Editorial Product Review: essential recording:Castor et Pollux ranks high in Rameau's output, the product of consolidated artistic successes he had with Hippolyte et Aricie and other lighter, more-dance oriented works. It was one of the first Rameau operas recorded complete in a set by Nikolaus Harnoncourt that was sometimes so rough, it left aural splinters. This recording by Les Arts Florissants perhaps goes too far in the other direction: its suaveness sometimes threatens to negate the drama in this story of a man who rescues his slain brother in the underworld amid ...
Editorial Product Review: essential recording:Castor et Pollux ranks high in Rameau's output, the product of consolidated artistic successes he had with Hippolyte et Aricie and other lighter, more-dance oriented works. It was one of the first Rameau operas recorded complete in a set by Nikolaus Harnoncourt that was sometimes so rough, it left aural splinters. This recording by Les Arts Florissants perhaps goes too far in the other direction: its suaveness sometimes threatens to negate the drama in this story of a man who rescues his slain brother in the underworld amid ...
Editorial Product Review: :The myth of Orpheus--the divine musician who went to Hades to rescue his bride Eurydice from the dead and whose song actually persuaded Pluto to release her--has been irresistible to operatic composers from Monteverdi to Offenbach. One of the happiest rediscoveries of the Baroque revival is this lovely one-act chamber opera by Marc-Antoine Charpentier, which combines the gentle lilt typical of French Baroque music with the beautiful melodies and delicious suspensions in which Charpentier excelled. Charpentier diverged from the myth in one important respect: he omitted the tragic ending in ...
Editorial Product Review: :The myth of Orpheus--the divine musician who went to Hades to rescue his bride Eurydice from the dead and whose song actually persuaded Pluto to release her--has been irresistible to operatic composers from Monteverdi to Offenbach. One of the happiest rediscoveries of the Baroque revival is this lovely one-act chamber opera by Marc-Antoine Charpentier, which combines the gentle lilt typical of French Baroque music with the beautiful melodies and delicious suspensions in which Charpentier excelled. Charpentier diverged from the myth in one important respect: he omitted the tragic ending in ...
Editorial Product Review: :Theodora was Handel's next-to-last oratorio, and though it was a failure at its premiere, Handel preferred it above all his others. It tells of the martyrdom of the Christian Theodora (soprano) and her beloved Didymus (countertenor) at the hands of the Romans, with the villainous Valens (bass) in charge. Septimius (tenor) is a sympathetic Roman soldier and Irene (soprano) is Theodora's pious friend. This new recording presents the 3-hour work complete and is simply beautiful: Sophie Daneman sings Theodora's heart-felt arias expressively and with great innocence and lovely tone; Daniel ...
Editorial Product Review: :Theodora was Handel's next-to-last oratorio, and though it was a failure at its premiere, Handel preferred it above all his others. It tells of the martyrdom of the Christian Theodora (soprano) and her beloved Didymus (countertenor) at the hands of the Romans, with the villainous Valens (bass) in charge. Septimius (tenor) is a sympathetic Roman soldier and Irene (soprano) is Theodora's pious friend. This new recording presents the 3-hour work complete and is simply beautiful: Sophie Daneman sings Theodora's heart-felt arias expressively and with great innocence and lovely tone; Daniel ...
Editorial Product Review: :It figures that the ensemble most responsible for the French Baroque revival is the one to outdo Nelson and Kirkby's legendary recording of these lamentation settings. Sophie Daneman and Patricia Petibon don't have the earlier pair's gorgeous, distinctive voices (both occasionally wobble above the staff), but they sound plenty beautiful. More importantly, they've managed to make these major-key pieces sound like lamentations. Twenty years ago, Kirkby and Nelson were pioneers: merely singing with their white tone was risky; they couldn't take many chances with rhythmic freedom. Daneman and Petibon have ...
Editorial Product Review: :It figures that the ensemble most responsible for the French Baroque revival is the one to outdo Nelson and Kirkby's legendary recording of these lamentation settings. Sophie Daneman and Patricia Petibon don't have the earlier pair's gorgeous, distinctive voices (both occasionally wobble above the staff), but they sound plenty beautiful. More importantly, they've managed to make these major-key pieces sound like lamentations. Twenty years ago, Kirkby and Nelson were pioneers: merely singing with their white tone was risky; they couldn't take many chances with rhythmic freedom. Daneman and Petibon have ...
Editorial Product Review: essential recording:Charpentier's Médée gets this writer's vote for the greatest opera of the entire French Baroque era. In their retelling of the Medea legend, Charpentier and his librettist Corneille combine all the grace, charm, and artifice typical of the French Baroque era with truly gripping drama. William Christie and Les Arts Florissants give a thrilling performance with a fabulous cast featuring stellar high tenor Mark Padmore and 'La Divina' Lorraine Hunt (yes, she is the Maria Callas of 18th-century opera) in the role that made her a Baroque superstar. ...
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Christie Florissants, Arts Les Salzmann, Zanetti, Deletre, Padmore, Hunt, / Médée - Charpentier
