Bach Akademie Australia, led with aplomb by violinist/director Madeleine Easton, always programs interesting works from the early music repertoire.

The Class of ’85 refers to 1685, the year of the birth of three of the greatest composers of the time (and ever since): Johann Sebastian Bach, George Frederick Handel, and Domenico Scarlatti.

With 10 instrumentalists and two singers, the ensemble covered a lot of ground, giving us a taste of the German, French and Italian Baroque styles.

Scarlatti’s setting of the Salve Regina opened the program. Domenico is well known for his keyboard sonatas –he wrote 555 of them – but less so for vocal music. This late work was quite wonderful. A limpid setting of the first stanza in slow triple time was followed by a quirkily sectional approach to the main text, closing with a joyful Amen.

Bach Akademie Australia: The Class of ’85. Photo © Keith Saunders

Nathan Cox’s organ continuo employed an ideal woodwind registration, supporting the warm tone of mezzo Hannah Fraser’s singing. This was followed by Polymnie’s Entrance Music from Jean-Philippe Rameau’s opera...