Handel's Alcina, a work in the vocally virtuosic opera seria genre from 1735, returned to opera stages after a revival by Joan Sutherland in 1960, but recordings of it are not abundant. This is partly because it is a very visual work, with dances and sorcery special effects that don't come through on a recording. Another reason is that it contains some of Handel's most strenuous vocal writing, requiring a trio of top-notch female singers. The latter problem is solved in this 2024 release by Les Musiciens du Louvre and its director Marc Minkowski, who keep the massive, three-and-a-quarter-hour spectacle moving with tough, resolute playing. The title role is sung by mezzo-soprano Magdalena Kožená (Lady Rattle for peerage freaks), a Handel specialist of long standing who has absolutely outdone herself here in one of the big Handel roles that exploits her entire range, both physically and emotionally. The love-triangle (or rectangle) plot, however, requires other singers who can stand up to the star, and this the opera receives in Erin Morley as Alcina's sister, Morgana, and Elizabeth DeShong as Bradamente, a fiancée disguised as her own brother. Though the plot is over-intricate, the emotional threads remain clear in this performance, and the engineering from PentaTone Classics is top-notch. This release made classical best-seller charts in early 2024, something not often accomplished by hefty Handel opera recordings.© James Manheim /TiVo

The title for Luis Miguel's 1999 pop album Amarte Es un Placer translates to "Loving You Is a Pleasure," and by that alone one can deduce that the material consists of romantic music, mostly in the form of ballads. His previous pop album, 1996's Nada Es Igual, had elements (albeit small) of hip-hop and dance, but this one steers almost completely into adult contemporary terrain. The upbeat songs, such as the album's first single, "Sol, Arena y Mar," and "Quiero," are augmented with strong horn sections (which are typically present in Miguel's music), giving the songs a jazzy, sophisticated, adult-leaning feel. "Te Propongo," the album's only true dance number, is also one of the album's most interesting songs. Other upbeat highlights include "Tu Solo Tu" and "Dimelo En un Beso," one of the album's more soulful efforts. The rest is mostly romantic, sometimes overblown ballads, including "No Me Fio," which harks back to 1980s power anthems. Romantic ballads, however, are what the fans have come to expect from this artist, who is also responsible for the album's flawless production. As an interesting side note, this album was released at the height of the North American Latin music boom (spearheaded by Ricky Martin). Miguel, instead of gearing towards a more youth-oriented market, stayed true to the music that had made him an international superstar, and in turn the album received a Grammy.© Jose F. Promis /TiVo

Buon Compleanno Elvis was the album that made Ligabue a superstar in Italy, a position he has not relinquished ever since. Key to the album's success was Ligabue's reshuffling of ideas and personnel after the disappointment of 1993's Soppravvisuti e Sopravviventi. Indeed, Ligabue's new supporting core of Mel Previte, Antonio Righetti, Federico Poggipollini, and Fabrizio Barbacci (who also co-produced the album with the singer) finally manages to convey and capture the right "rock & roll all'emiliana" sound, a feat that former productions had found rather elusive. Above all, a thoroughly reenergized Ligabue was able to create his longest and best set of originals to date. Contrary to the pessimism in some of his previous material, most of the new songs sound positively defiant, often discussing the right to individual choice and lifestyle against oppressive conventions. Almost every track of this album became a staple of Ligabue's live repertoire, from the rockers "Vivo Morto o X" or "I Ragazzi Sono in Giro," to more reflective numbers such as "Hai un Momento Dio" or "Certi Notti" -- the latter voted Best Italian Song of the '90s, and generally considered Ligabue's most famous song.© Mariano Prunes /TiVo

The undisputed king of new age follows 2011's Truth of Touch with this special album on which he teams up with some of the biggest names in vocal classical music. The likes of Plácido Domingo, Renée Fleming, Russell Watson, Vittorio Grigolo, Rolando Villazón, and Katherine Jenkins add operatic vocals to a selection of re-recordings of classic inspirational tracks from Yanni's back catalog.© John D. Buchanan /TiVo

