This new release is the penultimate album of the Paganini Complete Edition in 40 releases. Included on this album is the première world recording of the original version of three very famous works by Paganini- Le Streghe M.S. 19, Non più mesta M.S. 22 and I Palpiti M.S. 77. In the Genoese violinist’s intention, the violin was to be tuned a semitone higher. The violin part, in D major, therefore sounds as if it were written in E flat major, which is the key of the orchestral accompaniment. During the 19th century, the practice of tuning the instrument higher was abandoned. Bulgarian violinist Mario Hossen courageously tackles it, allowing us to hear, for the first time since Paganini’s time, these works as they were written. The album includes another première recording, that of the Religiosa introduzione al rondò del campanello M.S. 67/1, first version of the Couvent du Mont St. Bernard M.S. 67. Dr. Mario Hossen is artistic director of the Camerata Orphica and the International Music Academy Orpheus, Vienna. He plays a violin by Giovanni Battista Guadagnini, Milan 1749, on loan from the Osterreichische Nationalbank’s collection.

The Dynamic label presents, in a world premiere in its video formats (DVD and Blu-ray) Francesco Cilea’s rarely heard or produced opera L’Arlesiana (1897, rev. 1898). • It’s the story of Federico, the older son of the widow and farm owner Rosa Mamai, and his insane passion for a mysterious woman who, in the opera, is never shown. Federico wants to marry her desperately, dreams of her, suffers for her, and step-by-step his mind begins to waver. • The people around him try in vain to prevent this love from becoming a damning obsession. • The end result for Federico, however, is tragic. • The opera’s famous aria "Il lamento di Federico" has been a favorite with tenors throughout the ages, including Enrico Caruso. • This recording also features the aria for tenor, "Una mattina", written by Cilea for the opera's first version and then lost, here in world première recording. • Directed by Rosetta Cucchi, a co-production between Teatro Pergolesi and Wexford Festival Opera.

ROLLA Violin Concertos: in Bb; in D; in A • Paolo Ghidoni (vn, cond); O da Camera del Conservatorio di Mantova • DYNAMIC 714 (60:30)


Dynamic’s release of violin concertos by Alessandro Rolla makes available three of the 21 works in the genre written by the violinist, teacher, conductor, and composer. Those versed in the lore of Nicolò Paganini will remember Rolla as the teacher to whom Paganini’s father brought the young prodigy, who read one of Rolla’s concertos at sight while waiting for the master to appear. That anecdote alone (not cited in the booklet notes by Mariateresa Dellaborra) should lend these works a special interest for aficionados of the violin. The notes cite the sources from which Marco Pinotti transcribed each of the three concertos for performance. Listeners will notice from the outset that the winds (oboes and horns) that Rolla incorporated in his orchestral textures serve a more important function than merely fluffing up the blanket of orchestral sound. The solo part of the first movement of the Concerto in Bb-Major explores a range and variety of technical devices (though, surprisingly, not double-stops) far in advance of Giovanni Battista Viotti but hardly so daring as those of Paganini. Paolo Ghidoni serves as a bold and technically alert champion, playing the solo part of this concerto with a big-toned ardor, accompanied from some distance behind—despite the recorded sound’s clarity—by the orchestra, which, for its part, occasionally detours into a byway of contrasting affect. The first movement’s cadenza sounds brilliant without making onerous demands on the soloist. The slow movement opens with a theme of near-Mozartean purity, in both the orchestral and solo parts; Ghidoni embellishes it with sweet figuration, much of it in the violin’s higher registers, leading into the final movement, an elegantly lyrical “Rondò.”


The Second Concerto on the program, in D Major, falls into the same three movements, the first opening with an orchestral tutti that includes darker threads among the brighter ones. Once again, the solo part lies in a somewhat higher tessitura than those in Viotti’s and Pierre Rode’s concertos, although the passagework remains similar, at times uncannily reminiscent of particular figural turns in Viotti’s celebrated Concerto No. 22, though the interaction between solo and orchestra has grown more conversational in Rolla’s concertos. The slow movement enshrines passages of melting cantabile and leads to a “Rondò” that again recalls Viotti’s concertos. If the D-Major Concerto recalls Viotti, the final one on the program, in A Major, suggests Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, especially in the first movement’s orchestral thematic statements, although the violin part still bears traces of Viotti’s influence. Ghidoni sounds particularly rich in the few passages in the lower register that Rolla provides for the soloist in this movement. The simple and straightforward slow movement leads to a “Rondò polonaise,” recalling in its themes rondos by Viotti and Louis Spohr. These concertos should prove interesting in their own right for collectors who delight in exploring the violin literature’s byways but should also ingratiate themselves with general listeners—and they could provide a technical missing link between Viotti and Mozart for violin students. Warmly recommended.


