A CONCERT by I Fagiolini is always a special occasion, and tonight was no different. There was a kind of operatic, contemporary authenticity about this programme: a Venetian carnival brimming with vulgarity, vitality and life.

The show began with the pantomime characters interacting with the audience. We had barely sat down before Dottore Graziano passed by, boasting of his "ultimate maximum fart". He was true to his word, giving a virtuoso display of flatulence against a beautifully-judged vocal quintet in Orazio Vecchi’s Three Scenes.

The opening Mascarata da Lenguazi by Giovani Croce was completely nuts, except for the performance which was appropriately crisp, articulate and percussive. The Pythonesque tone continued with a wonderfully energised Captain Cardon, Zanni which was full of snappy, comic exchanges.

Mascarate di villanelle produced a delicious soprano/mezzo-soprano duet (Anna Crookes and Clare Wilkinson) supported by a willing vocalised instrumental trio. And then, following an effortless solo from countertenor Robert Hollingworth, having a pop at ‘thieving old crones’ (as you do), we bumped into the sublime, an exquisite, deeply moving performance of Andrea Gabrieli’s Sopra la morte d’Adriano.

After the hilarious goings on in the first half, you could have heard the proverbial pin drop in Matthew Long’s gorgeous, lyrical performance of Monteverdi’s Si dolce él’ tormento. Following an exquisite performance of Adriano Banchieri’s Madrigale capriccioso we were back to…an Italian version of George Formby’s classic, When I’m Cleaning Windows, from Robert Hollingworth. No, I couldn’t believe it either. Bypassing the gag with the semi-peeled banana, the concert found redemption in Monteverdi.