Alexandre Baldo - Unusual Suspects (CD)

Following a first album devoted to Caldara, which revealed both his taste for rediscovery and the remarkable possibilities of the Baroque bass voice, Alexandre Baldo continues his exploration of a repertoire that remains largely unknown. This time, the young French bass-baritone turns to an entire gallery of characters: monsters, demons, kings, gods and heroes, all entrusted to the lowest voices in eighteenth-century opera. Yet behind these often intimidating figures lie characters of unexpected emotional depth. Loving, vulnerable, furious, tender or comic, they allow Alexandre Baldo to display the full range of a voice equally at home in dazzling virtuosity and dramatic expression. This versatility has already earned him recognition both on stage and on record, where the depth of his timbre, his agility and his breath control have been widely praised. From Handel and Vivaldi to Porpora, Caldara, Graupner and Fux, the programme travels through the major musical capitals of early eighteenth-century Europe and brings together rarities alongside several world-premiere recordings. Originally written for some of the most celebrated virtuoso basses of their time, these works are a vivid reminder that Baroque vocal fireworks were by no means the exclusive preserve of the castrati. An album of discovery, theatricality and vocal brilliance, carried by one of the most promising young bass voices of his generation.

Track List:

Disc: 1

1. Porpora: Arianna in Nasso - Ouverture
2. Fux: Il Fonte Della Salute - Aria. Puoi Peccar Quanto Tu Vuoi (Demonio)
3. Händel: Acis and Galatea, HWV 49B - Aria. Mi Palpita Il Cor... Affanno Tiranno (Polifemo)
4. Vivaldi: Armida Al Campo D'egitto, RV 699 - Aria. So Che Combatte Ancor (Califfo)
5. Lampe: The Dragon of Wantley - Scene and Death of the Dragon (The Dragon)
6. Graupner: Dido, Königin Von Carthago, GWV 1001 - Aria. Pur VI Bacio (Juba)
7. Porpora: Deianira - Ouverture
8. Marcello: Arianna, SF 493 - Aria. Nave Che Solca (Bacco)
9. Smith: Paradise Lost - Aria. Thou Henceforth Art Doom'd (Michael)
10. Mattheson: Die Geheimen Begebenheiten Henrico IV - Aria. Se'l Primo Amor (Alfonso)
11. Porpora: Arianna in Nasso - Aria. Più L'impresa Perigli N'appresta (Piritòo)
12. Caldara: I Due Dittatori - Aria. Non Dovria Chi Impera E Regge (Osidio)
13. Veracini: Adriano in Siria - Aria. Non Ritrova Un'alma Forte (Osroa)
14. Conti: La Galatea - Recitative ; Aria. Fuggirò, Ma Come, E Dove? (Polifemo)