As with the last recording I reviewed by this group (arias of J.S. Bach–see reviews) the music presented has an underlying programmatic scheme that’s not at first apparent. This time, it’s to show how fresh and youthful the English Purcell and the Italian Frescobaldi and Mancini can sound when performed by, well, fresh and youthful performers. I say to just forget all that and enjoy some really wonderful Purcell, including two beautifully sung duets with soprano Patricia Petibon and tenor Jean-François Novelli, and a lovely performance of Francesco Mancini’s solo soprano cantata Quanto dolce è quell’ ardore. After a rather formal beginning with Purcell’s song Bid the virtues, Petibon proves a thoroughly mesmerizing singer. Her vocal control is amazing, her ornaments truly original. She’s playful, she’s sweet, she’s commanding, and her voice is clear, her tone centered, her technique flexible. And you just have to hear Petibon and Novelli’s version of Purcell’s Sound the trumpet: it’s such a wild, flashy, fun treatment, with pizzicato cello and harpsichord accompaniment and some surprising vocal pyrotechnics, that you’ll never think of this oft-performed piece the same way again. Their rendition of Purcell’s gorgeous O dive custos is another highlight. Petibon completes her memorable outing with some really virtuoso singing in the Allegro of the Mancini piece. The instrumental playing–recorders, oboe, cello, harpsichord, organ–is first rate, especially the oboe in the Mancini, although the musical selections aren’t always of equal stature (the rather routine Frescobaldi canzonas are a case in point). The sound is true to the natural qualities of instruments and voices, giving full measure to the wide dynamic and pitch range of the instruments and presenting the voices in ideal balance with their accompanying partners.
