The classical best-seller charts are unfamiliar environs for the Palazzetto Bru Zane label, which specializes in forgotten 19th century opera. However, this release achieved best-seller status in early 2024, and this is absolutely no surprise, for Louise Bertin's Fausto is a remarkable work. One wonders how long it will take programmers to present it in a cycle with Berlioz's and Gounod's versions of the Faust tale (and perhaps Arrigo Boito's); the work is colorful in the extreme and is sure to be a crowd-pleaser even though it closed after three performances in 1831 and was shelved for the next 190 years. Perhaps the opera mixed so many influences that audiences just did not know what to make of it. Bertin, who was 25 when the work had its premiere in Paris, wrote the libretto herself in Italian. It has all the trappings of Rossinian opera -- fortepiano-accompanied recitative, aria, scena, preghiera, cavatina, big multi-part finales ending with a fast stretta -- but the effect of the music is completely different, and the settings stand up to the weighty aspect of the material. It is as if Weber had written a Faust opera, sometimes even as if Beethoven had written one. The role of Faust is sung by a mezzo-soprano, which is how Bertin wrote it, although a tenor version also exists. This results in intriguing equal-status duets between Karine Deshayes as Fausto and Karina Gauvin as Margarita. Conductor Christophe Rousset catches the ambition and the drama; his ensemble Les Talens Lyriques uses historical instruments but wisely bulks up to an adequate size for the work. Palazzetto Bru Zane, as usual, does the opera justice sonically with a studio recording. This is a remarkable release, not only for lovers of 19th century opera or those interested in music by women, but for anyone.© James Manheim /TiVo

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

Among Donizetti's 75 operas are many that keep specialists in operatic rarities in business. What is different about L'esule di Roma ("Exile from Rome," 1828) is that it shouldn't have taken specialists to revive it. The work was quite popular in Italy and beyond through the late 1860s, and in 1840, well after several of the big Donizetti hits had appeared, his hometown of Bergamo staged a production of the work aimed at displaying his prowess. L'esule di Roma may be classed as early Donizetti, but Anna Bolena and L'elisir d'amore were soon to follow, and one can hear a lot of this highly variegated score in those works, with its strong characterizations and its recitatives that constantly seem to be breaking into song. The opera is set in ancient Rome, with its central character, the senator Murena, unusually being a baritone or bass-baritone. He emerges as a figure of some depth in the conflict between his daughter Argelia and his loyalty to the emperor Tiberius, and he gets his very own mad scene. An international cast is headed by the very capable Nicola Alaimo as Murena, but another draw is the rising coloratura soprano Albina Shagimuratova as Argelia, and yet another is the work of conductor Carlo Rizzi, leading the Britten Sinfonia. Even for many Donizetti fans, this work will be new, and for them, it is a must.© 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

Hubert Parry's Scenes from Shelley's Prometheus Unbound, from 1880, here receives its world-recorded premiere. Perhaps recording companies thought there wouldn't be much of a market for a heavy 19th century choral work with, it must be said, a ponderous text by Percy Bysshe Shelley (Prometheus was a play intended to be read, not performed, just to give an idea). How wrong they were. This release made classical best-seller lists in the summer of 2023, and it is altogether enjoyable. At the time, Parry was under the spell of Wagner, whom he traveled to Bayreuth to meet. That influence certainly shows up in Scenes from Shelley's Prometheus Unbound, with its basically declamatory text, partly through-composed music, wind-and-brass-heavy orchestration, and splashes of chromaticism. Yet what is remarkable is that the music does not come off as an imitation of Wagner at all. Rather, it uses elements of his style to match a specific kind of English literary text. The work gradually disappeared, but it would be surprising if Elgar, whom it clearly prefigures, did not know it well. The performances here are luminous, with William Vann using the lighter-than-expected London Mozart Players to create transparent textures against which he can set the substantial voices of Sarah Fox, Sarah Connolly, and other soloists. Parry did write some shorter pieces that remain in the repertory; one of these, Blest Pair of Sirens, is included here as a finale. However, the Scenes from Shelley's Prometheus Unbound are the main news here, and this performance, showing how this kind of thing should be done, may generate a new life for the work. © James Manheim /TiVo

