Gennari Rinaldo

Handel's masterpiece Rinaldo is based on Torquato Tasso's epic La Gerusalemme liberata, which tells the tale of the attempted seduction of the hero by the enchantress Armida against the backdrop of the First Crusade. Musicologists agree that Handel carried out a major cut-and-paste exercise with Rinaldo, as more than two thirds of his 1711 score was taken from earlier works. This particular production by Pier Luigi Pizzi, conceived in 1985 for Teatro Romolo Valli in Reggio Emilia, has since travelled to some twenty major opera houses worldwide. Putting aside practical cuts and a few displacements of musical numbers, its durable attraction lies in the gorgeous costumes and scenery, a stylish paragon of 'hyperbaroque' that deliberately avoids both literalism and cheap provocation.

Skin-tight rubber and lacrosse sticks bring contemporary chic to this timeless fantasy of warriors and witches in Robert Carsen's fun-filled transformation of Handel's first London triumph. Conducting from the keyboard just as Handel himself did, Ottavio Dantone leads a youthful cast of today's luminaries in the dramatic art of Baroque opera, the 'affecting' Sonia Prina, the 'unadorned intensity' of Anett Fritsch and 'fire-breathing flair' (The Observer) of Brenda Rae…

Venetian liturgical music of the early 18th century tended to be indistinguishable from opera except that the texts were sacred rather than theatrical, allowing congregations to hear the same kinds of displays of flamboyant virtuosity they could expect in the opera house (and often with the same singers). Vivaldi's two settings of the Gloria, both in D major and both from 1715, are no exceptions to that trend, and offer a spectacular showcase for soloists. This Naïve release, part of its Vivaldi Edition, features the singers and players of Concerto Italiano, led by its founder Rinaldo Alessandrini, and contralto Sara Mingardo. Alessandrini's mastery in this repertoire is evident in the supple elegance of the performances, his keen sense of pacing, and particularly in the nuanced balance of the choral parts.

As Concerto Italiano and its harpsichordist/director Rinaldo Alessandrini are gradually becoming the most recruited ensemble in Opus 111’s ambitious ongoing Vivaldi cycle, it apparently was only a matter of time before they got their chance at Le Quattro Stagioni (regardless of Fabio Biondi and Europa Galante’s excellent and still-available first recording for the same label). And as we would expect from their superb previous Vivaldi recordings, it’s a great one, characterized by remarkably crisp articulation, expert ensemble, and meticulous attention to detail.