Cristina Tosi

Today's music lovers associate L’Orfeo first and foremost with Claudio Monteverdi’s famous opera from 1607, while the version by Luigi Rossi, premiered four decades later, has remained less well-known. Rossi had served as a musician first for the noble families Borghese and Barberini in Florence and Rome, respectively, before he moved to France in 1646, where he became the most respected composer at the court of Cardinal Mazarin.

Il martirio di Santa Caterina by castrato singer, composer and writer Pier Francesco Tosi is a fine example of the rich tradition of late-Baroque oratorio. It is the embodiment of Tosi’s famous treatise on a vocal style that emphasised expressive authenticity over virtuoso display. This story of the martyrdom of Catherine of Alexandria for refusing to convert to paganism is filled with deeply poignant music that depicts her prodigious inner strength, representing the power of faith through grief, courage, compassion, and admiration for the fortitude of others.

Il martirio di Santa Caterina by castrato singer, composer and writer Pier Francesco Tosi is a fine example of the rich tradition of late-Baroque oratorio.