Freiburger Gespräche

Beethoven’s only opera, Fidelio (1814), had a difficult birth, and this recording allows us to hear the composer’s first thoughts when the work was unveiled as Leonore in 1805. The most striking thing about Leonore is that it contains a lot more music and certain characters—most notably Marzelline—have a more important role. The later version is considerably tauter, but there’s much to enjoy here, not least René Jacobs’ natural dramatic instincts. Marlis Petersen and Maximilian Schmitt make an impressive central couple while Robin Johannsen is a delightful Marzelline. The other roles are strongly cast, making a powerful case for this Beethoven rarity.

Freiburger Barockorchester (Freiburg Baroque Orchestra) is a German orchestra founded in 1987, with the mission statement: "to enliven the world of baroque music with new sounds". They are based in Freiburg im Breisgau, hence the name, and have recently started performed works by later composers such as Beethoven, Schubert and Weber as well as contemporary music.