Rossini: La Cenerentola

Giorgio Caoduro is one of the leading Italian baritones of his generation and one of the reigning Bel Canto singers of today. He has appeared at such renowned opera houses as the Royal Opera House Covent Garden, Opera National de Paris, La Scala di Milano, Teatro dell'Opera di Roma, Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, Teatro Regio Torino, Staatsoper Unter den Linden Berlin, Deutsche Oper Berlin, Semperoper Dresden, Liceu Barcelona, San Francisco Opera, or Los Angeles Opera House. At the centre of his singing are the bel canto roles of Rossini, Donizetti, Bellini and Verdi. With his selection of highly virtuosic arias from operas by Rossini, Giorgio Caoduro reminds us of the dazzling richness of the repertoire composed for this type of voice, a repertoire in which the old roles of basso buffo, the more modern ones of tyrants, afflicted fathers or repentant criminals converged, and finally where the roles of mature heroes were already appearing, roles to which Verdi would give, a few years later, their letters of nobility.

Back by popular demand, The Toscanini Collection is a reissue of RCA's 1992 compendium that encompassed all of the recordings Toscanini made with the New York Philharmonic, Philadelphia Orchestra, and NBC Symphony. A new addition to this amazing collection is his approved recordings with the BBC Symphony from the 1930s that were not included in the 1992 edition.

Bartoli's evident, and infectious, enthusiasm and delight in studying the career of Maria Malibran is sketched in Michael Sturminger's documentary, in whichwe follow her to many of the theatres and streets associated with the diva beloved of the Romantic imagination. In libraries and museums we are able to view some of the scores used by Malibran in her brief and stormy progress through the capitals of Europe. From the opening shots of a gondola in Venice passing through the Rio Malibran, to the final glimpse of her tomb in Brussels, one gets some idea of the impact she made on audiences in the 1820s and '30s.

Gioacchino Rossini wrote two kinds of comic opera. First there was the manic, almost farcial "opera buffa" (eg. THE BARBER OF SEVILLE). Then there was a kind of serio-comedy akin to the "dramma giocoso" of Mozart. IL TURCO IN ITALIA (1816) definitely falls in the latter category (as does LA CENERENTOLA). This little-known opera is a real gem. It is about a Muslim prince (Selim, sung by Michele Pertusi in fine voice) from Turkey and the comedy and conflict that ensue when he visits Italy. A clash of cultures ensues as the polygamous Selim tries to steal Don Geronio's young wife, Fiorilla (mezzo-soprano Cecilia Bartoli, singing a role written for soprano)…

A new collection of Cecilia Bartoli’s finest recordings, including two unreleased arias from Handel’s Alcina. Featuring beloved arias and duets stretching from Handel and Porpora, through Gluck and Mozart, to the Three Kings of 19th-century Italian song: Rossini, Bellini and Donizetti. Featuring guest appearances from Sir Bryn Terfel, Alessandro Corbelli, Sumi Jo, Juan Diego Florez and Luciano Pavarotti.