Purcell: Fairest Isle (King Arthur) [Anna Dennis with Voices of Music]

Accompanied by the San Francisco-based Early Music ensemble Voices of Music, soprano Anna Dennis sings Fairest Isle from Henry Purcell’s semi-opera King Arthur (z628), which premiered in 1691. This performance was recorded during the ensemble’s “The Great Poets” concert in January 2015.

Philippe Jaroussky & Emőke Baráth sing Cavalli: O luci belle

French countertenor Philippe Jaroussky and the Hungarian soprano Emőke Baráth sing the early Baroque era composer Francesco Cavalli’s (14 February 1602 – 14 January 1676) beautiful aria “O luci belle” from Eritrea, an opera in three acts. The libretto is by Giovanni Faustini (1615-1651), the Italian librettist, and opera impresario of the 17th century.

Emőke Baráth performs “Scherza in mar la navicella” from Handel’s Lotario

Hungarian soprano Emőke Baráth performs the aria “Scherza in mar la navicella” from Handel’s 1729 opera Lotario (“Lothair”), HWV 26. In the album Dualità, Baráth is joined by the French countertenor Philippe Jaroussky as conductor of his Ensemble Artaserse in captivating arias for the female voice, embodying roles both male and female.

Händel: Ombra mai fu [Christopher Lowrey, Voices of Music]

Accompanied by the award-winning early music ensemble Voices of Music, the American countertenor Christopher Lowrey performs “Ombra mai fu”, the opening aria from the 1738 opera Serse by George Frideric Handel. A 4K, Ultra HD video from the Voices of Music “Art of the Countertenor” concert, March 2016.

Monteverdi: L’Orfeo [La Capella Reial de Catalunya, Jordi Savall]

Conducted by Jordi Savall, the La Capella Reial de Catalunya (accompanied with the period-instrument ensemble Le Concert des Nations, also conducted by Savall) performs Claudio Monteverdi’s L’Orfeo (SV 318), sometimes called La favola d’Orfeo, a late Renaissance/early Baroque favola in musica, or opera, with a libretto by Alessandro Striggio. Written in 1607 for a court …

Purcell: King Arthur [Vox Luminis and Teatro La Fenice Orchestra]

Conducted by Jean Tubéry, Vox Luminis and Teatro La Fenice Orchestra perform King Arthur, or The British Worthy (Z. 628), a semi-opera in five acts with music by Henry Purcell and a libretto by John Dryden. Recorded on August 31, 2015, at the Utrecht Early Music Festival (Festival Oude Muziek Utrecht) 2015 in TivoliVredenburg. A …

Arias and concertos from Handel and Vivaldi [Magdalena Kožená, Andrea Marcon]

Conducted by Andrea Marcon, the Venice Baroque Orchestra performs arias from George Frideric Handel, German-born, British Baroque composer; and concertos from Antonio Vivaldi, the Italian Baroque composer, virtuoso violinist, teacher, and cleric who was born in Venice. Mezzo-Soprano: Magdalena Kožená.