Mercadante: I due Figaro, Muti/OGLC (3-CD)

“Three strokes of the lower strings, a quarter note each, all on the pitch of A, sotto voce yet in charge: this is all it takes for Muti to whisk a listener to the opera’s Spanish locale. Throughout, the excellent Philharmonia Chorus of Vienna, the crackerjack Orchestra Giovanile Luigi Cherubini and the discreetly sparkling Speranza Scappucci on fortepiano deliver impeccable musicianship imbued with kaleidoscopic fantasy.” — Opera News

Premiered in 1835, Saverio Mercadante’s I due Figaro was performed once in Madrid before being lost for over a century. In 2009, its manuscript was rediscovered by an Italian musicologist. Two years later, Riccardo Muti led the opera’s first modern production at the Ravenna Festival with his Orchestra Giovanile Luigi Cherubini, Philharmonia Orchestra of Vienna and a star-studded roster of singers. Immortalized here in impeccable packaging is this June 2011 performance.

Mercadante I due Figaro
Antonio Poli Count Almaviva
Asude Karayavuz Countess Rosina
Rosa Feola Inez
Annalisa Stroppa Cherubino
Mario Cassi Figaro
Eleonora Buratto Susanna
Anicio Zorzzi Giustiniani Torribio
Omar Montanari Plagio
Orchestra Giovanile Luigi Cherubini
Philharmonia Chorus of Vienna
Walter Zeh director
June 2011, Teatro Alighieri, Ravenna

Discs: 3
Record Label: Ducale
Release Date: April 29, 2013