Inspired by Rome’s Palazzo Farnese, familiar as the setting of Act Two of Puccini’s Tosca, the very pretty Hobart Town Hall has itself been inspiring, as the venue for a week of Chamber Music concerts, an essential component of the Hobart Baroque Festival.

Made up of soloists from Orchestra of the Antipodes, the name Ensemble HB is a concocted one specifically for this Festival. They were having a night off from duties just down the road in the pit of the Theatre Royal, accompanying a production of Handel’s Orlando. In this shortish concert, they gave us well-known bite-sized chunks of Bach and Handel.

Opening with a lovely walking tempo for Bach’s Air on a G string, this ensemble of  just six players reminded us of the adaptability of great Baroque music, whether enjoyed in this pared-down form, or in a lush Leopold Stokowski arrangement for 101 strings. For me, it was a treat to hear the individual parts of this classic so clearly, with the moments of clashing harmonies made even more poignant.

Indefatigable music director for the Festival, Erin Helyard, took on solo duties for Bach’s Harpsichord Concerto in D major. He told us that...