Search - Claudio Monteverdi, Sergio Vartolo, Gastone Sarti, Carlo Lopere Alessandro Carmignani :: Monteverdi - L'Orfeo / Vartolo

If you're already familiar with L'Orfeo, this unique performance is a must. It includes both versions of Orfeo's centerpiece aria "Possente spirito"--a rarely performed version with no written embellishment--as well as the now-familiar ornate setting; each verse is sung first in simple form, then in its elaborate restatement. Also, the original 1607 production ended with Orfeo's murder by the Bacchantes. Only the libretto of this scene survives--the spoken performance it gets here is terrifying. (Orfeo and Apollo ascend to heaven afterward.) This album does have two serious weaknesses: disastrously listless choruses and dry, unflattering recorded sound. Still, there's lively instrumental and continuo playing and a serviceable cast. This flawed-but- fascinating release is well worth the budget price. (If you're new to L'Orfeo, try John Eliot Gardiner on DG.) --Matthew Westphal