Donizetti in the 1830’s

7-CD boxset

To conclude the celebrations of its 50th anniversary, Opera Rara is releasing a limited edition of three sought-after complete operas by Gaetano Donizetti.
Written in the 1830s, when Donizetti was at the height of his popularity in Italy, these operas showcase the composer’s keen sense of drama and his increasingly international aspirations.
Remastered to the best audio quality and featuring a specially commissioned essay by Donizetti specialist Roger Parker, these recordings, unavailable for over a decade, will delight Donizetti collectors.

** Release date: 24 September 2021 **

Historic Background

Synopsis

  • Il diluvio universale
Il diluvio universale tells the biblical story of Noah but is given further human and dramatic interest by also presenting the story – and the tragedy – of Sela, the favourite concubine and wife of Cadmo, Chief of the Satraps of the Babylonian city of Sennáár. In order to please the Neapolitan censors, who forbade opera during Lent, Donizetti called this work an ‘azione tragico-sacra’, a staged oratorio. The genre allowed him to develop further the idea of an ensemble opera, with the emphasis on a group of people – Noah and his family – rather than a pair of lovers or a hapless heroine awaiting her fate.
The performance is all-round good and a must for the Donizetti collector American Record Guide

 

  • Ugo conte di Parigi
Ugo conte di Parigi tells the story of Princess Bianca of Aquitaine, who is betrothed to the young king of France, Louis V, but is in fact in love with Ugo, Count of Paris, regent until Louis comes of age. Ugo is engaged to Adelia, Bianca’s sister. When Bianca tells Adelia that she wants to call off the royal wedding, the young king suspects a relationship between Ugo and Bianca and sends Ugo to prison. The convoluted plot culminates in a magnificent poison scene in which Bianca, broken-hearted, drinks the poison she had prepared for Ugo. Composed immediately before his great opera buffa success, Lelisir damore, and written for the cast that had created Bellini’s Norma, Ugo presents some of the composer’s most intricate ensembles to date.
An irresistible addition to Opera Raras collection Records and Recording

 

  • Lassedio di Calais
The opera is set in 1347. Calais is under siege by the English army under Edward III. Six noblemen of Calais, including the mayor, volunteer their lives in exchange for lasting peace. The English Queen is so moved by their valour that she persuades her husband to end the siege and spill no more blood.
L’assedio di Calais is one of Donizetti’s most interesting and innovative works of the 1830s. It is a pivotal score in the composer’s developing relationship with Parisian opera, and was deliberately written in a manner that would transfer to the French stages.
‘One of the most invigorating of all the complete opera recordings made over the years by this enterprising organisation’ – Penguin CD & DVD Guide

Cast and Team

  • Il diluvio universale
Azione tragico-sacra in 3 acts
Libretto by Domenico Gilardoni
Mirco Palazzi (Noè), Colin Lee (Cadmo), Majella Cullagh (Sela), Manuela Custer (Ada), Roland Wood (Artoo)
Geoffrey Mitchell Choir, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Giuliano Carella – conductor
Recorded at the Conway Hall, London, October/November 2005

 

 

  • Ugo conte di Parigi
Tragedia lirica in 2 acts and 4 parts
Libretto by Felice Romani
Della Jones (Luigi V), Eiddwen Harrhy (Emma), Janet Price (Bianca), Yvonne Kenny (Adelia), Maurice Arthur (Ugo), Christian du Plessis (Folco d’Angiò)
Geoffrey Mitchell Choir, New Philharmonia Orchestra, Alun Francis – conductor
 

 

  • Lassedio di Calais
Dramma lirico in 3 acts
Libretto by Salvadore Cammarano
Christian du Plessis (Eustachio), Nuccia Focile (Eleonora), Della Jones (Aurelio), John Treleaven (Edmondo), Eiddwen Harrhy (Isabella), Norman Bailey (L’Incognito)
Geoffrey Mitchell Choir, Philharmonia Orchestra, David Parry – conductor

Find Out More

Packaging: 7CD clamshell with a 32pp booklet

New remastering by Steve Portnoi

Note & synopsis in English by Roger Parker

Complete libretti in Italian and English translation available for free download at www.opera-rara.com

** Release date: 24 September 2021 **