City Chamber Orchestra of Hong Kong Union Church Hong Kong Sat, 8pm
Oboist Leanne Nicholls doesn't have any problems comprehending Italian musical terms such as allegro ('cheerful' or 'brisk'), con brio ('with vigour') or concerto grosso ('big concert'). But the founder and artistic director of the City Chamber Orchestra of Hong Kong found herself reaching for her dictionary to figure out the meaning of the name given to the Antonio Vivaldi work - Il Grosso Mogul - that will open the troupe's forthcoming baroque concert.
It was only after a conversation with violinist and guest concertmaster Andrea Zanchetta - who, like Vivaldi, hails from Venice - that she discovered the Concerto for Violin in D Major, Il Grosso Mogul (The Grand Mogul) is named after a diamond discovered in India.
Originally weighing 787 1/2 carats, the gem was the talk of the town around the time that Vivaldi composed the piece because Ortensio Borgio, the Venetian tasked with cutting it, somehow polished away so much of the jewel that his finished product came to only 279 carats.
Subsequently nicknamed 'Woman's Best Friend' by the musicians, 'it's a gem of a work', Nicholls (right) says with a laugh. She also thinks the piece possesses 'lots of virtuosity [and is] dazzling ... [and] brilliant', and adds that 'this concerto has been a favourite with many other composers - including Brahms and Mendelssohn'. Additionally, 'Bach held this piece in high esteem and copied and transcribed it for organ'.
The piece's featured soloist, Zanchetta, is based in Hong Kong but was formerly a solo violinist for Venice's Interpreti Veneziani. Described by Nicholls as 'very, very familiar with baroque Venetian composers', he is one of Baroque Concertos 2's three soloists and also plays Vivaldi's Concerto for 4 Violins in B Minor (along with City Chamber Orchestra violinists Hyang Yoo, Su Yan and Samuel Bin).