Even diehard opera lovers may be unaware that Vivaldi, in addition to composing hundreds upon hundreds of concertos, also penned 50-plus operas. Sadly, most are lost, but some are easy to find and arias from others have surfaced due to some passionate operatic exploration. This CD presents many works never before recorded, and that alone would make it worthy. The fact that so much of it is actually fascinating and is performed so well here is a special bonus. Cecilia Bartoli’s vocal charms are well-known–her ability to communicate instantly, her rapid-fire, almost unbelievably accurate coloratura, her many degrees of soft singing–and they’re all in evidence here. The arias’ subjects are typical Baroque fare–if a character is excited about his/her amorous feelings, we get the metaphor of a storm-tossed ship at sea; we get pastoral scenes mirroring inner peace; there’s plenty of depair and rage. All of it gives the singer ample room to peddle her wares, and there’s some amazing peddling going on here. “Zeffiretti, che sussurrate”, accompanied by two harpsichords, two violins, and the usual strings, is gently and exquisitely murmurred; “Anche’il mar par che sommerga”, originally composed to highlight castrato Giovanni Manzoli’s phenomenal breath control and wild way with fiorature does the same for our singer here. And musical sleuths will be happy to find small bits of The Four Seasons used here: “Spring” is heard at the start of the opera Dorilla in Tempe (sung by the chorus) and “Winter” shows up in “Gelido in ogni vena”. Throughout, Bartoli amazes, although her constant aspirating during rapid coloratura passages begins to grate after a while, her trills are occasionally not quite pure (they’re more like two adjacent notes having a fight), and some of her whispering makes you want to send her to her room. But I’m looking for trouble–this CD is delicious, and the help Bartoli gets from Il Giardino Armonico is priceless, as is the assistance from Decca’s engineers. Love Bartoli? Love the Baroque? You’ll love this!
