Baroque & Unknown | The 2024 Event Recap
We Made History a Party!
In October 2024, Baroque & Unknown launched as a Music Education Event Series designed to reimagine the artist salon for a modern audience, all with the intention of uplifting unknown women composers of the Baroque era.
Founded by Christina Bailey of The Creative Voice, with production partnership from Sophia Gonzalez of Creative Flow Studios and Matt Bailey of Joey Market Productions, these evenings weren’t just concerts or lectures, they were immersive experiences.
The goal was simple: to make the music and lives of early women composers feel as personal, exciting, and relevant today as they truly were in their own time—despite being overlooked by the history that followed
Held at Wendi Kirby Music in downtown Monterey, over two evenings, audiences stepped into a world where history wasn’t just studied, it was felt. Through performance, lecture, immersive theater, and discussion, these events created a space for connection, and discovery.
Night One: Where Are The Women? | Aleotti & Caccini Night | Featuring: Kathryn Radakovich of Boulanger Initiative
On October 7, 2024 the series opened with a deep dive into the music and stories of Late Renaissance and Baroque Composers Vittoria Aleotti and Francesca Caccini as well as a look into the current state of representation in Classical Music.
Grammy-nominated vocalist and Learning & Engagement Director of Boulanger Initiative, Kathryn Cruz (Formerly Radakovich), guided audiences through the lives of these composers, while highlighting the work of Boulanger Initiative through a detailed presentation on how women are currently represented in the classical music field.
Select vocalists of I Cantori Di Carmel and The Central Coast Chamber Choir, Christina Bailey, Sophia Gonzalez, Katie Jones, Alexa Dieterle and Jody Lee performed three of Aleotti’s choral works, while local soloist and Choral Conductor, Jody Lee, shared a gorgeous rendition of Caccini’s Maria, Dolce Maria.
Room decor was curated by Clusterfunk Creative, the smell of local wild Lavender filled the room, and video projections of historical insights were displayed on the walls like a museum installation. Guests were welcomed to enjoy small bites from Chic Charcuterique and Specialty Cocktails from Uncle Nearest Whiskey, all themed around the era and history of the two composers.
Celeste La Grange, a local Actor, portrayed Francesca Caccini in an immersive installation where guests could interact and ask questions, inviting the audience to consider the sacrifices women had to make to compose and perform.
Through a blend of storytelling, video, and sensory elements plus food and beverage pairings designed to evoke the world of a 17th-century convent, guests were asked a difficult question:
Would you take the veil if it were the only way you could make music?
Night Two: An Evening in Barbara Strozzi’s Artist Salon | Featuring: Dr. Charissa Noble of University of San Diego and Max Potter of Digitelle.co
On October 17th, the series continued with an exploration of Barbara Strozzi, led by musicologist Dr. Charissa Noble. Interwoven with the lecture was a series of performances by Christina Bailey, Sophia Gonzalez, Max Potter, and Ella Duenas, supported by a modern Continuo featuring Wendi Kirby, Matthew Xie, and Elizabeth Elvig.
This moment underscored a key theme of the evening—heritage in mentorship, and the ways in which artistic lineage shapes the future of music. Ella is a local High School Student and studies voice with Event Co-Producer, and Performer, Sophia Gonzalez. Ella had the opportunity to sing with a continuo for the first time and share her gorgeous talents with a fully engaged, intimate, audience.
Following Ella’s performance, Sophia captivated the room with a stunning version of Lagrime Mie by Barbara Strozzi—one of her most emotionally charged and technically demanding works, showcasing the depth and drama of the Baroque lament.
Christina followed with a modern interpretation of Che Si Può Fare, blending traditional phrasing with improvisation alongside the continuo, reimagining Strozzi’s timeless questions through a contemporary and collaborative lens.
Max Potter, Opera Singer and Founder of Digitelle Co extended the conversation into the present, drawing connections between Barbara Strozzi’s resilience and the realities of social media-driven self-promotion for today’s artists, while also performing a rousing rendition of Strozzi’s Tradimento! one of Strozzi’s more playful and fiery works, full of rhythmic tension and expressive contrast.
Throughout both evenings, the setting itself reinforced the event’s mission. The salon-style seating encouraged conversation, while carefully curated food and beverages provided a multi-sensory link to the music’s historical context. This was not a passive listening experience—it was a dialogue between past and present, between the artists of history and the artists of today.
Who Made It Happen
The series was made possible through the vision and support of a dedicated group of artists and partners, including:
Christina Bailey of The Creative Voice
Sophia Gonzalez of Creative Flow Voice Studios and Clusterfunk Creative
Matt Bailey of Joey Market Productions
The Arts Council for Monterey County
Wendi Kirby Music
Maddox Habberdasher of Uncle Nearest Whiskey
Miles Cook of Chic Charcuterique
Leslee Wood of Dulcamara Press