The festival’s title concert, French Connexions, features Rachel Podger, Brecon Baroque and guest soloists Katy Bircher (flute), Mélisande Corriveau (viola da gamba), Jadran Duncumb (lute) and Marcin Swiatkiewicz (harpsichord). They perform chamber music by Jean-Philippe Rameau (1683-1764), Elisabéth Jacquet de La Guerre (1665-1729), Marin Marais (1656-1728), Henry Purcell (1659-1695), JS Bach (1685-1750) and Georg Philipp Telemann (1681-1767).

These musicians lived within 100 years of each other. The French monarchy, courts, palaces, musical instruments and fashions influenced culture right across Europe at that time. This concert explores these threads and influences on some of the most important composers of the era.

There will be two sittings of the same FREE pre-concert talk in The Studio at 6.15pm and 6.45pm given by Dr Keith Chapin (Cardiff University, School of Music)