Search - Fulvio Bettini, George Frederick Handel, Diego Fasolis :: George Frideric Handel: Faramondo

As we might expect, Alan Curtis has some awful strong compet

Baroque and opera freak | Hong Kong | 05/13/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Since this recording came out just about the same time as Alan Curtis's Alcina, people are certainly going to compare the two, although most lovers of Handel's operas will be too busy just buying and listening to both of them. If a Handel conductor as great Curtis decides not to use counter-tenors any more for castrati parts in his opera recordings and performances (as he explains in an interview on the Ariodante DVD), then it is inevitable that the other Handelian conductors or Handelian conductors-to-be are going to have a field day recording other Handel operas WITH counter-tenors. Now when we have counter-tenors as great as David Daniels, Andreas Scholl, and Philippe Jaroussky (to name only the most prominent), Curtis has left a lot of talent for the competition. It is not surprising that Jaroussky is the most outstanding, and intoxicating, performer on this fantastic recording; his voice is so unique and sensuous, and familiar from many other superb recordings (among which this may be the best). What is most amazing about this recording -- since we already expected that Fasolis and his I Barocchisti would be as good as Curtis and Il Compresso Barocco -- is that it introduces a whole new line-up of really fine Handelian singers that consists totally of singers that I for one have not heard of before, including two new counter-tenors who -- each in his own way -- are delightfully different from the other counter-tenors singing Handel today. Obviously a whole new generation of great Handel singers is now coming onto the stage, backed by quite a line-up of distinguished conductors, guaranteeing that we and our children and grandchildren will be kept on the edge of our chairs in the Handelian opera theatre for at least another 20-some years. Max Cencic (Faramondo), as handsome as Clark Gable, will certainly be with us for a long time, as will the bass, In-Sung Sim (Gustavo). Perhaps this is not an inappropriate place to say, in addition, that I have rarely found a Handel recital disk, even by the best of Handelian soloists, that can compete with any of the complete opera (or oratorio) recordings -- let alone one as spectacular is this. The reasons are obvious: on the opera/oratorio recordings we have the original artistic unity of one work of art written for one sustained performance, and we have the balanced alternation between recitative and aria that is an essential part of the original genius of opera as a dramatic art for the stage. Of course we also have a story that holds the whole thing together, which even if we do not fully follow it, still helps sustain the feeling of artistic unity. And most importantly, perhaps, the recital disks give us usually one performer, or at best two in alternation and duet, while the complete opera or oratorio gives us the whole range of human voices and human emotions. And it is this whole range, more than any out-of-context collection of spectacular arias, that most deeply moves our hearts, and that gradually over repeated listening makes us more complete, more aware, and more sensitive as human beings struggling through this breathtakingly kaleidoscopic life."

Required Listening for Handel Lovers

Paul Van de Water | Virginia, USA | 06/23/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Fine recordings of Handel operas have been recently appearing from unexpected sources--for example, "Amadigi di Gaula" from Eduardo Lopez Banzo and Al Ayre Espanol (Spain) and "Arianna in Creta" from George Petrou and the Orchestra of Patras (Greece). Now the Swiss early music ensemble I Barocchisti, under the direction of Diego Fasolis, presents its first recording of a Handel opera, and it is a great success.



The only previous recording of "Faramondo" was a 1996 Vox production under the direction of Rudolph Palmer. Although it was a creditable job and included some excellent singers (Julianne Baird, Drew Minter, and D'Anna Fortunato), its performance and sound are both eclipsed by this new offering from Virgin Classics.



As the previous Amazon reviewer notes, all the male roles in this recording are sung by men, including four countertenors. Under the best of circumstances, now that there are many excellent countertenors, and many women skilled in performing male parts (such as Sarah Connolly's Caesar and Ann Hallenberg's Ariodante), we should be able to focus on the quality of the singing rather than the gender of the performers. This recording achieves that level of success with a uniformly high level of vocal artistry.



"Faramondo" has a convoluted plot and may never be a success on stage (although one never knows these days). Suffice it to say that the story involves the common devices of rival kings, thwarted love, and infants switched at birth and concludes with the required happy ending (lieto fine). The opera includes some outstanding arias and duets and is required listening for all Handel lovers."

George Frideric Handel: Faramondo

Bjorn Viberg | European Union | 04/28/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"George Frideric Handel: Faramondo is a great recording under the direction of Diego Fasolis whom leads the Coro della Radio Svizzera, Lugano on this EMI recording from 2009. The booklet contains 86 pages and has linernotes written in English, French and German written by Markus Cerenak. The booklet also contains photographs of the performers. The lyrics are in English, French, German and Italian. I highly recommend it. 5/5."