The Pacific Baroque Festival returns to Victoria, BC from February 15-19  presenting five superb concerts. With the theme of Music for Distracted Times, this year’s Festival will musically transport you back to Baroque England of the 17th and 18th centuries – a time when King Charles II sat on the throne and London was celebrated as a center of artistic expression. As Britain prospered, so did the arts as a flourishing middle class sought to enjoy the finer things in life, including music. The ‘rage for music,’ as it was known at the time, created an environment where composers such as the iconic Henry Purcell flourished. As a thriving center of commercial and cultural vitality, London also attracted musicians from across Europe, including Georg Frideric Handel, creating what today might be described as an incubator of musical ideas. Festival Artistic Director Marc Destrubé (Baroque violin) heads an ensemble of leading early music artists including acclaimed soprano Arwen Myers, organist Mark McDonald (Asst. Music Director at Christ Church Cathedral), theorbist Lucas Harris, viola da gambists Eva Lymenstull and Natalie Mackie, Kathryn Wiebe (Baroque violin) and Marco Vitale (keyboard).  See Artists’ biographies here.  For complete concert lineup, programme details etc. click here.