FANFARE: Robert Maxham

Liszt’s own vast output includes a tremendous quantity of transcriptions. These range from Bach organ works to extracts of Wagner, as well as virtuoso fantasias and ‘paraphrases’ of oepras by Mozart, Verdi and Gounod, among many others. These pieces were the composer’s free reimagining of the existing works, designed to dazzle. But his transferring to the piano of Beethoven’s nine symphonies is entirely different. These accounts are profoundly faithful to the score, prepared with minute attention to matters of instrumental timbre on the one side and suitably pianistic translations of orchestral textures and techniques on the other. This is the second volume of the complete Liszt piano transcriptions of Beethoven’s 9 symphonies, released in five separate issues. The first one featured the Symphonies Nos 1 and 6. This second one contains the Symphony No. 3 (Eroica), 4 tracks, and the 6 Bagatelles Op. 126, 6 tracks. Baldocci is a brilliant young pianist who is making a fine career; he is thought highly of by Martha Argerich, with whom he often appears in concert.

Highly praised for his orchestral works, Tchaikovsky never reached great popularity as a chamber music composer but, although his chamber output does not comprise many titles, it does includes works of distinct value, such as the beautiful but little known Trio for violin, cello and piano, Op.50 which we are featuring on this release. The work was composed in memory of his friend Nikolaj Rubinstein, who had passed away at the age of 46 and was considered at the time one of the greatest European pianists. Rachmaninov was one of the finest pianists of the first half of the 1900s and a gifted composer. After the Bolshevik coup he left his native Russia and moved abroad, where he gained fame as a performer, especially in the United States. As a composer, Rachmaninov is nowadays considered the natural successor to Tchaikovsky’s style within Russian music between the 19th and 20th centuries. The Trio élégiaque No.1 in G minor for piano, violin and cello was written in the short space of four days in 1892, when Rachmaninov was only 19. It consists of a single extended movement (Lento lugubre) in classic sonata form. It was published posthumously, in 1947. Having known each other personally for a long time, Franco Mezzena, Sergio Patria and Elena Ballario began their artistic partnership in 2015 as a natural consequence of their mutual respect and interpretative affinity. Franco’s precise and rigorous violin playing, Sergio’s inborn expressivity and Elena’s musical balance are the three main characteristics that give their trio all the necessary means to best express the music they unanimously choose to perform.

The world premiere of the previously unrecorded French version of Macbeth! Verdi considered Shakespeare’s tragedy to be ‘one of the greatest creations of man’. The opera’s unbroken dramatic line, incisive libretto and range of expression from the comic to the sublime, made it a work that was way ahead of its time. Verdi explores unusual theatrical characters with Macbeth, the darkness of which resonated with his desire to convey Shakespeare’s brutal realism in a visionary masterpiece that would not be fully appreciated until the mid-1900s. Macbeth is performed here in its rarely heard 1865 French language version.

Linda di Chamounix is a pretty country girl who is in love with Carlo, who she believes is a penniless artist. Her honor is threatened by the local squire and she escapes to Paris in search of fortune. This is a tale of courage and madness, in which we discover and experience the strength and suffering of a woman torn apart by estrangement from family and love. Donizetti reaped full and long-lasting success with Linda di Chamounix, and it became one of his most modern, appreciated and long-lived works. Jessica Pratt leads an all-star cast in this acclaimed production from the Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino.

Beethoven’s genius may have had a dominant presence in early 19th-century Vienna, but the 18-year-old Schubert composed a Sonata in E major, D.157 in 1815 that already encapsulated elements of his own genius in the Lied-like perfection of its second movement. His first true piano masterpiece followed in the Sonata in A major, D.664, with an intimacy, lyricism and perfection of form that set him apart from his contemporaries. Composed five years later, the Sonata in D major, D.850 is marked by extrovert, virtuosic writing, memorable themes and an almost improvisatory flair.

