The Korkyra Barouque Festival has established itself as one of the finest early music festivals in Croatia with consistently high standards of performance, artists and beautiful venues.
The Festival was founded in 2012. under the artistic direction of Saša Britvić and with financial support from Maša and Michael Unsworth. The aim was to present performances of early music by the finest Croatian and International artists to local inhabitants and visitors to the area.
The Festival has built a reputation with both audiences and performers as an outstanding cultural event that combines magical music with beautiful surroundings. The churches, atriums, squares and hidden courtyards combined with the natural beauty of Korcula and the Peljesac Peninsula provide perfect settings for beautiful music.
Following the sad death of Saša Britvic in 2015. the Artistic Direction of the Festival was taken over by the violinist Laura Vadjon, who has furthered and strengthened the legacy with the support from HRBA (Croatian Baroque Ensemble) of which she is the Director . They provide a strong core of talented performers and have been the residential ensemble since the first edition of the Festival.
This year’s Festival presents ten thematically different programs featuring performers from England, Spain, Finland, Italy, Belgium, Scotland and Croatia. Apart from the town of Korčula, festival programs can also be heard on the island of Vrnik, in Vela Luka,Račišće, Pupnat and in Viganj. From Bach to flamenco, from instrumental virtuosos and renowned vocal soloists to a Scottish choir at the end.
On the 1st of September we will present a new Croatian two-manual harpsichord from the Pavlinić & Depolo workshops which was commissioned by our patron and founder of the Festival – Michael Unsworth.
We are proud that, despite COVID restrictions, we have been able to present a strong programme to our audiences every year and look forward to producing great performances for many years to come.