Search - :: Handel Ariodante Hunt Gondek Saffer Lane Muller Cavalier Freiburg McGegan

Glorious singing - a baroque masterpiece

Ed Beveridge | London, England | 04/19/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"OK - my turn to join the McGegan - Minkowski debate. This is the first Ariodante I heard on disc (having already encountered the piece in the theatre). For those not familiar with it, it is set in the dark and forbidding world of mediaeval Scotland. The King's daughter (Ginevra) is set to marry a vassal prince, Ariodante. His rival in love, Polinesso, Duke of Albany, convinces Ariodante that Ginevra is unfaithful and Ariodante commits suicide. Or does he? As soon as Polinesso claims the hand of the distracted Ginevra, Ariodante reappears - and they all live happily ever after.Or they would if this weren't a dark and deeply disturbing work. It is a procession of simply stunning arias and unusually the act ends consist of dances which thread through the work. It really is Handel's best music - Ariodante's ten-minute showstopper, Scherza Infida (with glorious bassoon obbligato) and Ginevra's achingly simple plea to her cruel father, Io ti bacio, are among the greatest glories of the Baroque.And there is no shortage of Baroque specialists to do the work justice. McGegan's recording is based on a production from the Swedish Gottingen festival, and it is very much a period-style set, with the Freiburg Baroque Orchestra giving an extremely tight, almost austere performance. McGegan's tempi are almost magically correct, without seeming middle of the road and never rushing the singers. The dance music's internal pulses are unerringly caught.He fields a fine and in some cases exceptional cast of baroque singers, many of them familiar from Harmonia Mundi's other Handel recordings. Rightly, the title character stands at the centre in a searingly complete performance from Lorraine Hunt (now Lorraine Hunt Lieberson). Without the glorious vocal endowment of others (eg Von Otter) she sings a technically perfect and fabulously musical hero, her naturally dark and melancholy sound just right for this introspective character. Her coloratura is flawless without ever being showy for the sake of it. It's a truly great performance and bears repeated hearings for the sheer expressive detail she finds. Jennifer Land, as Polinesso, provides a creepily assured villain, descending to the baritone depths with aplomb. Juliana Gondek is agile and touching as Ginevra, a slightly anonymous tone aside, and Lisa Saffer gives a rounded portrayl of the perfidious Dalinda - with bell-like, rounded tone.Altogether this is a very classy set indeed. For me, it is the best available, though there are others running very close (eg Minkowski - of which more elsewhere). For a truly glorious Baroque recording, don't hesitate."

Extraordinaria

Homero | Santiago, Region Metropolitana Chile | 08/01/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"En una intérpretación magistral Lorraine Hunt logra una delicadeza aun superior a la de mitos handelianos como Dame Jane Baker, asestando un fraseo y una claridad que logran su punto cúlmine en arias como "Col alli di costanza" o "scherza infida". Nicolas mcgegan con su solidez habitual imprime velocidad en los allegros y dulzura inaudita en los tiempos más lentos respetando las formas barrocas con entera propiedad. Destacable tambien el resto del elenco con Juliana Gondiek brillante en su papel de Polinesso con arias increíbles como "coperta la frode.." y el tenor en "Il tuo sangue". Punto aparte para el bajo que como rey inflama de aires reales un aria excepcional como "Volli con la sua tromba". En resumen la magnificencia handeliana en un registro donde el sello Harmonia Mundi no ha escatimado esfuerzos para lograr una obra de extremo virtuosismo"

Excellent performances by all

Homero | 06/25/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"In short, this is an excellent recording of a fine Handel opera. Lorraine Hunt is superb in her singing and characterization. One of the major surprises for me was the menacing characterization and the beautiful singing of Jennifer Lane. The cast was chosen well and blended terrifically. Buy this CD!!"