Italian countertenor Raffaele Pe has had somewhat of a slow-burning career. He’s now 37 and a father of three, yet his first professional engagement was just eight years ago. The late start seems to … [Read more...] about [Review] Italian countertenor Raffaele Pe’s exuberant Purcell recital
Baroque
New charity raises £100,000 to aid period-instrument ensembles
After the widespread concert cancellations since March 2020, former City director and classical music lover Tina Vadaneaux founded a new charity, Continuo Foundation (“Continuo”). It was established … [Read more...] about New charity raises £100,000 to aid period-instrument ensembles
[Interview] Cecilia Bartoli: Baroque music is for the soul
Why is Baroque music so popular? Baroque music is for the soul, connected to a period when there was great freedom of expression, which today we’ve lost. There is an aspect of Baroque music that … [Read more...] about [Interview] Cecilia Bartoli: Baroque music is for the soul
Countertenor Franco Fagioli’s new CD of Baroque music to be released in May
Franco Fagioli’s latest solo album presents rediscovered treasures by Neapolitan opera composer Leonardo Vinci. Fagioli – the first countertenor to sign an exclusive recording deal with Deutsche … [Read more...] about Countertenor Franco Fagioli’s new CD of Baroque music to be released in May
Interview with contralto Delphine Galou: “making music together with love”
Two new recordings for Naïve's Vivaldi Edition have just been released by the Accademia Bizantina, conducted by Ottavio Dantone. These albums are the 59th and 60th in the series which aims to record … [Read more...] about Interview with contralto Delphine Galou: “making music together with love”
Cecilia Bartoli pulls out of her Baroque project at La Scala in October
Cecilia Bartoli has cancelled her participation in the baroque trilogy at La Scala, which was created around her. The project will present three Handel operas over the next three seasons, in the … [Read more...] about Cecilia Bartoli pulls out of her Baroque project at La Scala in October
Alek Shrader directs Dido & Aeneas in the Catacombs of New York
Henry Purcell's Dido & Aeneas will be presented in the Catacombs of the Green-Wood Cemetery, in Brooklyn, New York, with performances from 4 – 8 June. The run will launch the second season of the … [Read more...] about Alek Shrader directs Dido & Aeneas in the Catacombs of New York
Countertenor Philippe Jaroussky talks about his new album “Ombra mai fu”
French countertenor Philippe Jaroussky explores the arias of Francesco Cavalli on his new album Ombra mai fu, which was released digitally on 8 March and physically on CD and vinyl on 22 March. Why … [Read more...] about Countertenor Philippe Jaroussky talks about his new album “Ombra mai fu”
In conversation with Jakub Józef Orliński
Jakub Józef Orliński is the new countertenor name to add to an ever-growing roster of artists who are selling discs and selling out concert halls in this once rarefied area of the vocal arts. Polish … [Read more...] about In conversation with Jakub Józef Orliński
Cecilia Bartoli Baroque Project announced at La Scala – Giulio Cesare, Semele, Ariodante
Today, La Scala announced a project to widen the knowledge and appreciation of Baroque music, in a country that has produced so much, yet now often overlooks a genre that is booming in other parts of … [Read more...] about Cecilia Bartoli Baroque Project announced at La Scala – Giulio Cesare, Semele, Ariodante
Interview with Cecilia Bartoli on religion, the Sistine Chapel and Salzburg
This evening, Cecilia Bartoli will become the first woman to sing in the Sistine Chapel. Though, strictly speaking, she was already the first – albeit in a private form – when she recorded the disc … [Read more...] about Interview with Cecilia Bartoli on religion, the Sistine Chapel and Salzburg
Preview peek at La Scala’s new production of Tamerlano starring Domingo, Mehta, Fagioli, Crebassa and Schiavo
La Scala’s Baroque Orchestra returns, after last year’s successful Il trionfo del Tempo e del Disinganno, for a new production of Handel’s Tamerlano, again conducted by Diego Fasolis. An … [Read more...] about Preview peek at La Scala’s new production of Tamerlano starring Domingo, Mehta, Fagioli, Crebassa and Schiavo
Claudio Monteverdi, opera’s first master, was born 450 years ago
Two events make 1567 a watershed year in the history of music's relationship to words. In Rome, Palestrina (c. 1525- 1594), the greatest master of Italian Renaissance polyphony, published his most … [Read more...] about Claudio Monteverdi, opera’s first master, was born 450 years ago
