Name: ABS Artist Showcase Series
Start: 2022-04-10T15:00:00
Location: San Francisco War Memorial

Sarah Coit

Steven Bailey

American Bach Soloists

In one historic moment, Bach set the stage for the harpsichord to claim its place as a concerto soloist. The instrument's meteoric evolution from a harmony-playing member of the Basso continuo team to an elevated solo instrument worthy of concertos occurred when Bach composed a frenzied cadenza for the harpsichord in his Fifth Brandenburg Concerto. That work alone employs the harpsichord in three roles, to add harmonic texture, to share the spotlight with flute and violin as a melodic chamber instrument, and ultimately to completely take over the proceedings with a dramatic stepping out, front and center.

Bach's Harpsichord

St. Stephen's Episcopal Church

Saint Mark's Episcopal Church

Davis Community Church

St. Mark's Lutheran Church, San Francisco

At our "A Baroque New Year's Eve at the Opera" concert in 2019, Sarah Coit brought the house down with her dazzling performances of arias from Handel's Giulio Cesare, Riccardo I ré d’Inghilterra, Theodora, and Ariodante. Two months later, she became the recipient of the 2020 Jeffrey Thomas Award, and she will be heard in December 2021 in ABS's concerts of Handel's Messiah in Grace Cathedral and the Green Music Center. A prize-winner from the George London Foundation and the Handel Aria Competition, her repertoire ranges from the Baroque to operas including The Marriage of Figaro with Michigan Opera Theatre (Cherubino) and The Barber of Seville with Utah Opera (Rosina). An experienced and captivating recital artist, Sarah will present a varied program of some of her favorite works ranging from bravura arias from Baroque opera and musical drama — including Handel's Ariodante and Hercules, Monteverdi's L’incoronazione di Poppea, and Vivaldi's Juditha Triumphans — to the deeply moving song cycle by Dominick Argento, "From the Diary of Virginia Woolf."