Andreas Scholl and the ACO

Helene, Rebecca, Timo-Veikko and Christopher play Pärt

Sometimes you hear a concert and you say to yourself:  'That was just perfection'. Last week's  Andreas Scholl sings Vivaldi, in Sydney was one of those.

The concert was much more than just Vivaldi. Works by Arvo Pärt and Schnittke were a perfect lead in, played by an ACO quintet: Helena Rathbone/ Rebecca Chan (violin) Christopher Moore (viola), Timo-Veikko Valve (cello) and Maxime Bibeau on his new (very old) bass. The quintet were joined by Tommie Andersson (Theorbo) and Neal Peres da Costa (Chamber Organ) to accompany Scholl.

Andreas Scholl sings

Andreas Scholl has an amazing and an amazingly controlled voice. He sings countertenor and I read that he says you have to have a strong sense of gender identity as a male to sing with a high voice. After all, in the past men with high voices were castrati.