The church of San Giovanni in Bragora, Venice, will be the scene, this Friday, 11th September, of a very special concert by Acadèmia 1750, the Torroella Festival Period Orchestra. The concert is jointly promoted by the Institut Ramon Llull and the Musical Youth Association of Torroella de Montgrí. As Josep Bargalló, the Director of the IRL pointed out, "This is one of the most important activities that the IRL has scheduled for the autumn in Venice as part of the Catalan participation at the Art Biennale."

Acadèmia 1750 will perform Juditha Triumphans, an oratorio by Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741), at the church of San Giovanni in Bragora, at which Vivaldi was baptised. The concert will include solo performances by Emanuela Galli, Josè Maria Lo Monaco, Gemma Coma-Alabert, María Hinojosa and Marta Infante, accompanied by the Stagione Armonica Choir and Acadèmia 1750, conducted by Ottavio Dantone. 

The Artistic Director of Acadèmia 1750, Oriol Pérez, emphasized the complexity of the piece, which "has not been performed in Venice for the last twenty years". Pérez also wanted to stress the importance of "the guarantee of having the Italian harpsichordist and conductor Ottavio Dantone, considered worldwide to be one of the greatest specialists in interpreting eighteenth century music, especially the works of Antonio Vivaldi".

This production was first performed in 2007 at the Torroella de Montgrí International Music Festival, and has only been performed at Torroella and Lugo, where a live recording was made with the support of the IRL. This year, on the occasion of Catalonia's participation at the Venice Art Biennale, the
Torroella de Montgrí International Music Festival and the Institut Ramon Llull have joined forces and resources to allow the interpretation of this oratorio at the church of San Giovanni in Bragora, coinciding with the National Day of Catalonia.