The first of a two-part career compilation, Primo Tempo is also the first Ligabue official greatest-hits collection. Spanning the years 1990-1995, Primo Tempo gathers its 18 tracks from the four studio albums Ligabue, Lambrusco Coltelli Rose & Popcorn, Sopravvissuti e Sopraviventi, and Buon Compleanno Elvis, as well as from the EP A Che Ora È La Fine del Mondo?. It also boasts two terrific new songs, "Buonanotte All'Italia" and "Niente Paura," the latter a massive radio hit in Italy. In addition, the release comes with a DVD of all the Ligabue video clips from the period. While fans may debate the inclusion of some tracks at the expense of others, there is no question that this is a generous, excellent compilation that chronicles Ligabue's rise from provincial rocker to pop stardom. The collection is not arranged chronologically, but this only reinforces the steadiness and uniform quality of Ligabue's output. In fact, over the years Ligabue has refined but never deviated from his template of outcast/working man's rock and ballads à la Springsteen. On the other hand, the production and arrangements of some of this material may sound a bit dated. Indeed, while this is incontestably a fine compilation, the two-disc 1997 live album Su e Giù Dan un Palco included virtually every track present here (but for the two new songs), and then some ten more, in arguably superior versions. The first greatest-hits collection of one of Italy's most popular rock stars, Primo Tempo went straight to number one on the Italian charts. Its follow-up, SecondoTempo, was scheduled for late May 2008.© Mariano Prunes /TiVo

It's a pleasure to have such an abundance of excellent recordings of Handel operas that were long virtually unknown or available on CD in a single version, if at all. Alan Curtis' stellar recording of Alcina, which joins a respectable number of very fine recordings of the opera, is remarkable for the supple liveliness of his conducting and the outstanding performances of the soloists. The elasticity of his performance, leading Il Complesso Barocco, should dispel any misconceptions about Baroque music being rigid and metronomic. The nuanced care with which he brings out the emotional depth of Handel's writing is evident from the first measures of the overture and enlivens the entire opera. The opera is one of Handel's strongest, both in its sensuous, endlessly inventive music, and in the coherence and emotional complexity of its libretto, taken by an anonymous writer from Ariosto's "Orlando Furioso," the source of many operas of the era, and Curtis and the singers give it fiery dramatic urgency. The soloists assembled here, veterans of Baroque opera, perform with assurance and fluent familiarity with the style. The intelligence and emotional rightness of their ornamentation in the da capo arias is especially impressive, and they handle the florid pyrotechnics with polish and an engaging sense of spontaneity. Joyce DiDonato is stunning in the title role, with the intensity of a force of nature, and Maite Beaumont as Ruggiero and Karina Gauvin as Morgana are no less impressive. The women who are less well known, Sonia Prina and Laura Cherici, are just as astonishing in their virtuosity and the consistent purity and beauty of their tone quality; these are singers to watch out for. Bass Vito Priante sings with comparable effectiveness, but tenor Kobie van Rensburg doesn't quite have the ideal vocal heft for his role, although otherwise his performance is exemplary. The sound is immaculate and clean and intensely present. This version of Alcina should delight fans of Baroque opera and might even make converts of opera lovers who have never warmed to this repertoire.© TiVo

