Cavalli: Sospiri d'amore - Opera duets and arias. Venice, 1644-1666

Cavalli: Sospiri d'amore - Opera duets and arias. Venice, 1644-1666 cover $33.00 Out of Stock
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FRANCESCO CAVALLI
Cavalli: Sospiri d'amore - Opera duets and arias. Venice, 1644-1666
Giulia Semenzato (soprano), Raffaele Pe (alto) / La Venexiana, Claudio Cavina

[ Glossa / CD ]

Release Date: Monday 26 September 2016

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Two bright talents to have emerged from Italy recently, Giulia Semenzato and Raffaele Pe, join forces for a dazzling collection of operatic arias and duets by that Baroque master of amorous emotions, Francesco Cavalli. Soprano and countertenor are supported by the modern master of Italian Baroque style, Claudio Cavina, who directs La Venexiana.

Working in Venice with some of the best Italian librettists around in the mid-17th century, Cavalli mined rich emotional seams in his operas conjuring up a stream of productions which enjoyed great artistic and financial success. His influence travelled far and wide, and this included Rameau, Lully, Handel and Purcell in the Baroque period alone. With five full-scale duets amongst solo arias, ariosos and recitar cantando, this new Glossa recording gloriously shows off the talents of the Venetian, Semenzato, and the Lombard, Pe, who have been gathering important stage experience in the operas of Cavalli. Space is also found for one of the vocal genres which Cavalli can lay claim to instigating - the dramatic lamento, here in the form of 'Lassa, che fò' from 'Statira'. A further intriguing picture of Cavalli and his operatic inspiration is to be found in the booklet essay written by Olivier Lexa.

"The performances have Cavina's sense of slight understatement about them... in solo arias and together, Semenzato and Pe are a beguilingly smooth-toned and compelling pair of soloists, always treating the words as if they mean something dramatically, and are not merely supports for Cavalli's elegant musical lines." (Guardian)

"Claudio Cavina and his ensemble are joined by two exceptional young soloists, soprano Giulia Semenzato and countertenor Raffaele Pe, who lead their listeners through the emotional highs and lows of some of the composer's lesser-known operas…[this is] a recital of carefully chosen excerpts, many of which send you off in search of the complete opera" (Gramophone)

"The young Italian countertenor [Raffaele Pe] is indeed outstanding throughout, with a fine voice that shines not only in a compelling performance of the scena infernale from Scipione Affricano. La Venexiana's accompaniments are stylish in that they employ just two violins and continuo." (Opera)

Tracks:

O luci belle (from Eritrea)
Qui cade al tuo pie (from Orimonte)
Ne meste piu (from La Veremonda)
Lassam che fo (from Statira)
Corone ed honori (from Il Ciro)
Vanne interpido o mio bene (from Statira)
L'aspetto feroce (from Muzio Scevola)
D'Amor non si quereli (from Ormindo)
Io misero fui Rege (from Scipione Affricano)
Hor che l'Aurora (from Egisto)
Io chiudoo nel core (from Il rapimento di Elena)
Alpi gelate (from Pompeo Magno)
Si, si che questa notte (from Ormindo)