«The Pleasant Deception, or The Carnival of Venice» is the title of a libretto that enjoyed great popularity in the early 18th century at two of the leading opera houses in central  and northern Germany. It was a «play with singing» that offered a range of intense emotions to the guests of the Hamburg Opera at Gänsemarkt and the Leipzig Opera House at Brühl. Representing the German Baroque, composers Reinhard Keiser, Christoph Graupner, and Johann David Heinichen portrayed a fantasy image dealing with «La dolce vita», «Avventure amorose», Italian machismo, and other similar «vices».

The bilingual arias and duets in German and Italian tell of love, eternal faithfulness, frivolous deception, tormenting jealousy, sorrow, and great freedom. Above all, the motto of the «teutsche Prinzessin Celinde» [German princess Celinde] stands out: «Free from loves, free from sorrows», which is why she went to the city in the lagoon to attend the operas of the local carnival season.

What once resonated in Hamburg and Leipzig now exists only partially in manuscript form. The ensemble Barockwerk Hamburg specializes in rediscovering forgotten works and breathes new life into this extraverted music. With two versatile soloists, soprano Hanna Herfurtner and baritone Matthias Vieweg, the ensemble presents a carefully selected repertoire of vocal numbers, interspersed with dance movements from the opéra-ballet «Le Carnaval de Venise» by André Campra, adding a finely tuned French flavor.