The economic splendour of these cites favoured a thriving culture and the towns became important centres of musical creation. The commercial routes became channels of cultural circulation and exchange, through which, for example, Flemish polyphony reached far-northern Europe.

The sources of inspiration of the 21 concerts making up Laus 2008 are the little known or unpublished musical collections kept in municipal libraries and the history of local composers. Sacred polyphony, lute music and organ works from these cities will be the basis of this musical and geographical journey. Concerto Palatino will be the festival’s ensemble-in-residence, perfectly suiting the type of repertory from the Hanseatic cities, where the performance of polyphonic vocal works using brass instruments was common practice.

Concerto Palatino, together with the Gesualdo Consort Amsterdam, will inaugurate the Festival with “The Golden Age of Danzig”, featuring works by Andreas Hakenberger and Paul Siefert, two of the city’s greatest figures during the 16th and 17th centuries (23 August). This marks the beginning of an intense week with three concerts a day, some of particular interest. On 24 August, Cantus Cölln will take us to Lübeck, a city in which the organ dominated a rich musical scene, with works by Buxtehude and Tunder.

The German ensemble Weser Renaissance will perform motets by Philipp Dulichius, known as the “Lassus de Pommeren” one of the most active composers of sacred music in the Hanseatic territory (25 August). The organist Liuwe Tamminga will perform pieces from the Lüneburger tablatures, manuscripts written around 1660, on the magnificent Blasius Bremser organ in the Elzenveld chapel (27 August). Capilla Flamenca will rediscover domestic music from 16th-century Danzig, demonstrating how Flemish polyphony influenced the works of the local Polish composers (30 August).

The Huelgas Ensemble with Paul Van Nevel will close this year’s festival with works by Michael Praetorius (31 August). The Festival includes masterclasses for Renaissance woodwind instruments, focusing on the study of 16th-century German polyphony (26-31 August), as well as a young performers’ presentation-concert (30 August) and an international conference about the music of the Hanseatic League.
For more information, visit: www.festival.be