Sergio Foresti, Abchordis Ensemble & Andrea Buccarella
Release Date: 21 May 2021
Label: Challenge Classics
Packaging Type: Digipak
No of Units: 1
Barcode: 608917287523
Description
The program of this recording, made in honour of Giuseppe Maria Boschi and performed by Sergio Foresti, is largely unpublished and constitutes a very small selection of some of the most beautiful pages of music written for him between 1708 and 1728.
Giuseppe Maria Boschi was undoubtably one of the most famous and virtuosic baritones of the 18th century. He had a brilliant and intense career on a par with those of renowned contemporary castrati and sopranos, including Farinelli, Senesino, Faustina Bordoni, Margherita Durastanti, Francesca Cuzzoni and Nicolini. He was one of the leading baritones throughout London from 1720 to 1728, sought after by Georg Frederich Handel, Giovanni Bononcini, and Attilio Ariosti. Warrior, father, lover, tyrant: many were the roles to show the nuances of his vocality which, judging by the music written for him, was of exceptional range and well-suited for dramatic roles.
Sergio Foresti: "Nowadays, baroque music is often perceived merely as light, cheerful music. This image is superficial when you consider the abundant variety of the 83 roles written specifically for Giuseppe Maria Boschi. He was indeed a great singer, working with the greatest voices and composers of his time. His voice, his technique, and his ability to express drama in music must all have been spectacular. This is, above all, theatre music.
The arias of this program are expressions of interior states of mind. The words have a meaning, as do the ways in which they are set to music by the various composers. The singer had to convey these meanings and add their own ornaments to the music. I have done my best to honour this great tradition."
Sergio Foresti (1968) is a virtuoso Italian baritone. He first graduated in both opera singing and piano at the conservatory of Modena (Italy) and a decade later also in vocal chamber music in Florence (Italy). From the start of his career, he explored several musical styles in depth. In polyphonic music, for about 15 years he took the bass part in many concerts and recordings of renaissance madrigals with Concerto Italiano. He has also worked with the Italian medieval group LaReverdie. As a soloist he performed sacred music from the early nineties on. His debut in opera in 1998 was as Alcandro in Vivaldi's L'Olimpiade. Since then he worked with important conductors like Ren Jacobs, Rinaldo Alessandrini, Fabio Biondi, and Jordi Savall. He performed on many stages all over Europe.
CRITICAL ACCLAIM
"Thrills abound, especially in the rage arias that were Borschi's speciality. Foresti strides majestically across his register, dispatching ringing top notes; in passages of coloratura, he's reckless as a racing driver." BBC Music Magazine July issue, 4 STARS / 4 STARS
"This is an example of baroque virtuosity at the highest level." - Dr Jacek Kornak
Tracklisting
Narratio Quartet
Piano Duo Scholtes & Janssens
Matteo Cicchitti, Musica Elegentia
Cappella Pratensis, Stratton Bull, Sollazzo Ensemble
La Sfera Armoniosa, Oscar Verhaar, Mike Fentross
Simona Marchesi, Bartolomeo Dandolo Marchesi
Ben Kim, Concertgebouw Chamber Orchestra
Stavanger Symphony Orchestra, Jan Willem de Vriend
Sergio Foresti, Abchordis Ensemble & Andrea Buccarella