Recorded from 10th to 13th July 2020 at the Philharmonie de Paris, this Armida teaches us a little more about Antonio Salieri, so loved during his lifetime and so maligned later, especially because of his obscure relationship with Mozart that the nineteenth century invented and that Milos Forman's film has given more life to in our time. First performed in Vienna in 1771, this "dramma per musica" which marked Salieri's debut in opera seria in the Austrian capital, is presented here as a world premiere thanks to the tireless curiosity of Christophe Rousset who gives a very lively, lyrical and theatrical interpretation with four singers, The Talens Lyriques and the excellent Chamber Choir of Namur. The discovery of this other outing of the famous heroes of Jerusalem Delivered  by Tasso deepens the gulf separating great craftsmen from geniuses like Mozart, whose later operatic productions were of a completely different level. Nevertheless, one can enjoy Salieri's colourful and well-decorated melodic contours, the drama and nostalgia that often pervade his work. After Les Danaïdes, Les Horaces and Tarare, Christophe Rousset happily continues his exhumation of Salieri's works. Here this youthful Armida is still following the bright trail of Gluck. © François Hudry/Qobuz

PentaTone Classics usually deals in high-end reissues of older recordings, particularly those drawn from the Philips catalog. However, upon encountering this recording of Stravinsky with Philippe Herreweghe, the Collegium Vocale Gent, and the Royal Flemish Philharmonic, one cannot be blamed for taking pause to wonder, "Now who did Herreweghe record this for -- Erato? Harmonia Mundi?" No sir or ma'am; Herreweghe has never recorded Stravinsky's Monumentum pro Gesualdo, Mass, Chorale Variations on "Von Himmel Hoch," or the Symphony of Psalms before, nor any other Stravinsky for that matter. This is a NEW PentaTone recording, a live one made in Antwerp in 2008. Contrary to expectation, Herreweghe does not conduct the Monumentum pro Gesualdo as though it was Gesualdo, and moreover, it's a pretty straitlaced and sober performance to boot, though it's more of a bloodless coup than Stravinsky's own recording, made in 1960. The Mass is both well sung and well coordinated; a very neat and tidy performance, but too fast tempo wise; one wonders during the Sanctus "what is he trying to do, catch a bus?" The Chorale Variations on "Von Himmel Hoch" is better in terms of pacing, though there are moments of lax coordination among the winds; this is, after all, live. This issue is ironed out in the Symphony of Psalms. As in the case of the Monumentum pro Gesualdo, the Symphony of Psalms is a pretty good performance, though at times the orchestral balance seems a little off-kilter; nevertheless, the second movement packs a punch. Although this is a hybrid multichannel disc, sometimes there are little inequities of sound; the winds in the Mass have a tendency to overpower the singers, and within the Collegium Vocale Gent at times the gents seem a bit louder than the ladies.There is no questioning Herreweghe's strong showing in Baroque literature; particularly in Bach cantatas. However, Herreweghe has dipped into modern repertoire here and there and usually with the same or similar results as on this PentaTone disc. The 20th century is just not Herreweghe's strong suit, and one wonders why he keeps trying to play his hand in it, though this is not all bad; just not quite the strong showing one would hope it to be.© TiVo

While the German soprano follows in the footsteps of Cecilia Bartoli, her virtuoso voice separates her fans from the purists who prefer a less fanciful vocal-line. This long-awaited new album from Simone Kermes shows off her masterful voice in almost every register and there is no sign of the excessiveness for which she has previously been criticised. Typically referred to as a “Ba-rock” star, some people are irritated by her gestures and extreme theatrics during her concerts, but those mannerisms are long forgotten here in the absence of any images. The title of the album, “Mio caro Händel”, says a lot about the affinity Simone Kermes feels with the Saxon composer. She has selected his most popular pieces, such as Ombra mai fù(Largo of Love), Piangeró la sorte mia(I will lament my fate) and Lascia ch’io pianga(Let me weep), along with some much less well-known pieces, which are some of the most wonderful revelations and rare musical gems on the album. The singer recorded this testimony of love to Händel in Berlin’s famous Jesus-Christus-Kirche in 2018 accompanied by Amici Veneziani, an ensemble put together especially for her which mostly comprises of German musicians and is led by Russian violinist Boris Begelman. As a great traveller who went all over Europe, this captures Händel’s European spirit perfectly. © François Hudry/Qobuz