The Crown of Creativity

Featuring

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  Marika Holmqvist Violin
  

  Marika Holmqvist

  Violin

  During her over quarter-century career, baroque violinist, Marika Holmqvist has appeared as concertmaster for orchestras and opera companies on three continents, directed ensembles on both sides of the Atlantic, and served as artistic co-director for groups in the USA such as Sinfonia New York (NYC) and the Boston-based ensemble, Cambridge Concentus. Currently her leadership positions include Washington Bach Consort (DC), Reykjavik International Baroque Orchestra (Iceland), Spire Ensemble (KC), Zenith Ensemble (NH), Indianapolis Baroque Orchestra, Fort Wayne Bach Collegium (IN), and Philadelphia based MIRYAM, among others. Marika is a dedicated and passionate educator, and has served as coach and guest leader for baroque operas at Cornell, Harvard and Rutgers Universities, and given master-classes and lectures at institutions across Europe. Alongside her master’s degree in baroque violin performance from the Royal Conservatory of The Hague in the Netherlands, she also graduated with a master’s in baroque violin pedagogy—the first such degree ever granted in Europe. She is a founding member of Philadelphia’s Franklin Quartet and her 30 recordings include the Grammy-nominated Handel’s Israel in Egypt with the Trinity Wall Street Choir and Baroque Orchestra.

  Marika is also a dedicated and passionate educator. She has served as coach and guest leader for baroque operas at Cornell, Harvard and Rutgers Universities, and given master-classes and lectures at institutions across Europe. Alongside her master’s degree in baroque violin performance from the Royal Conservatoire of The Hague in the Netherlands, she also graduated with a master’s in baroque violin pedagogy—the first such degree ever granted in Europe.

  Her 20-odd recordings include the Grammy-nominated Handel’s Israel in Egypt with the Trinity Wall Street Choir and Baroque Orchestra. Marika has a Finn’s love for the outdoors and when she is not performing or teaching, you will most likely find her cross country skiing, hiking, kayaking, or gravel or mountain biking.

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  Estelí Gomez Soprano
  

  Estelí Gomez

  Soprano

  Praised for her “clear, bright voice” (New York Times) and “artistry that belies her young years” (Kansas City Metropolis), soprano Estelí Gomez is quickly gaining recognition as a stylish interpreter of early and contemporary repertoires. In January 2014 she was awarded a Grammy with contemporary octet Roomful of Teeth, for best chamber music/small ensemble performance; in November 2011 she received first prize in the Canticum Gaudium International Early Music Vocal Competition in Poznan, Poland.
  Estelí can be heard on the soundtrack of Lena Dunham’s 2022 film Catherine, Called Birdy, Seattle Symphony’s 2017 recording of Nielsen’s Symphony No. 3, on the first track of Silkroad Ensemble’s Grammy-winning 2016 album Sing Me Home, and on Roomful of Teeth’s self-titled debut album, for which composer Caroline Shaw’s Partita was awarded the 2013 Pulitzer Prize.

  Highlights of the 2022-23 season include: performances with the NY Philharmonic and Roomful of Teeth in the new David Geffen Hall; recording a Spanish translation of Handel’s Messiah with Bach Collegium San Diego; the world premiere of chamber opera Dreams Have No Borders in Ashland, OR; solo appearances with A Far Cry, Madison Bach Musicians, Westminster Choir College, Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra, and iSing Silicon Valley; teaching residencies at University of Oregon and Oregon Bach Festival; and concerts at Lincoln Center and the Baryshnikov Arts Center, with additional tours throughout Europe and Portugal, with Roomful of Teeth. Roomful’s third studio album, Rough Magic, will be released in early 2023.

  Originally from Watsonville, California, Estelí received her Bachelor of Arts with honors in music from Yale College, and Master of Music from McGill University, studying with Sanford Sylvan.

  Estelí is thrilled to be teaching at Lawrence University as assistant professor of voice, in addition to continuing her work as a performer. She is also a proud member of Beyond Artists, a coalition of artists who donate a percentage of their concert fees to organizations they care about. She is currently donating to RAICES and the Texas Civil Rights Project.

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  Brittney Buffo Actress
  

  Brittney Buffo

  Actress

  Brittney is a storyteller and dreamer alongside her husband Michael, as co-founders of House of 8 Media. She is a proud alumnus of California State Polytechnic University Pomona, and has been seen on stage with Shakespeare Santa Monica, Southern California Shakespeare Festival, and Will Geer Theatricum Botanicum. She is most humbled to play the role of Mom to three little boys. You can find her directing videos with her husband, reciting poetry at the Tor House, or singing with the Carmel Valley Women’s Choir. She is thrilled to collaborate with New Canon Theater Co for the first time at the Bach Festival. The ancestors of Carmel’s art colony are smiling down on us!

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  Vincent Cardinale Actor
  

  Vincent Cardinale

  Actor

  Vincent Cardinale is a founding member of the physical theater company, Not Man Apart, that originated here on the Monterey Peninsula with John Farmanesh-Bocca. He is a graduate of the Central School of Speech and Drama in London, UK, with an emphasis in Circus Arts. He has spent the last 10 years in Los Angeles, producing various commercials and films such as From Black, starring Anna Camp.

  He is particularly excited to be performing at the Carmel Bach festival because he has such fond memories of attending the concerts when he was a child, where his mother Laura Cardinale was one of the Managing Directors.