Linda di Chamounix is a pretty country girl who is in love with Carlo, who she believes is a penniless artist. Her honor is threatened by the local squire and she escapes to Paris in search of fortune. This is a tale of courage and madness, in which we discover and experience the strength and suffering of a woman torn apart by estrangement from family and love. Donizetti reaped full and long-lasting success with Linda di Chamounix, and it became one of his most modern, appreciated and long-lived works. Jessica Pratt leads an all-star cast in this acclaimed production from the Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino.

REVIEW:

Michele Gamba conducts the opera as a typical bel canto product. This results in a rather soft, rounded and warm sound with subtle nuances. Other conductors have conducted in a more gripping and contrasting manner, but Gamba’s consistently maintained line is certainly fitting. Under his direction, the chorus and orchestra of the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino give solid performances.

Jessica Pratt can rely on her good vocal technique to score with secure high notes and a warm voice. The mad scene at the end of Act II becomes the dramatic climax of her performance.

Francesco Demuro has a pleasant timbre and sings a consistently good Carlo with fine nuances.

Fabio Capitanucci makes adequate use of his lyric baritone voice to achieve a good characterization of the Marquis de Boisfleury. Marina De Liso draws a strong portrait of Linda’s mother, while Teresa Iervolino sings a very good Pierotto. Vittorio Prato (Linda’s father Antonio) defends his role convincingly. The remaining roles are acceptably cast.

-- Pizzicato (Remy Franck)

 

Also available on Blu-ray

Opera Vlaanderen of Antwerp continues its Rossini Cycle under the musical direction of conductor Alberto Zedda (87), with the rarely performed opera Armida. Armida is clearly a tenor opera par excellence, as we have four tenors here among the main roles. Enea Scala , Robert McPherson, Dario Schmunck and the young Adam Smith. Director Mariame Clément and her usual set designer Julia Hansen will also return to Opera Vlaanderen after the successfull Giasone by Cavalli released by Dynamic. They are now taking a critical look at the world of the Crusaders. Clément sees Armida as the incarnation of the concept of ‘love’, which in itself is magic and for which noble and heroic knightly ideals are cast aside. However, it is a love that turns into a destructive frenzy.

When Il trittico premiered at New York's Metropolitan Opera in December 1918, Gianni Schicchi became an immediate hit. The libretto is based on an incident mentioned in Dante's Divine Comedy. The action in Puccini’s Gianni Schicchi takes place in Buoso Donati’s bedroom in 13th-century Florence, immediately after his death, as his greedy relatives feign grief and search for his will. The mood shifts to anger when the relatives discover that they have been disinherited. They seek out the clever and resourceful Schicchi to make a counterfeit will. Schicchi, however, turns their scheme against them, bequeathing most of the dead man’s fortune to himself while the relatives, all parties to the crime of forgery, are forced to sit by silently. The aria O mio babbino caro is one of Puccini's most popular arias for soprano. Bruno de Simone plays the character of Gianni Schicchi. As Italy's finest basso buffo, he is perfect for this role. Puccini completed the score on 20 April, 1918, eight months before the scheduled premiere. At that performance it was presented as the third part of a trilogy of newly written one-act operas by Puccini billed as Il trittico (The Triptych); the first two were Il tabarro (The Cloak) and Suor Angelica (Sister Angelica). Il tabarro was a dark tragedy and Suor Angelica a sweet one, so by closing with Gianni Schicchi Puccini rounded off the night with a high-spirited comic farce. Critical reaction at the time judged that Gianni Schicchi was “an uproarious delight”, and it was the most favorably received of the three.

The mandolin reached prominence as a solo instrument in the 17th century when it began to appear in operas and oratorios, and in chamber and solo repertoire. Amongst the most prominent composers for the instrument were Niccolò Ceccherini and Pietro Cappellini, masters of polyphony. But it was Filippo Sauli’s Sei partite, composed for the four-course mandolin, that constitute a body of work unique in early 18th-century mandolin repertoire – a kaleidoscopic digest of different styles and influences that combine French and Italian traditions in music of exquisite taste and expressive beauty.

