The Last Castrato: Arias for Velluti

The era’s last great singer was Giovanni Battista Velluti (1780-1861), for whom composers such as Rossini wrote some of their most successful operas. In this performance, the magnificent music written for Velluti is brought back to life by Franco Fagioli, one of the best countertenors of our own time. Accompanied by the superb Orchestre de l’Opéra Royal of the Palace of Versailles, Fagioli brings to life the expressive power, agility, and rich ornamentation of the castrati, reviving the very style that transformed early 19th-century opera seria.

Programme

Rossini Sinfonia from Tancredi
Nicolini Decebalo’s Air, ‘Ah se mi lasci o cara’ (Traiano in Dacia)
Rossini Finale to Act 3 of Viaggio a Reims
Paolo Bonfichi Lotario’s Scene & Cavatina, ‘Qual mi circonda e agghiaccia’ (Attila)
Pierre Rode Polonaise from Violin Concerto Op. 3 No. 1 in D minor
Giuseppe Nicolini Vitekindo’s Scene & Rondo, ‘Ecco o numi compiuto’ (Carlo Magno)
Rossini Sinfonia from Aureliano in Palmira
Rossini Arsace’s Scene, Aria & Cabaletta, ‘Dolci silvestri orrori’ (Aureliano in Palmira)
Niccolò Zingarelli Overture from Giulietta e Romeo
Mercadante Andronico’s Cavatina, ‘Dove m’aggiro’ (Andronico)