ANDREAS SCHOLL Arias For Senesino

Handel Flavio (1723)

1.Bel contento [05.53]

Handel Rodelinda (1725)

2. Recitativo accompagnato: Pompe vane di morte!... [02.13]

3. Dove sei? [05.00]

Albinoni Astarto (1708)

4. Stelle ingrate [03.15]

Albinoni Engelberta (1708)

5. Selvagge amenità [03.47]

Lotti Teofane (1719)

6. Discordi pensier [06.53]

Scarlatti Carlo re d'Allemagna (1716)

7. Del ciel sui giri [05.06]

Lotti Gli odi delusi dal Sangue (1718)

8. Fosti caro [05.11]

Handel Giulio Cesare (1724)

9. Recitativo accompagnato: Dall'ondoso periglio... 01.43

10. Aure, deh, per pietà [05.32]

Handel Giulio Cesare (1724)

11. Al lampo dell' armi [02.53]

Handel Rinaldo (1731)

12. Cara sposa [09.21]

Porpora Il Trionfo di Camilla (1740)

12. Va' per le vene il sangue [08.05]

Total running time: 65.42

Accademia Bizantina/ Ottavio Dantone

Senesino - The voice that inspired Handel's greatest operas Showpiece arias by Handel, Lotti, Albinoni, Porpora and Scarlatti.

One of the truly outstanding voices of today, star countertenor Andreas Scholl celebrates one of the 18th Century's greatest vocal superstars - the remarkable male alto known as Senesino.

Senesino's place in history was secured by his extraordinary association with Handel, who after travelling to Dresden to hear him, brought him to London to join his Italian Opera Company - where he was greatly celebrated by the public, and much admired by the ladies. Inspired by this unique singer, Handel wrote for him a dazzling succession of operatic roles which showcased the beauty and power of his extraordinary vocal personality.

Scholl's exquisite voice, beloved of critics and audiences, pure, penetrating, virtuosic and deeply characterful, is a remarkable match for the voice of Senesino. This is a project very close to his heart and the album will be released to coincide with a Europe-wide concert tour of this repertoire.

The impact of Senesino's extraordinary talents on Handel, and therefore on the history of opera, was profound - with many great roles being written for him including the title role of Giulio Cesare, which Andreas Scholl again sings on stage this Spring (in Copenhagen). Scholl has also sung another complete Senesino role on stage, when he made his Glyndebourne Festival debut as Bertarido in Rodelinda.

In a series of virtuosic showpiece arias Scholl celebrates Senesino from the very start of his career to the very last aria he is known to have sung - and Handel is not the only composer featured, as the album will also include premiere recordings of arias by other Baroque greats including Albinoni, Scarlatti, Lotti and Porpora.

Andreas Scholl is again joined by the Accademia Bizantina under the direction of Ottavio Dantone who together provided exquisitely sensitive accompaniment on their first collaboration - Arcadian Cantatas.

The castrato Senesino was one of the great singers of Handel's day, an artist of virtuoso technique. He was fêted by audiences throughout Europe and enjoyed particular renown in London where he lived for two periods. Such was Handel's admiration for him that he conceived 17 roles for him: Andreas Scholl is a worthy (and thankfully intact) modern-day successor.
Gramophone

Fêted like a pop star, the 18th-century castrato Senesino was insufferably arrogant even by the standards of his breed. His famed clashes with Handel must have made spectacular theatre. But as an artist he had few equals, entrancing audiences with the power and sweetness of his voice and his mastery of both the "pathetic" and the brilliant styles.
That mastery is shared by countertenor Andreas Scholl in this snapshot of Senesino's 30-year career. Handel naturally takes pride of place, with numbers from Giulio Cesare, Rodelinda ( "Dove sei", known in English as "Art Thou Troubled") and Rinaldo ("Cara sposa"), plus an elegant minuet aria from the rare Flavio. But the other items are all worth hearing, especially two heartfelt numbers by Lotti and an exuberant Alessandro Scarlatti aria complete with rollicking horns.
Scholl sings this, and Caesar's pugnacious "Al lampo dell'armi", with the bravura showmanship for which Senesino was famed. Even more memorable, though, are his liquid tone and wonderfully shapely phrasing in the slower, soulful numbers, above all "Cara sposa", most piercing of Handel's operatic laments. High-octane accompaniments from Ottavio Dantone's period ensemble set the seal on a glorious recital.
Richard Wigmore, Telegraph

Decca 4756569