REVIEW:

The Six Partitas by Filippo Sauli, who flourished in the late 17th and early 18th centuries, are clearly the centerpiece of the program presented here. Most have short opening movements, usually preludes, some as short as 19 seconds! One can hear the standard suite movements in various orders, and the partitas often end with minuets. Notable is the short Prelude to the 4th partita, with crystalline arpeggiated chords that shimmer brightly.

Ferella’s playing is deft and musical, with clear articulation and a stylistic sense of each dance, not to mention excellent intonation and tone, and is recorded well with a realistic mandolin sound and reverberation.

All in all, this is very enjoyable.

— American Record Guide (Jim McCutcheon)

Nicolò Paganini’s Quartets for Strings and Guitar are among his finest chamber compositions. The First Guitar Quartet was a wedding gift from Paganini to his younger sister; and both this and the Second Quartet share neo-classical poise with warmly expressive romantic lyricism. The Ninth Quartet features sweet and melancholy moods containing some of Paganini’s most disarmingly simple melodies, and as the composer himself stated, ‘a very fanciful minuet and a moving trio’. The "Paganini Ensemble Vienna" has set its goal high in presenting this rarely played program which offers unique insight into Paganini’s extensive oeuvre for the violin, guitar, viola, and violoncello. These works offer not only technical virtuosity and moments of tremendous passion, but also passages expressing great tenderness, suffering, and joy. Indeed, these emotional elements are essential to understanding the music of Nicolo Paganini, who once said “We must strongly feel to make others feel.”

This Blu-ray Disc is only playable on Blu-ray Disc players and not compatible with standard DVD players.

Also available on standard DVD

L’Empio Punito is the first opera where the character of Don Giovanni (Acrimante) makes his appearance. It was first premiered in Rome on February 17th, 1669 and this release is the recording of the first modern times performance that took place at the historical Teatro di Villa Torlonia in Rome in October 2019, 350 years after its debut. The fundamental dramaturgical lines that characterize the following versions, in particular Mozart’s, are already here: the complicity between Acrimante (Don Giovanni) and Bibi (Leporello); the despair of Atamira (Donna Elvira), abandoned by Acrimante; Acrimante’s attempt to seduce Ipomene (Donna Anna), betrothed to Cloridoro (Don Ottavio); the duel between Acrimante and Tidemo (Commendatore) and the latter’s death at Acrimante’s hand; the graveyard scene, where Acrimante invites Tidemo’s statue to dinner; the eternal damnation of Acrimante and the finale, in which all the main characters appear. As Conductor Alessandro Quarta points out, Acrimante’s seductive power brings chaos and pain in the lives of the other characters but a lot of energy as well. “[Acrimante’s] sentimental and emotional disorder disrupts the personality of the other characters who revolve around him He messes them up, makes them suffer and makes them behave in relation to the turmoil he creates”.

The début album of duo Antongirolami-Galosi features a collection of works for cello and piano by and about Rossini as homage to the great heritage of the Maestro – who was also a skilled cellist – with whom they share the native region. The programme of this release includes themes, variations and fantasias on music composed by Rossini himself, including some less known chamber pieces, as well as music composed in the Rossinian style by 19th and 20th century composers. Antongirolami and Galosi have played in duo since 2013 and perform at various festivals in Italy.

Alessandro Scarlatti's Il trionfo dell'onore (The Triumph of Honour) - his only comic opera - was first performed in Naples in 1718. With it's distinctive recitatives and expressive arias, and a cast including four pairs of lovers, it can be considered one of the forerunners of opera buffa. The central character is the unrepentant seducer Riccardo Albenori, a Don Giovanni-like figure though without the villainous aura. In this opera, Scarlatti ensures not only perceptive psychology but a rich variety of arias, duets and quartets that generate the work's pathos as well as it's humour and eroticism.

Gluck's Orphee et Euridice is a masterpiece of the operatic canon, inspired by one of the most mysterious and cruel stories in Greek mythology. The gods allow Orpheus to descend into the underworld to revive his beloved wife Eurydice, but on condition that he must not look at her while returning. This production from Florence re-imagines this myth as a story for our times. It explores each character anew, highlighting the music and text as a more sophisticated psychological thriller than previously imagined, creating a moving and transformative narrative with which we can all identify.

