Album Description: "The age of the castratos was one of the most dazzling and remarkable in European music history. Seldom has there ever been such a complete fusion of sensuousness and splendor, form and content, poetry and music, and, above all, such a perfection of vocal virtuosity, as was achieved in the glory days of the Baroque era. The legendary art of the castratos continues to exert its fascination even today, and despite the great human sacrifice it exacted, a new assessment of this extraordinary period is surely justified." - Cecilia Bartoli
Cecilia Bartoli uncovers the extraordinary and cruel world of the `Castrati' and sings the glorious music they inspired. The all-new album consists almost entirely of world-premiere recordings of some of the most virtuosic music ever written for the human voice. The arias on the album are drawn from the works of Nicola Porpora (1686-1768), Antonio Caldara (c. 1670-1736), Francesco Araia (1709-1770), Carl Heinrich Graun (c. 1703-1759), Leonardo Leo (1694-1744), Leonardo Vinci (1696-1730), Riccardo Brosc hi (c. 1658-1756) and Geminiano Giacomello (c. 1692- 1740).
After extensive research Bartoli has produced not only a new recording, but also a comprehensive study of the castrati and their time period through two lavishly produced and illustrated articles included in the deluxe package.
Sacrificium marks the first collaboration of Il Giardino Armonico, Giovanni Antonini, and Bartoli since their Grammy® Award-winning The Vivaldi Album ten years ago. This deluxe package is a hardback book (12 x 14 cm) including 2 CDs of music including 11 world-premiere recordings. The extensive booklet includes two essays on the castrati: "Evviva il coltellino!" ("Long live the the little knife") & "Castrato Compendium" (a 108-page "A-Z" of the castrati). The entire project features lavish illustrations and photos throughout along with an additional 44-page libretto.
Album Description: A work dedicated to "castratos" and the music that their magic voices inspired to a lot of composers. The title of the album refers to the sacrifice castratos did for the sake of music
Binding: Audio CD EAN: 0028947815211 Format: Deluxe Edition Item Dimensions:69 Label: Decca Manufacturer: Decca MPN: 001341202 Number Of Discs: 2 Publisher: Decca Release Date: October 26, 2009 Studio: Decca
Customer Reviews
PREMIERE RECORDINGS WITH A FOCUS ON FARINELLI AND CAFARELLI
4 and a 1/2 stars really... since I'm not a great lover of the sound of Cecilia Bartoli nor of Il Giardino Armonico on `all' of these tracks, BUT it is a MUST HAVE for fans of the baroque, and more specifically, for fans of music originally sung by castrati. (It has taken me quite a few plays to more fully appreciate Bartoli's sound, accustomed as I am to other mezzo sopranos and contraltos... and sometimes the playing seems too fully `orchestral'... but this is personal. Let's face it, Bartoli has ... Read More