Performer: Skip Sempé

Opening the Oslo International Church Music Festival with excerpts of a secular opera, Skip Sempé and Capriccio Stravagante fail to impress with their performance of Campra's L'Europe galante.

In the oldest quarter of Utrecht sat two harpsichords nestled side-by-side in a dimly lit corner of the Geertekerk. It was perhaps an unassuming sight from afar, yet as Skip Sempé and Pierre Hantaï entered the space, the atmosphere suddenly perked up the attentions of unsuspecting ears.

The music spoke for itself the other day in Amsterdam, as the truly communicative and inspiring Helsinki Baroque Orchestra showed its strength on the Concertgebouw stage.