The flourishing music scene in London is not a recent phenomenon. In the 18th century, private organisers established a subscription system for concerts in the most prestigious halls of the British capital. One of the most famous concert series of the second half of the 18th century was the Bach-Abel Society. Created by the singer and celebrity of the time, Teresa Cornelys, it was launched in 1765 with concerts held in the soprano’s own salons. Three seasons later, Johann Christian Bach and Carl Friedrich Abel took over the direction of the cycle, eventually scheduling their events in the prestigious salons of Hannover Square between 1775 and 1781.

The atmosphere of these evenings was very different from that of today’s concert. While today the spectator listens in complete silence, in those days the audience could chat and exchange views in a relaxed atmosphere from the comfort of their seats. According to testimonies of the time, the passionate atmosphere of these evenings moved the audience from laughter to tears in a matter of seconds.The music presented at these concerts was of the highest quality in the musical context of the time. Bach and Abel played their own compositions and invited musicians from all over Europe to participate in these events, as was the case with Juan Oliver Astorga. A composer from Murcia, he moved to London in 1767, attended the Bach-Abel concerts and became a collaborating member and employee of the society. It also included repertoire by the most outstanding musicians of the time, such as Carl Phillip Emanuel Bach and Joseph Haydn.

One of the most interesting aspects of the Bach-Abel Society is the rich amalgam of sonorities from different periods that coexisted in London at this time. Carl Friedrich Abel, violagambist, and Johann Christian Bach, harpsichordist, witnessed the transition from baroque to classicism, and this repertoire can be performed on both baroque instruments (harpsichord or viola da gamba) and more modern ones (fortepiano or cello).