Salt Spring Baroque Music Society

05/02/2026

We still have a few openings for our summer baroque opera workshop on beautiful Salt Spring Island, British Columbia, Canada. August 16-22. We are looking for 1 oboist, 1 cellist, 1 double bass, tenor and bass vocalists. Pitch 415 Hz. Full scholarships are available for students registered at a post-secondary institution. We will be working on Handel's Acis & Galatea under the direction of the Handel Opera Academy's Enrique Gomez-Cabrero Fernandez, culminating in a performance on August 22. For more information, visit our website https://saltspringbaroque.com/salt-spring-baroque-workshop-august-16-22-2026handels-acis-and-galatea/

04/21/2026

Friday Night! SSB presents Ménestrel in "The Order of Good Cheer".
All Saints by-the-Sea, 7:00 pm, Friday April 24th.

From Montreal, Ménestrel is not your typical period-instrument ensemble. By juxtaposing early music with folk traditions—the "true songs of the people"—the group aims to demystify ancient repertoire. In Friday's concert, they will showcase the melodies that forged the foundations of French-Canadian culture, proving that music from four centuries ago remains as timeless and relevant today as it was then.

Ménestrelwas co-founded by two of Canada’s most compelling emerging artists: Janelle Lucyk and Kerry Bursey.
Janelle Lucyk is a celebrated soprano, violinist and producer specializing in historically informed performance. A graduate of the Conservatoire Royal de Bruxelles and Durham University, she balances a busy performance schedule with major administrative roles, including serving as the Artistic and Administrative Director of Musique Royale in Nova Scotia. She also directs the new ArtChoral series at the historic La Grande Salle du 9e in Montreal.

Kerry Bursey, a tenor and plucked-string instrumentalist, is known for a "dreamy troubadouresque sweetness" in his performances. He is a sought-after lutenist, theorbo player and guitarist who specializes in the art of self-accompaniment. In addition to his work with Ménestrel, he regularly performs as a soloist with renowned groups such as Ensemble Caprice and the Studio de musique ancienne de Montréal.

Their upcoming program features an evocative selection of songs inspired by the sea, the "new world," and universal themes of hope. It is a rare opportunity to hear world-class early music in an intimate local setting.

More information is available at saltspringbaroque.com. Tickets are available at saltspringbaroque.com, at artspring.ca, and at the door

04/16/2026

02/16/2026

Step back in time on February 28th at 3:00 pm as the Westwind Singers fill All Saints by-the-Sea with mesmerizing Spanish sacred music, mischievous Italian madrigals, and ethereal Byzantine chant. This 14-voice ensemble from Victoria is making their debut on Salt Spring, and they're bringing something special—music that's been lost to history for centuries.

The centerpiece of this debut program is the Missa Hortus conclusus by Spanish Renaissance composer Juan de Esquivel Barahona (c. 1560–1630). Despite being considered one of the finest composers of Spain's Golden Age, Barahona's music vanished for centuries. It wasn't rediscovered until 1973, when musicologist Robert Snow found it at Santa María de la Encarnación in Ronda. This luminous example of Renaissance polyphony deserves to be heard.

The concert also features madrigals by Maddalena Casulana (c. 1544–1590), the first woman in Western music history to publish an entire book of her own compositions. The Italian composer, lutenist, and singer dedicated her expressive music to patron Isabella de' Medici, offering a rare glimpse into the artistry of a pioneering Renaissance woman.

Victoria soprano Celeste Lingas will perform an interlude exploring her roots in Byzantine Chant, adding another unique voice to the afternoon.

Whether you're an early music enthusiast or new to Renaissance repertoire, you'll leave enchanted.

Tickets are available at http://www.saltspringbaroque.com and at the door. Adults $30/Students $5. A limited number of Angel tickets are available. Inquire at [email protected].

10/04/2025

Sneak peek. Concert is today at 4:00 at All Saints by-the-Sea. Tickets available at the door.

10/04/2025

Sound check for Victoria Baroque’s Cello Landscapes concert today at 4:00 pm at All Saints by-the-Sea. Tickets available at the door.

10/03/2025

Tomorrow, Oct 4th, on Salt Spring Island! All Saints by-the-Sea at 4:00 pm.

10/03/2025

SSB is excited to welcome back Victoria Baroque tomorrow, Saturday, October 4th at 4:00 pm at All Saints by-the-Sea. The program celebrates the warm, expansive bass frequencies of Victoria Baroque. Dutch-Canadian cellist Diederik Van Dijk joins Amy Laing and Katrina Russell to perform Baroque concertos, including Vivaldi's Concerto for Cello and Bassoon, RV 409, a piece full of evocative landscape painting very like Vivaldi's Four Seasons.
On the program, you will also hear new compositions by two Canadian women: Indigenous composer Cris Derksen, whose piece Land Bach is a response to the timeless music of Bach's Cello Suites; and composer and zoomusicologist Emily Doolittle, whose piece Utah 1996 explores the shapes and patterns of the song of the hermit thrush.
To balance the bass, Soile Stratkauskas offers Vivaldi's celebration of the song of the goldfinch in his concerto named "Il gardellino", and the program will close with Diederik Van Dijk's performance of Porpora's magnificently lyrical cello concerto. Porpora was a renowned voice teacher and opera composer whose generosity to his students left a lasting imprint on the musical landscape of the eighteenth century.
Tickets available at saltspringbaroque.com and at the door.

10/03/2025

Victoria Baroque rehearsing for their Cello Landscapes concert - happening tomorrow on Salt Spring! Saturday, October 4th @ 4:00 pm at All Saints by-the-Sea. Tickets available at saltspringbaroque.com and at the door.

09/21/2025

Enjoy Bach - Cello Suite nr 5: Allemande, performed by Diederik van Dijk, who will be the featured soloist at Victoria Baroque's concert "CELLO LANDSCAPES" on Saturday, October 4th @ 4:00 pm at All Saints by-the-Sea.

Johann Sebastian Bach: Cello suite nr 5 in C minor BWV 1011: AllemandeDiederik van Dijk: baroque celloRecorded on April 3rd, 2020 by Maarten van der Bijl