Roberto Devereux is the fourth and finest of Donizetti's works dedicated to the Tudor period of English history, and is considered by many to be the ultimate masterpiece amongst his Italian operas. The tragic narrative is a tale of intrigue and vengeance in the court of the elderly and weary Queen Elisabeth I, with Donizetti's powerful score expressing all of the intense drama and sorrowful emotion demanded by the opera's finely etched characters. This star-studded Donizetti Opera Festival production received wide critical acclaim.

Zoraida di Granata, a stirring tale of love, betrayal and reconciliation, set in the Moorish kingdom of Granada in Andalusia in 1480, gave the 24-year-old Donizetti his first major operatic triumph. It marked his establishment as a true musical dramatist with a sure sense of craftsmanship and a flair for the dramatic. The opera's virtuosic central roles, fine choruses and powerful set-pieces show Rossini's unavoidable influence, though it is more a presence rather than imitation. This performance of the 1822 edition, not the 1824 revision, is performed on original instruments by Gli Originali and conducted by Alberto Zanardi.

Donizetti's Don Pasquale is one of a triumvirate of 19th-century Italian opere buffe - L'elisir d'amore and Rossini's Il barbiere di Siviglia being the others - that continue to enchant the world's stages. Don Pasquale represents the high point of the opera buffa tradition, employing figures taken from commedia dell'arte - the blustering old man, his lovesick nephew, the wily widow and the scheming doctor - and brings new life to the genre in this beautifully constructed comic opera full of cabalettas, cadenzas and coloratura, gently tinged with melancholy. This production employs a new critical edition of the work and stars the seasoned baritone Roberto de Candia in the central role, alongside Giulia Mazzola as Norina.

MacBeth is one of Shakespeare's greatest tragedies, telling the story of a power couple galvanised by witchcraft and superstition, and obsessed by a craving to conquer the throne by force, even by murder. This French version of Verdi's opera takes us into a sphere of decorum and decency that hides monsters capable of the worst atrocities, portrayed in some of the composer's most blood-curdling and intense passages of music. A genuine rarity on stage, this 2024 production of the French version was acclaimed for it's powerful vocal performances and fine acting.

This new production of Tosca from Maggio Musicale Fiorentino is set in the late 1920s. Puccini's 'Roman Opera' sees a city bathed in majesty but also curdled by eroticism and sadism, where sartorial elegance and pathological violence co-exist. Taking visual clues from Bernardo Bertolucci's cinematic masterpiece, Il conformista, the cast is led by the passionate Vanessa Goikoetxea and features the magnetic Alexey Markov in the role of Scarpia. Daniele Gatti directs a performance praised for it's 'courageous and surprising' impact.

Bajazet was a work of Vivaldi's late maturity, a dramatic tale that recounts the capture of the Turkish sultan Bajazet by the all-conquering Tartar, Tamerlane. It is a pasticcio, a well-established form, in which Vivaldi incorporated arias by some of the greatest young composers of his time - Johann Adolf Hasse, Geminiano Giacomelli and Riccardo Broschi, brother to the famous castrato Farinelli - to form a generous buffet of musical fireworks. Still, Vivaldi's recitatives, choruses and arias form the backbone of the opera, and constitute the majority of the music, producing a work of kaleidoscopic invention.

Ottorino Respighi's 'mystery in three episodes', Maria egiziaca, started out as a concert triptych. It's intensely dramatic and at times symphonic qualities give it a character somewhere between an oratorio and an opera. Based on the life of Saint Mary of Egypt, the archaic story of Maria egiziaca revolves around faith seen through it's various characters, with Maria's journey from prostitution to sainthood conveyed as an expressive and eloquently immediate musical fresco. This Teatro La Fenice production of Respighi's profoundly moving and deeply sensuous stage work was critically acclaimed.

Gaetano Donizetti had big shoes to fill at his debut in Naples in 1823, arriving at the Teatro di San Carlo just after Rossini's departure, full of talent but still seeking his true voice. Alfredo il Grande is influenced by Rossini, but also shows hints of great things to come. The narrative is a celebration of heroism and magnanimous royalty, taking us to 9th century England where King Alfred the Great is on the run from the Vikings. Revived two centuries after the spectacular failure of it's premiere, this little-known opera seria can now stand as a reflection on humanitarian values and gestures of resistance against the destructiveness of war.