Eye on the Scene: Burlington Baroque Festival

Burlington Baroque Festival, College Street Congregational Church, Burlington, Sunday, September 21:

It would usually be deemed an act of God or identity theft if I, a heathen, were to be seen crossing the threshold of a place of organized worship on a Sunday afternoon. Yet there I was last weekend, perched in the balcony of the College Street Congregational Church for the finale of the Burlington Baroque Festival. As late-afternoon light cast long colored beams through stained-glass windows, every pew in the room was filled for the start of “The Splendor of Versailles!” — the last of the four festival events this week. Adorned in all black and playing period-appropriate instruments such as the flauto traverso and 14-string lute, the ensemble of 33 vocalists and 21 instrumentalists, led by director Eric Milnes on organ and harpsichord, played through four long compositions from the time of King Louis XIV. The hour passed quickly, and as I exited I looked up, ready for the bolt of lightning in response to my heresy. Instead the sun shone down on me mercifully, as if to say, “See you next year, Luke.”