Five years after her solo debut recording, Direct Message, which programmed 20th and 21st century works for trumpet and piano, trumpet player Matilda Lloyd departs the traditional repertoire (aside from the two Arban arrangements from the Complete Conservatory Method for Trumpet). Instead of following more well-worn routes, Lloyd elects to present a program of Romantic period opera arias, mostly in arrangements for trumpet and chamber orchestra (undertaken here by the Britten Sinfonia under Rumon Gamba) by William Foster, who worked closely with Lloyd on this project. Lloyd's skill as a musician is evident throughout, though the two Arban tracks most clearly allow her abilities to shine. The arrangements throughout are good, though how much they add to the performances rather than transcriptions and transpositions is up for debate. Lloyd notes with excitement the decision to include two pieces by Pauline Viardot, and one of the highlights here is the treatment of Viardot's Havanaise. This is certainly a trumpet release aimed at a wider audience than trumpet and brass circles, and it has already found success on the retail market. Chandos delivers just the right atmosphere from the Church of St. Augustine, Kilburn, in London. The future is bright for this trumpeter, and one looks forward to where her path may take her. © Keith Finke /TiVo

The musical world owes a debt of gratitude to French conductor Christophe Rousset not only for the vital, exquisite performances he delivers with the ensembles Les Talens Lyriques and Choeur de Chambre de Namur, but for his work in bringing to light neglected masterpieces of Baroque opera. Lully's Bellérophon, premiered in 1679, was a huge success in its time, with an initial run of nine months. Part of its popularity was doubtless due to the parallels that could be drawn between its plot and certain recent exploits of Louis XV, but even the earliest critics recognized the score's uniqueness and exceptional quality within Lully's oeuvre, so it's perhaps surprising that it has never been recorded before. The distinctiveness of the music was likely a result at least in part of the fact that Lully's preferred librettist Philippe Quinault was out of favor at the court of Louis XV at the time, so the composer turned to Thomas Corneille for the libretto, and Corneille's literary and dramatic styles were so different from Quinault's that Lully was nudged out of his comfort zone and had to develop new solutions to questions of structure and the marrying of music to text. It is the first opera for which Lully composed fully accompanied recitatives, and that alone gives it a textural richness that surpasses his earlier works. The composer also allows soloists to sing together, something that was still a rarity in Baroque opera. There are several duets and larger ensembles; the love duet, "Que tout parle à l'envie de notre amour extreme!," is a ravishing expression of passion and happiness, as rhapsodic as anything in 19th century Italian opera. The level of musical inventiveness throughout is exceptional even for Lully; the expressiveness of the recitatives, the charm of the instrumental interludes, the originality of the choruses, and the limpid loveliness of the airs make this an opera that demands attention. Rousset and his forces give an outstanding performance that's exuberantly spirited, musically polished, rhythmically springy, and charged with dramatic urgency. The soloists are consistently of the highest order. Cyril Auvity brings a large, virile, passionate tenor to the title role and Céline Scheen is warmly lyrical as his lover Philonoë. Ingrid Perruche is fiercely powerful as the villain, Stéenobée, and Jean Teitgen is a secure, authoritative Apollo. Soloists, chorus, and orchestra are fluent in the subtle inflections of French middle Baroque ornamentation. The sound of the live recording is very fine, with a clean, immediate, realistic ambience. This is a release that fans of Baroque opera will not want to miss. Highly recommended. © TiVo

Jean-Baptiste Lully's Cadmus & Hermione of 1673 was arguably the first true French opera, telling a tragic story (Lully and his librettist Philippe Quinault called it a tragédie en lyrique), employing Italian-style recitatives, and collecting the varied music and dance forms of Louis XIV's opulent court into a coherent narrative that at once celebrated Louis (he is conflated with Cadmus of Thebes) and moved beyond the ceremonial nature of earlier French dramatic music. It's a sprawling work, with five acts, an overture, and a sizable Prologue with its own overture; highlights include a dragon that eats Africans, a monster snake, and a full complement of Greek gods and goddesses. Realization of the work has, until now, been beyond the means of early music performance groups, and this is the world premiere recording of the opera, made in 2019 and based on a 2008 performance at Versailles Palace by some of the same performers. The leader is Vincent Dumestre, conducting the Le Poème Harmonique orchestra and the vocal ensembles Aedes. The forces are large enough to capture the splendor of the music (thankfully, no one-voice-per-part techniques here), and Dumestre is alert to the huge variety of musical devices Lully brings to bear on his story; there are dances, big choruses, bagpipes, and much more. Cadmus & Hermione may be a difficult work to bring to life for modern audiences, but Dumestre keeps things moving along and probably comes as close as anyone could. Of course, anyone interested in the life of the French court in the 17th century will find this an essential acquisition that will keep giving and giving. © TiVo

