MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Vivaldi: Pietà - Sacred Works for Alto. [Limited Edtion CD plus DVD]

MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Vivaldi: Pietà - Sacred Works for Alto. [Limited Edtion CD plus DVD] cover $40.00 Low Stock add to cart

ANTONIO VIVALDI
MARBECKS COLLECTABLE: Vivaldi: Pietà - Sacred Works for Alto. [Limited Edtion CD plus DVD]
Philippe Jaroussky (counter-tenor) / Ensemble Artaserse

[ Virgin Classics CD + DVD / 2 CD/DVD ]

Release Date: Saturday 1 November 2014

Should this item be out of stock at the time of your order, we would expect to be able to supply it to you within 2 - 4 weeks.

Philippe Jaroussky is a counter-tenor superstar and deservedly so. In the years since his first solo release on Erato, he has established his reputation as the pre-eminent counter-tenor of his generation through the expressive clarity of his voice and his eclectic choice of repertoire. While Baroque repertoire is naturally a constant mine of music to explore for him, Philippe broke the counter-tenor mould with his 2009 album Opium, an album of French songs from the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and included guest appearances from some of France's best music exports, such as Renaud and Gautier Capuçon, and Emmanuel Pahud.

Following his last two releases of baroque masterpieces - Pergolesi's Stabat Mater with soprano Julia Lezhneva, and a collection of outstanding opera arias by Neapolitan composer and singing teacher Nicola Antonio Porpora, whose most famous singing student was the castrato Farinelli - Philippe Jaroussky returns to the studio with the orchestra he founded, Ensemble Artaserse, for Pietà, a survey of some of Vivaldi's most beautiful sacred works. DVD includes video of Antonio Vivaldi Stabat Mater (studio recording) and a video of Philippe Jaroussky following Vivaldi' steps in Venice.

"There is no place for the religiosos in Pieta, Philippe Jaroussky's uplifting new collection of Vivaldi's sacred music. Even in the elegiac Stabat Mater, the Italian composer retains a grace and airiness, well conveyed by Ensemble Artaserse, accompanying and directed by one of the world's most elegant and accomplished counter-tenors.

Jarousky has chosen his material carefully: an aria from the well-known Gloria, five minutes of Concerto Grosso for his small, expert orchestra and five solo motets.

All of which adds up to just under 80 minutes, and there is a bonus DVD in which the singer gives us a sprightly and informative tour of Venice, interspersed with musical performances. Tourists wandering in fast motion to a purposeful Allegro and shots of a soulful Jaroussky gazing from his gondola are minor irritations.

There is much serenity in this music, perfect for a singer of unblemished tone and vocal agility, two of Jaroussky's prime virtues. Regular outbursts of musical fireworks remind one that this is, after all, from the pen of the man who gave us The Four Seasons." (William Dart NZ Herald)

"The recording provides clear, well balanced sound quality. I can confirm that full Latin texts are provided with translations in English, French and German. The cover image shows Jaroussky high up inside the Pietà clutching the iron grille, behind which the orphan girls would have performed. The bonus DVD and Frédéric Delaméa's fine essay add to the admirable presentation of this release." (MusicWeb Dec 2014)

Tracks:

Stabat Mater, RV621
Longe mala, umbrae, terrores, RV629
Concerto for Multiple Instruments in F RV192
Introduzione al miserere, RV 638 'Filiae maestae Jerusalem'
Clarae stellae, scintillate, RV625
Gloria in D major, RV589: Domine Deus
Concerto for strings, RV 120
Salve Regina, RV 618

Check out an excerpt here: