What opera have you been listening to, lately?

[Clayton]

and some ba'rock 'n roll with the lovely Maite Beaumont amongst others...



Telemann: Flavius Bertaridus, König der Longobarden
Maite Beaumont (Flavius Bertaridus), Nina Bernsteiner (Rodelinda), Ann-Beth Solvang (Flavia), Jürgen Sacher (Orontes), Antonio Abete (Grimoaldus), Katerina Tretyakova (Cunibert), David DQ Lee (Onulfus), Melissa Petit (Regimbert/Schutzgeist)
Academia Montis Regalis, Alessandro de Marchi

[Florestan]

Just arrived today.

[Soave_Fanciulla]

[Florestan]

Got into Edita Gruberova and then realized I had this so put it back on my MP3 player:

[Florestan]

[Clayton]

amongst the usual suspects (and in between the cricket)...

2 works by the Early Opera Company and Christian Curnyn on the Chaconne label




both fabulous recordings with very good cast and thoroughly recommended...

Handel: Semele
Rosemary Joshua (Semele), Hilary Summers (Juno/Ino), Richard Croft (Jupiter), Stephen Wallace (Athamas), Brindley Sherratt (Cadmus/Somnus) & Gail Pearson (Iris), David Croft (Apollo)
Early Opera Company (on period instruments), Christian Curnyn

Handel: Serse
Anna Stéphany (Serse), Rosemary Joshua (Romilda), David Daniels (Arsamene), Hilary Summers (Amastre), Joélle Harvey (Atalanta), Andreas Wolf (Elviro), Brindley Sherratt (Ariodate)
Early Opera Company, Christian Curnyn

[Soave_Fanciulla]

I was expecting this to be much more challenging musically but I found it very approachable, some lovely choral sections, and I would imagine it would be great to see on stage - I know Hoffmann was very taken with the live performance he saw a few years ago. And the sound on this recording was OK as well.

[Clayton]

ooh, sounds interesting... added to wish list (aka buy basket)

[Hoffmann]

I just drove in last night after 5 days on Cape Cod from opening the house for the summer season. The only opera I had time for was in the car on the way north and again when driving home yesterday. Nothing too exciting on Sirius/XM (although the late Margaret Juntwait continues to host the show which is, somehow, still somewhat comforting...).

Anyway, nothing much exciting, except they played a recording of La Fille du Regiment from 1940, with Lily Pons. I was anticipating one of those old-fashioned sounding recordings that sounded like they were recorded from across the street, full of hiss and pops. I was pleasantly surprised by the very good sound quality and, oh, Lily Pons! That lady knew how to sing!

[Soave_Fanciulla]

Why had I not listened to this before? It's gorgeous!

[MAuer]

Live performance from the Frankfurt Opera, 1971
Conductor: Jesús López-Cobos
Giorgio Lamberti (Corrado), Katia Ricciarelli (Medora), Renato Bruson (Pasha Seid), Angeles Gulin (Gulnara), Maurizio Mazzieri (Giovanni), Guido Fabbris (Selim), et. al.

This is one of Opera d’Oro’s better releases, without the poor recording quality that plagued some of their other issues. Of course, there are the usual sounds associated with a live performance, including hearty applause from the audience after many of the arias and ensembles. The cast is, on the whole, impressive. Ricciarelli and Bruson are in fine form, and Lamberti is a good Corrado (even if I’d doubtless prefer Decca’s José Carreras in the part). The real surprise was Angeles Gulin. At first, I wasn’t sure I liked her timbre, but that changed after a short while. She’s the real deal – a genuine dramatic coloratura soprano with both firepower in her voice and the technical skill to cope with the florid passages. High notes are strong and right on target. The other soloists leave no cause for complaint, either. If one doesn’t mind the no-frills packaging (a small booklet with only very basic information on the plot along with a track listing), I find this is one of those inexpensive recordings that really is a bargain.

[Festat]

[Florestan]

[Soave_Fanciulla]

[Soave_Fanciulla]