Cecilia Bartoli and Antonio Pappano in conversation and concert in Rome
Cecilia Bartoli and Antonio Pappano celebrated Mozart’s 261st birthday with a concert in Rome. Pappano was conducting his orchestra and chorus of the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia at the Parco … [Read more...] about Cecilia Bartoli and Antonio Pappano in conversation and concert in Rome
Cecilia Bartoli – the enchantress casts her spell at the Lucerne Festival
After a couple of years of not hearing La Bartoli live, I was a little apprehensive before her concert at the Lucerne Culture and Congress Centre, KKL, after having read Rupert Christiansen’s … [Read more...] about Cecilia Bartoli – the enchantress casts her spell at the Lucerne Festival
Il trionfo del tempo e del disinganno at La Scala… what a disillusion
Il trionfo del tempo e del disinganno (The Triumph of Time and Disillusionment) is an oratorio by Handel which the Opernhaus in Zurich decided to stage as an opera in 2003, when La Scala’s CEO … [Read more...] about Il trionfo del tempo e del disinganno at La Scala… what a disillusion
Coin du Roi’s Serse is musically on the right track
In a climate of crises and cuts, how glorious that a Baroque formation has been created in Italy. Coin du Roi opened their first season, which consists of three titles, with Handel’s Serse in Milan. … [Read more...] about Coin du Roi’s Serse is musically on the right track
Cecilia Bartoli to head Monte-Carlo Opera’s new baroque ensemble
Les Musiciens du Prince is a new baroque group under the umbrella organisation of the Opéra de Monte-Carlo which will have Cecilia Bartoli as its artistic director. She has signed a six-year contract … [Read more...] about Cecilia Bartoli to head Monte-Carlo Opera’s new baroque ensemble
Cecilia Bartoli: “Contemporary composers can’t write for opera singers like me”
I've been following this project for eight years and I've been to St Petersburg many times in train or by ship, because I don't like flying; one of the most beautiful trips was on the icebreaker from … [Read more...] about Cecilia Bartoli: “Contemporary composers can’t write for opera singers like me”
Cecilia Bartoli on discovering a new composer, vocal styles, and bella Italia
Cecilia Bartoli's new album will be on the shelves in a couple of weeks' time. If Mission is successful it should put early Baroque composer Agostino Steffani (1655-1728) back on the musical map. He … [Read more...] about Cecilia Bartoli on discovering a new composer, vocal styles, and bella Italia
The Bartoli investigation continues with a crime writer and a priest who wrote operas in secret…
Decca continues its cat and mouse game, urging Cecilia Bartoli fans to 'investigate' her latest project, Mission. The new YouTube video with the second 'clue' takes us inside Radio Svizzera Italiana's … [Read more...] about The Bartoli investigation continues with a crime writer and a priest who wrote operas in secret…
Acclaimed baroque orchestra La Petite Bande will fold after spending cuts
From January 2013 La Petite Bande will cease to have state funding. The Netherlands' baroque orchestra was formed in 1972 by Sigiswald Kuijken, but they say that the elimination of subsidy … [Read more...] about Acclaimed baroque orchestra La Petite Bande will fold after spending cuts
Vivica Genaux: a bit like dancing on pointe: bizarre and unnatural, but compelling when done well
Coloratura singing, as a wise observer remarked, is a bit like dancing on pointe: bizarre and unnatural, but powerfully compelling when done well. Vivica Genaux does it very well indeed. The … [Read more...] about Vivica Genaux: a bit like dancing on pointe: bizarre and unnatural, but compelling when done well
Anna Caterina Antonacci ‘simply stunning’ at the MITO Festival in Milan
It may be a cliché, but Anna Caterina Antonacci has, like a fine Italian wine, got better with time. Twenty years ago she was floundering with vocal problems, and it was probably this that gave her … [Read more...] about Anna Caterina Antonacci ‘simply stunning’ at the MITO Festival in Milan
Cecilia Bartoli and her (highly personal) view of the Italian music scene
Looking at the thriving specialist ensembles working from and in Italy today, Bartoli looks like a pioneer, but, she says, in straitened economic times it's not easy for musicians. Long based in Rome, … [Read more...] about Cecilia Bartoli and her (highly personal) view of the Italian music scene