« This ranks among the most intelligent and striking recital discs of recent years. Spanish counter-tenor Xavier Sabata explores the worlds of Handel's villains — the tyrants, hypocrites and sensualists who are integral to his dramatic and moral vision, but whose music is rarely heard outside of the theatre. [...] Sabata has one of the richest of counter-tenor voices, his warmth of tone carrying intimations of decadence. A perceptive vocal actor, he gets to the essence of his protagonists. [...] The beauty of Sabata's singing is breathtaking, however unsettling his characters. [...] Add in to the mix exceptional playing from Il Pomo d'Oro under its conductor Riccardo Minasi, and you have something very special. Matchless, and highly recommended.» (Tim Ashley / The Guardian)

Isn’t it true that the sounds of the harp soar directly up to heaven? The program idea of the splendid young French harpist Agnès Clément, who won the ARD competition in 2016, is absolutely compelling: a production featuring music that renders homage to the birds. On her first Genuin album, she gazes at the nightingale, quarrels with the cuckoo, and flies with the swallow into the spring, as love truly takes wing in the exciting artist’s debut release. We hear Francis Poulenc alongside François Couperin, Franz Liszt together with Paul Hindemith – in the original and in arrangements. Perfectly balanced to the last detail ... © Genuin

The main attraction of the orchestra Les Siècles and its conductor François-Xavier Roth is its use of period instruments from around 1900, the time period in which the group specializes. One could hardly ask for a better demonstration record (as audiophiles used to call them) than this take on Maurice Ravel's L'Heure espagnole, an edgy, rather tawdry but undeniably funny little opera about the extramarital escapades of a clockmaker's wife, complete with excellent satirical characterizations of her two lovers. The opera receives a pitch-perfect performance here from a quintet of younger singers, who deliver the kind of dry, close-to-spoken singing Ravel wanted. Even better, though, is the orchestral sound, where the opera's large contingent of winds, brass, and percussion displays the sound of Les Siècles at its most vivid. The score calls for trios of oboes, clarinets, and bassoons, and these all have a tangier sound than modern instruments provide. The program ends with Boléro, and this, too, stands out from among the hundreds or thousands of other recordings on the market. Ravel had very fixed ideas about how he wanted the work to sound, and he wrangled with Arturo Toscanini, who conducted the premiere in New York, about it: it should be played absolutely straight, with no variation in tempo and little expression. Notwithstanding the connotations that became attached to the work later on, he viewed it as an abstract work, and that is exactly what it becomes in Roth's bracing reading. Listeners who have been wanting to sample Roth's work with this orchestra are enthusiastically encouraged to try this release, which made classical best-seller charts in the summer of 2023.© James Manheim /TiVo

Backed by the Sun King despite a lukewarm audience reception at first, Lully's Atys (1676) went on to become one of the composer's most successful operas, with revivals at French court theaters as late as 1753. In modern times, however, it is a considerably rarer item due to the massive forces and time required. Christophe Rousset was in the pit as harpsichordist when conductor William Christie gave the first modern revival of the work in the late '80s. That experience marks this 2024 release, which made classical best-seller lists at the beginning of that year. That is not common for a hefty five-act Baroque opera, but even a bit of sampling will confirm why it happened: Rousset, from the keyboard, brings tremendous energy to the opera. He pushes the tempo in the numerous dances and entrance numbers, and the musicians of Les Talens Lyriques and the singers of the Choeur du Chambre de Namur, all of whom have worked closely with Rousset in the past, keep right up. The singers in the solo roles are all fine; haut-contre Reinoud Van Mechelen in the title role and Ambroisine Bré as the goddess Cybèle, who sets the tragic plot in motion, are standouts. The sound from the increasingly engineering-expert Château de Versailles label is exceptionally clear in complex textures, and the sensuous cover art (representing, it is true, not the Roman mythological figure of Atys but Hippomène and Atalante) is a bonus. In the end, this is Rousset's Atys, and that is a very good thing.© James Manheim /TiVo