For the 1727 season -- the waning days of opera's popularity in London -- transplanted German composer George Frederick Handel wrote no less than three operas for the English capital's stage. Tolomeo, rè d'Egitto was the last and least enthusiastically received of them. Unsuccessfully revived in 1730 and then again in 1733, Tolomeo was unperformed for the next 200 years, and even now, it remains one of Handel's least performed and recorded operas. Prior to this Archiv set, only a 1995 Vox recording of the work with Richard Auldon Clark leading the Manhattan Chamber Orchestra had been released in the digital era.Given the infrequency of Tolomeo recordings, Archiv's seems unlikely to be surpassed anytime soon. Led here by Alan Curtis with a firm hand and a keen sense of drama, the work is an Egyptian romance set in the Ptolemaic dynasty centered on the standard operatic tropes of love, power, revenge, and -- because theirs was a more optimistic age than ours -- a happy ending. In addition to Curtis' deft direction, what brings Handel's nearly 300-year-old opera to life is the first-rate cast's full-bodied singing.Highest honors must go to Ann Hallenberg's magnificent Tolomeo. With her strong, flexible, and highly expressive voice, she can portray the full range of the Egyptian king's emotions from the pathetic in her Arioso in Act I to ecstatic in the closing ensemble of Act III. Hallenberg is equally impressive in her duets with the splendid Karina Gauvin as Tolomeo's wife Seleuce, particularly in their tender and heartbreaking pair of duets late in Act II. Nearly as fine are Anna Bonitatibus' resolute Elisa and Pietro Spagnoli's virile and vile Araspe, and, of course, the lively and lovely accompaniments by Il Complesso Barocco. Recorded in bright, detailed digital sound, this Tolomeo should be heard by anyone who enjoys Handel's operas.© TiVo

In 2006, to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the composer's birth, the Salzburg Festival set itself the task of producing all 22 of Mozart's operas, and this recording of highlights from Le nozze di Figaro is a result of a live performance. Nikolaus Harnoncourt's reading of the score is marvelously nuanced; it's clear that the performance reflects a lifetime of living with and performing the opera. His dramatic pace tends toward briskness, which works well in a work as wordy as this. He's especially skillful at bringing out the instrumental colors of the score, particularly of the winds and timpani; he makes the listener especially aware of the inventiveness, cleverness, and subtlety of Mozart's orchestration. The Vienna Philharmonic and Konzertvereinigung Wiener Staatsopernchor perform with finesse, warmth, and sensitivity to the opera's poignancy and humor. The singers are both dramatically and vocally superb; this is probably as close to a dream cast for the opera as one is likely to get. Ildebrando D'Arcangelo and Anna Netrebko are completely winning as Figaro and Susanna, and there's real chemistry between them. D'Arcangelo is an embodiment of Mediterranean masculinity; his dark and supple baritone is in the service of a portrayal that's both ferociously impetuous and goofily playful, without ever compromising his dignity. Netrebko is adorably girlish, but her Susanna is obviously the most grounded and grown-up character in the opera. Her voice is silken, velvety, and infinitely expressive. Bo Skovhus' Count is a genuinely creepy character, alternating between furtiveness and bluster, but his tone is consistently round and robust. Dorothea Röschmann's large soprano is incisive and richly textured. She brings a deep sense of resignation and anger to the to Countess; at the opera's end there's little assurance that she will find joy with the Count again. Christine Schäfer's Cherubino is jaw-droppingly assured; she spins out her lines with abandon and exquisite musicality. As Basilio, Patrick Henckens manages to sound lyrical and full-bodied, and at the same time convey his character's unctuousness. Franz-Josef Selig's Bartolo is splendidly gruff and Marie McLaughlin is hilarious as Marcellina, but her voice seems a little inflexible. The sound is remarkably fine for a live recording; it's bright and clear, as well as warm and intimate, and the singers' volume levels are steady despite their movement around the stage.© TiVo

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Karine Deshayes is one of the greatest Rossini singers on the international opera stage. In this first solo album, featuring excerpts from some of his most beautiful works, she traces the different stages in Rossini's life. She is accompanied by Raphaël Merlin (cellist of the Ébène Quartet) at the head of Les Forces Majeures, a collective bringing together musicians from prestigious chamber ensembles and top-flight orchestras. Discover this truly rare and intimate interpretation of Rossini - musically rich and at times meditative, loving, desperate, calm...