. We think of cute little creatures with golden curls who diligently do good things in heaven, or of the “guardian angel” who watches over our every step.
"The angels are very close to us and protect us and God's creatures on his behalf. In order to be able to protect us, they have long arms so that they can easily drive away Satan." (Martin Luther)
Angels are not only delicate and lovely, but also strong and fierce. So strong that they can drive away Satan. But if they no longer use their strength for good, but become proud or even strive for equality with God, they will be expelled from heaven. We then talk of the fall into hell, and the path is not far from the divine messenger to the fallen angel who goes to the dark side, such as Lucifer, the “most famous” of these renegade, fallen angels.
With this program we explore the fascination of the supernatural and the eternal tension between light and darkness, good and evil, contemplation and intoxication with works from the Middle Ages to the present day.
A fairy tale by the American-Lebanese poet and philosopher Khalil Gibran will be played as a connecting element. The story of Lucifer and the Wise Man tells in a poetic way of the polarity of good and evil that explains and holds the world together.
As a guest we have invited the harpist, singer, recorder player and storyteller Holger Schäfer to this program, who not only tells this story and illustrates it musically, but also accompanies us in some of the pieces of music.
In the first part of the program we devote ourselves to the myth of the "Diabolus in Musica", the devil in music, as well as musical settings that tell of the battle with evil and temptations.
With works from Renaissance polyphony, we focus on various aspects of angels: heralds and bearers of important messages and good news, and comforters in seemingly hopeless situations, and conclude the concert with a fiery “Vuur”. This contemporary work was composed for Renaissance recorders and incorporates many elements from medieval estampies.