What opera have you been listening to, lately?

[JohnGerald]

The Rossini operas above are all available on DVD, most in blu ray, in VERY entertaining performances. When I was first experiencing opera, other than Il Barbiere, Rossini was not performed. I am immensely delighted that the bel canto renaissance has permitted me to see and hear these excellent works.

As a point of trivia, if Richard Osborne in his work on Rossini is correct, the two most popular composers at the time Rossini was composing opera were Rossini and ... Beethoven.

[MAuer]

The Rossini operas above are all available on DVD, most in blu ray, in VERY entertaining performances. When I was first experiencing opera, other than Il Barbiere, Rossini was not performed. I am immensely delighted that the bel canto renaissance has permitted me to see and hear these excellent works.

As a point of trivia, if Richard Osborne in his work on Rossini is correct, the two most popular composers at the time Rossini was composing opera were Rossini and ... Beethoven.

Yup. Giulio Radichi, the tenor who sang Florestan at the premiere of the 1814 final version of Fidelo, also sang roles in Rossini's operas.

[Clayton]

Handel: Ezio, HWV29
Sonia Prina (Valentiniano), Ann Hallenberg (Ezio), Anicio Zorzi Giustiniani (Massimo), Karina Gauvin (Fulvia), Marianne Andersen (Onoria), Vito Priante (Varo)
Il Complesso Barocco
Alan Curtis
Recorded September 2008, Teatro Comunale di Lonigo



and then I'm back to Handel

[Clayton]

Handel: Orlando
Owen Willetts (Orlando), Karina Gauvin (Angelica), Allyson McHardy (Medoro), Amanda Forsythe (Dorinda), Nathan Berg (Zoroastro)
Pacific Baroque Orchestra
Alexander Weimann
Recorded August 2012, Ryerson United Church, Vancouver



fighting... fighting urge not to buy the other Orlando recording...

[Clayton]

Vinci, Leonardo: Artaserse
Philippe Jaroussky (Artaserse), Max Emanuel Cencic (Mandane), Franco Fagioli (Arbace), Valer Barna-Sabadus (Semira), Yuriy Mynenko (Megabise), Daniel Behle (Artabano)
Concerto Köln & Coro della Radiotelevisione Svizzera, Lugano
Diego Fasolis
Recorded 21-28 September 2011Deutschlandfunk Kammermusiksaal, Köln



I think the comment from the Guardian that "the singing is epoch-making" might be a slight exaggeration but it is superb.

[Hoffmann]

I think I had only listened to this once since I bought it, and it didn't make much of an impression. Second time through, this is really amazing singing - very powerful and notes are hit right on target. It seems that my ear gets distracted by and has to adjust to 1950s quality sound - although the sound is excellent.

[Luiz Gazzola (Almaviva)]

Vinci, Leonardo: Artaserse
Philippe Jaroussky (Artaserse), Max Emanuel Cencic (Mandane), Franco Fagioli (Arbace), Valer Barna-Sabadus (Semira), Yuriy Mynenko (Megabise), Daniel Behle (Artabano)
Concerto Köln & Coro della Radiotelevisione Svizzera, Lugano
Diego Fasolis
Recorded 21-28 September 2011Deutschlandfunk Kammermusiksaal, Köln



I think the comment from the Guardian that "the singing is epoch-making" might be a slight exaggeration but it is superb.

Great. Some more recognition (on top of his recent Grammy nomination) for the person I uphold as the BEST male singer in activity today, Philippe Jaroussky. He is out of this world; a phenomenally beautiful voice delivered with sophisticated technique. I was completely in awe of him when I attended a recital some three years ago, in my town. They had (for a premium) special seats in the orchestra pit since they weren't using an orchestra, of course, being it a piano/singer recital, and I splurged for one of those. So, I was a couple of yards from him and it was such an aural experience! I left the performance in a daze; it was probably the most beautiful recital I've ever attended in my life (arias from Handel and Vivaldi). I kick myself for not having started the journalistic side of Opera Lively yet, at the time, or else I could have tried to interview this spectacular singer. I hope he comes back this way, at some point.

[Clayton]

This recording is barock 'n roll. I should be stuck here for some time.

[JohnGerald]

The last opera was a couple of days ago when we watched Forza with Urmana and Giordano. While I really like Forza (except for that awful "rataplan" chorus!), it ain't Price and Tucker who performed the opera memorably (obviously) many years ago and I don't warm to this version. I may have to take a peek at amazon.com to see if any new Forzas are available.

[Soave_Fanciulla]

This recording is barock 'n roll. I should be stuck here for some time.

The DVD of this is absolutely spectacular, especially if you like feathers.



And Jaroussky is good, but so are Fagioli and Barna-Sabadus.

I particularly like the staging of this virtuoso aria, with the stagehands pushing Fagioli back on stage for the da capo part, hehe. The singing is explosively good, as the audience reaction makes very clear.

[Luiz Gazzola (Almaviva)]

The DVD of this is absolutely spectacular, especially if you like feathers.



And Jaroussky is good, but so are Fagioli and Barna-Sabadus.

I particularly like the staging of this virtuoso aria, with the stagehands pushing Fagioli back on stage for the da capo part, hehe. The singing is explosively good, as the audience reaction makes very clear.

Oh wow, how did I manage to miss this? The oversight has been corrected; I've just ordered it.

[Clayton]

...
And Jaroussky is good, but so are Fagioli and Barna-Sabadus.

I particularly like the staging of this virtuoso aria, with the stagehands pushing Fagioli back on stage for the da capo part, hehe. The singing is explosively good, as the audience reaction makes very clear.
...

Fireworks coming from all directions. Vo Solcando is so good I can only listen to it with a big grin and a nodding donkey impression.

[Clayton]

Gluck: La Clemenza di Tito
Rainer Trost (Tito Vespasiano), Laura Aikin (Vitellia), Raffaella Milanesi (Sesto), Arantza Ezenarro (Servilia), Valer Sabadus (Annio) & Flavio Ferri-Benedetti (Publio)
L'arte del mondo, Werner Ehrhardt
Recorded live October & November 2013 das Erholungshaus, Kulturhaus der Bayer AG

[Hoffmann]

Oh wow, how did I manage to miss this? The oversight has been corrected; I've just ordered it.

Really marvelous! I put in on my order wish list.

[Hoffmann]

What a quandary!

My remastered Callas set arrived this morning and now I'm stuck. Where do I start?

Maybe Lucia? How about Rigoletto?

Maybe I'll just take a nap.

No. I figured it out: