Apollo & Marsyas

Pitiful indeed-most pitiful-was the fate of the satyr Marsyas. (Ovid, "Metamorphoses") Apollo versus Marsyas-a musical contest pushed to it's ultimate limits. On it's new GENUIN album, the German-Spanish ensemble Marsyas Baroque transforms this ancient myth into a compelling musical narrative: an instrumental pasticcio that follows the unfolding story, interwoven with brief spoken texts that illuminate key moments along the way. Performed on historical instruments, works by Vivaldi, Telemann, Gesualdo, Reichenauer, and others enter into dialogue with a newly commissioned composition by Alessandra Bellino. Who decides the outcome of a contest over music itself? The answer is as unsettling as it is unforgettable.