Founded in 2017 by young choral and orchestral conductor Guillemette Daboval, the Ensemble Esquisses is an all-female choir with an ever-changing line-up made up of singers who have only recently graduated from their studies. With one shared desire, the ensemble are drawn to repertoire for equal voices and unison, which the young choristers explore throughout Par un Matin, the group’s debut album released on the Evidence label. The sophisticated programme offers a selective view of the 20th and 21st centuries, with André Caplet’s “Messe à 3 Voix”, Chausson's elegiac “Chant Funèbre Op.28” and Poulenc's “Litanies à la Vierge Noire” as well as a world premiere of Olivier Kaspar's “Chansons Erotiques” (inspired by bawdy texts from the 16th century) and the “Agnus” from composer Caroline Marçot. The task of singing with equal voices is an extremely difficult one since it requires an extremely heightened ability to listen to each other’s voices, as well as a great deal of self-sacrifice in search of a collective timbre. This state of mind often requires years of work and, more specifically, maturity. We’re not sure what type of magic is at work here, but the combined effort of Guillemette Daboval and her singers has produced something of striking purity. There are real layers at play here: the textures, the melodic accents and inflections, the roundness of the melismas. The precision of movement becomes all the more impressive in this kaleidoscopic choice of repertoires, which is also highly erudite. Daboval and the Esquisses members have succeeded in creating their own signature sound with their very first performance, and all with breathtaking ease, something that other renowned choirs can take years to perfect. Just as we have in the past spoken about the ‘Voces8 timbre’, the ‘Tenebrae timbre’ and the ‘Deller Consort timbre’, here we are witnessing the birth of the ‘Esquisses timbre’. Qobuzissime! © Pierre Lamy/Qobuz

Without any hesitation, we had to award a Qobuzissime to L'Heure bleue, the second album by Quatuor Zahir.  Because in the classical world, the saxophone quartet is still too rare a format on both record and on stage.  Because the impressionist works of Debussy, Ravel, Poulenc, and Boulanger dazzle us, as do the creations of Fabien Waksman and Graciane Finzi. Because of the refinement and sophistication of these arrangements. Because of the impeccable sound recording—always a highlight of the Aparté label.  Because of the beauty of the title, "L'Heure Bleue," which sums up the driving idea behind this powerful record. “This ephemeral moment at the crossroads of day and night—such could be the dream setting for this new opus. An invitation to a dreamlike journey," explain the members of the quartet—Guillaume Berceau, Etienne Boussard, Florent Louman, and Joakim Cielsa. Five years after their debut, the quartet took the time to construct this recital piece by piece, with the patience of goldsmiths or those who have a taste for beauty and precision of gesture. Like a landscape with changing colors and moods—from the lively (Debussy's "Quant j'ai ouy le tabourin") and languorous (Ravel's "Pavane pour une infante défunte"), to the playfulness of the last of Boulanger's Trois Pièces—in L'Heure bleue we find the gentle reminiscence of a forgotten or fantasized era. Whether the works interpreted here are in their original form or arranged, it becomes almost impossible to distinguish between the two categories, as each track is so immediately appealing. The Zahirs interweave their sublime timbres with consummate artistry, with all the interpretations becoming essentials. © Pierre Lamy/Qobuz

For many years, it was only Manon and Werther that were heard among Massenet's operas, but his reputation appears to be on the rise, and his champion, conductor Laurent Campellone, has recorded a good number of them. Ariane, from 1906, is one of the last to receive its recorded premiere. The Palazzetto Bru Zane label, specializing in obscure French opera, does a typically fine job here; the sound is superb, and the cast of singers, led by the soprano Amina Edris in the lead role, offers several revelations. In his later operas, Massenet often attempted to put a French stamp on the newer styles of the day, and here, it is Wagner who gets this treatment; the opera is built around a set of motifs de rappel (or "reminiscence motifs"), whose parentage in Wagner's leitmotifs is clear. This structure is shoehorned into the durable machinery of French opera. There are big entrance scenes, a pantomime, and plenty of spectacular stage machinery to go with the love triangle plot involving Ariane (Ariadne), Phèdre (Phaedra), and Theseus, who gets to take on the Minotaur in a grand scene with Wagnerian bass trumpet and bass trombone. Massenet's orchestration is impressive throughout. The work does not have the inevitability of truly great art, but it is in no way dull, and anyone with any interest in French opera should hear it for the singers alone; enough of those listeners have already weighed in and put the album on classical best-seller lists in the late summer of 2023.© James Manheim /TiVo