An extremely enjoyable concert in Saint-Chamassy in the Dordogne, part of the XXXI Festival Musique en Périgord. Quatuor Akitania played a very varied programme, including  Bach and Mozart, Shostakovich String Quartet no. 8 and works by two new, to me, composers from Azerbaijan: Khayyam Mirzazadeh and Moussa Mirzoyev.

J.S. Bach: 2 Fugues, BWV 1080, counterpoints 1 & 5; Mozart: Divertimento in D, KV 136; Mirzazadeh: 8 miniatures; Mirzoyev: String Quartet no. 1; Shostakovich: String Quartet no. 8

In Cahors, in the Lot department of France, for an excellent concert to celebrate the 900th anniversary of Saint Etienne Cathedral. Orchestre National du Capitole de Toulouse under Lio Kuokman played the overture to Schumann’s ‘Genoveva’ and Brahms ‘Concerto for Violin and Orchestra’, with soloist Kristi Gjezi, in the first half, followed by an extremely well played Symphony no. 3 by Schumann in the second half.

Schumann: Overture to ‘Genoveva’, opus 81: Brahms: ‘Concerto for Violin and Orchestra’, opus 77: Schumann: ‘Symphony no. 3’, opus 97.

The walled town of Monteriggioni

San Gimignano

Benozzo Gozzoli ‘Scenes from the Life of Sant’ Agostino’ (1464 – 65) San Gimignano

Volterra

Rosso Fiorentino ‘Deposition from the Cross’ (c.1521) Pinacoteca Comunale, Volterra

Piazza del Campo and Palazzo Pubblico, Siena

Ambrogio Lorenzetti ‘The Effects of Good Government’ (1338 – 39) Palazzo Pubblico, Siena

Ambrogio Lorenzetti ‘The Effects of Bad Government’ (1338 – 39) Palazzo Pubblico, Siena

Simone Martini ‘Maestà’ (1312 – 15)

Simone Martini ‘Guidoriccio da Fogliano’ (1328)

Siena Cathedral

Florence Cathedral

Frescoes by Masaccio, Masolino and Filippino Lippi, Brancacci Chapel, Santa Maria del                                                                      Carmine, Florence

Masaccio ‘Expulsion of Adam and Eve from Eden’ (c.1424 – 27) Brancacci Chapel

In Florence for the exhibition ‘Verrocchio – Master of Leonardo’. The artist known as Verrocchio was born Andrea di Michele in Florence, circa 1435. He trained as a goldsmith but also became a master of carving in marble. He came to painting late, but by about 1470 he had established himself with works such as ‘Madonna and Child’, ‘The Virgin and Child with Two Angels’ and ‘Tobias and the Angel’.

He was responsible for training some of the greatest artists of the second half of the fifteeenth century, including Pietro Perugino, Domenico Ghirlandaio, Lorenzo di Credi, Sandro Botticelli and Leonardo da Vinci.

Andrea Verrocchio ‘Madonna and Child’ (c.1470)

Andrea Verrocchio ‘Virgin and Child with Two Angels’ (c.1471 – 72)

Andrea Verrocchio ‘Madonna and Child’ (c.1470 or 1475)

Andrea Verrocchio ‘Tobias and the Angel’ (c.1471 – 72)

Andrea Verrocchio ‘Giuliano di Piero de’ Medici’ (c.1475)

Andrea Verrochio and Lorenzo di Credi ‘Madonna and Child between St. John the Baptist                                                      and St. Donatus’ (c.1475 – 86)