La Fiocco, Bucks County’s baroque music ensemble, was in the midst of its 2019-2020 season, which had been launched by the highly successful “Stravaganza in Eco” concert in October 2019 at Trinity Church in Solebury, and the 1867 Sanctuary in Ewing, N.J.
La Fiocco was also pleased to be a repeat recipient of funding from the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, a state agency, and a tourism grant from Visit Bucks County. Then the pandemic struck.
This necessitated the cancellation of March’s “Fantasticus!,” virtuoso chamber music for the Habsburg emperors, and June’s “Cantate and Canzonette,” which was to mark the return of audience favorite soprano Laura Heimes. These concerts had been planned and anticipated for many months, with musicians coming from as far away as Massachusetts and Virginia.
Like many performing arts organizations, La Fiocco has been blindsided by the inability to give live performances. Maintaining an active profile has required a complete rethinking and much behind the scenes activity. Said music director Lewis R. Baratz, who also teaches at Lafayette College: “We are trying to make a virtue of necessity, and connect with our audience until we can make music in person again.”
Baratz’s wish list has long included improvements to the website, which has just been completely revamped. Professional video clips from concerts have been uploaded and are available for free viewing on La Fiocco’s new YouTube channel.
In addition, a new Artist of the Month feature has been initiated with sound clips featuring Sarah Davol, oboist, and Allen Hamrick, bassoonist. Reimbursing artists for their contributions to this project, as well as partial payment for the canceled concerts, has been made possible by the generosity of La Fiocco donors.
At this point, plans for La Fiocco’s October concert have been shelved as well. However, on a positive note, plans are underway for La Fiocco’s live “comeback” on March 20 (Ewing, N.J.) and March 21 (Solebury) 2021. These dates coincide with Johann Sebastian Bach’s 336th birthday.
“We miss seeing all of you and making music with our friends,” said Baratz. “But we’re counting the days until we see you again, and we’ll be better than ever!”
To subscribe to La Fiocco’s YouTube channel, go to
YouTube.com/c/LaFiocco. To make a donation so that La Fiocco can continue to be a cultural asset to the community, or to be placed on an email list and receive regular emails with the monthly Artist of the Month feature, visit
lafiocco.org. La Fiocco is a Pennsylvania nonprofit 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization.
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