Il Capo

Il Capo is a seasoned baroque ensemble of accomplished and virtuosic musicians, blending years of expertise with the refined elegance of mature artistry. The ensemble's core members are as follows:

Asako Ogawa (harpsichord/director) is one of today’s most versatile performers on the keyboard, from virginals and harpsichord to fortepiano and modern piano. She is originally from Japan and based in London. As a harpsichordist, Asako performs both as a soloist and as a continuo player in the UK, Europe and Japan. She was also a baroque repertoire coach at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama (2009-2023).
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Recently she issued Handel’s 8 Great Suite album with the First Hand Records label (FHR142), which was critically acclaimed. The BBC Music Magazine awarded 5 stars, and the critic Nicholas Anderson said, 'Asako Ogawa explores the rich variety of styles with rhythmic suppleness and a lively feeling for characterisation.' In the Gramophone Magazine, Jed Distler wrote, 'In all, her Handel Suites count among the best recorded versions.' American magazine Fanfare said, 'Do yourself a favour and take a listen to this release. You may hear qualities that you’ve never been aware of before. And you may be surprised at just how dynamic the instrument can be in the right hands.' Her previous album, JS Bach’s 6 Partitas album (FHR92), was also critically acclaimed and received four-star reviews in The Independent and BBC Music Magazine.
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Asako has been performing regularly in the London Handel Festival, Handel & Hendrix Museum, London and Händel-festspiele, Hallean der Saale, Germany. Her other main appearances include Handel's Alcina and Gluck's Orfeo ed Euridice with Opera North; Handel's Messiah with ENO (broadcast on BBC2); Brighton Early Music Festival; BBC Radio 3; a British Harpsichord Society recital; and the Georgian Concert Society, Edinburgh.

Nikolay Ginov (baroque cello, viola da gamba, bass violin) is a versatile Bulgarian-British cellist, born in Plovdiv and living in the UK. He performs on modern, classical and Baroque cello, viola da gamba and bass violin. His wide-ranging repertoire includes masterpieces from the 17th to 21st centuries.
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Nikolay was a member of the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment and performed under the baton of Sir Roger Norrington and Sir Simon Rattle in several concert tours and BBC PROMS. As a chamber musician, Nikolay took part in several international festivals such as 'Musica-Nova' Sofia and 'March Music Days' Rousse in Bulgaria, the Oberstdorf Summer Music Festival in Germany and the Banff Summer Music Festival in Canada. Internationally acclaimed groups and artists he has worked with include the Freude Piano Trio, the Sonore String Quartet, London Schubert Players, Trevor Pinnock and Laurence Cummings, to name a few.
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Prior to coming to the UK, Nikolay was the soloist of the 'Dobrin Petkov' Symphony Orchestra in Plovdiv and 'Pancho Vladigerov' Symphony Orchestra in Sofia. He made records for Plovdiv Radio, Bulgarian National Radio and Television. After moving to the UK in 2001, Nikolay performed in major concert venues such as Wigmore Hall, St John’s Smith Square, Queen Elizabeth Hall, and Purcell Room with various chamber ensembles.
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He has completed his MMus and Fellowship as a modern cellist under Stefan Popov at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and completed his PG Diploma as a baroque cellist with distinction under the late Jennifer Ward Clarke at the Royal Academy of Music. He was awarded a Dip RAM and the John McAslan Prize for his outstanding final recital. Nikolay is a founding member of various chamber music ensembles, including 'Scholars and Gentlemen', with whom he performed at the Valletta International Baroque Festival.
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Kristiina Watt (lute, theorbo, early guitars) enjoys a busy concert schedule as an orchestral and chamber musician. She performs regularly with leading groups in the historical performance scene and beyond such as the Academy of Ancient Music, BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra, BBC Singers, The English Concert, Scottish Chamber Orchestra and Scottish Ensemble. Kristiina particularly enjoys working with singers and regularly plays for consorts such as Ensemble Pro Victoria, The Marian Consort, Musica Secreta and Vache Baroque.

Kristiina also performs as a singer specialising in Renaissance and Baroque repertoire and particularly self-accompanied performance practice. In addition to formal training at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, she has been fortunate to receive coaching from Dame Emma Kirkby at the Guildhall School and continues her vocal studies with Dr Patricia Macmahon.
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Kristiina is an enthusiastic advocate for the creation of modern repertoire for old instruments and is currently fundraising with her ensemble The Portrait Players for a new commission for soprano, theorbo and viol by composer Clare Elton on the sonnets of 16th century poet Louise Labe. Kristiina is a graduate of the Guildhall School of Music & Drama, Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and the University of Glasgow.

Eva Caballero (flute) has a busy and varied musical career, performing with period instrument orchestras and ensembles in the UK and abroad. Playing on originals and reproductions of old flutes, she is confident performing repertoires from the Baroque period to the modern day. Originally from Barcelona, Spain, Eva was awarded a scholarship to study at Trinity College of Music, London, with Daniel Pailthorpe. Towards the end of her BMus (Hons) degree, she discovered the Baroque flute with Stephen Preston and continued her studies on historical flutes with Lisa Beznosiuk at the Royal Academy of Music. Her work involves performing in London-based ensembles and a variety of orchestras, including Solomon’s Knot, The Mozartists, The Sixteen, Gabrieli Consort & Players, Istante Collective and Armonico Consort, among others. She has also given recitals at venues including the Handel Hendrix House, Raynham Hall, the Wallace Collection and St Martin-in-the-Fields. Eva has won numerous awards as a chamber music performer in the UK and Spain, including the XIII Paper de Música de Capellades, Premi Ciutat Manresa, IX Pòdiums de St Joan de Vilatorrada and the Anglo-Czech Trust Competition.
Eva is an enthusiastic educator and works as a flute teacher in North London primary and secondary schools as well as at the North London Conservatoire.

British-American historical violinist Matthew Millkey enjoys an active career as an orchestral and chamber musician in and around London. A graduate of Oberlin Conservatory of Music and Indiana University’s Jacobs School of Music, Matthew is currently pursuing a PhD in historical musicology at the Royal College of Music. His research investigates violin technique in the period from 1630 to 1700, with particular emphasis on the practice of holding the violin against the chest. As a performer, Matthew has played with numerous Early Music ensembles around England, including the Academy of Ancient Music, Florilegium, the BBC Singers, the Hanover Band, and Armonico Consort. He has appeared in music festivals throughout the United States and Europe, including the BBC Proms, the Boston Early Music Festival, Prangins Baroque, the Oregon Bach Festival, the Tilford Bach Festival, and the Chigiana Festival. Matthew plays on a Baroque violin by Hugh Saville, kindly on loan to him from the Royal College of Music.

Sophia Mücke (baroque violin) is a Swiss baroque violinist and graduate of the renowned Schola Cantorum Basiliensis (CH). Her love for adventure and her wanderlust eventually led her to London, where she is currently pursuing an MMus at the Royal Academy of Music with Pavlo Beznosiuk and Nicolette Moonen. Her musical passion lies in 17th-century North German and Italian music. Besides performing all over Europe as a violinist with different ensembles and orchestras, Sophia is interested in musicology and music theory. To combine her interests in performance and research, she regularly organises her own thematic concerts (e.g., on music at the court of Frederick the Great or European music at the Chinese court in the 18th century), and she is giving workshops in various contexts on solmisation and rhetoric in music.