Acide (the story is best known from Handel’s Acis and Galatea) was composed in 1763 and revised a decade later but never performed again. It was Haydn’s first big Italian opera project, an endeavor for which he was well prepared. As a student of Porpora and resident in the same house as the 18th century’s most famous librettist (Metastasio, whose niece he taught), Haydn had a firm grasp of Italian, both the language and the music. He also was a fine singer in his own right, so the 70-odd minutes of Acide that survive betray not a shred of immaturity. Written for an Esterházy wedding celebration, it surely made a fine impression.
Unfortunately, this performance does not. Manfred Huss and the orchestra do a predictably fine job, but none of the singers is particularly distinguished. Haydn wrote a lot of very florid music for his vocalists, and as the title character, tenor Bernard Richter is out of his depth. His coloratura sounds unpleasantly “hooty”, and considering that the work opens with a 10-minute-long virtuoso aria, this is a real problem. But then neither are the two sopranos nor the baritone much better. Mezzo Adrineh Simonian as Tetide turns in the best performance. She has a terrific aria (“Tergi i vezzosi”), deliciously accompanied by solo flute, that allows her to display her artistry to excellent advantage. Otherwise, and despite typically fine sonics, this is just ho-hum. The music deserves better.
