George Frideric HANDEL (1685–1759)
Wolfgang Amadeus MOZART (1756–1791)
Arias and Overtures
Mari Eriksmoen (soprano)
Stavanger Symphony Orchestra/Jan Willem de Vriend
rec. Stavanger Konserthus, Stavanger, Norway, 10-13 August 2020
Sung texts enclosed but no translations
Reviewed as downloaded from press preview. Advertised by some dealers
as a CD, by others as an SACD
CHALLENGE RECORDS CC72832 SACD
[70:33]
Combining music by Handel and Mozart is a clever idea. Mozart was a great
admirer of the older master, and his early operas were written in the
Neapolitan opera style that Handel had adopted from his early years in
Italy. Towards the end of his life, Mozart also became involved in an
interesting musical project in Vienna. Baron Gottfried van Swieten is best
remembered today for his collaboration with Haydn on the oratorios The Creation and The Seasons. But he was also a composer
in his own right and a mentor of Mozart and Beethoven. In the late 1760s he
worked as a diplomat in London, and became immensely fond of Handel’s
music. Back in Vienna he founded a society of ancient music – quite
original in those days, when almost all the music that was played was newly
written – and for the society’s concerts between 1788 and 1791 he
commissioned Mozart to arrange and re-orchestrate four works by Handel: Messiah, Acis and Galatea, Alexander’s Feast and Ode for St. Cecilia’s Day. Excerpts from three of these are
presented on this disc, together with original works by both composers.
The young Norwegian soprano Mari Eriksmoen, who has rapidly established
herself as a leading artist on the international circuit, is already well
represented in the CD- and DVD catalogues. She has made her mark as a
Mozart singer in operas like Die Entführung aus dem Serail
(Blondchen), Le Nozze di Figaro (Susanna) and Così fan tutte (Fiordiligi), but she also has a mixed song recital
to her credit. On the present disc she introduces herself as Aspasia in
Mozart’s early opera Mitridate. The aria Al destin che la minaccia is a minor masterpiece, and it is
amazing how mature and confident the composer was at the tender age of
fourteen! The prima donnas expected a healthy dose of coloratura to show
off their technique, and Mozart obliged accordingly but achieved something
more substantial than merely empty roulades. This is a coherent dramatic
aria, and Mari Eriksmoen sings it with obvious relish. Her coloratura is
fluent, her tone is bright and beautiful and well-equalised throughout the
register. Add to this spirited playing of the Stavanger Symphony, and the
recital comes off to a spectacular start. That remark is also valid in the
next track, where the orchestra plays equally well in Mozart’s arrangement
of the overture from Handel’s Acis and Galatea. His version
differs from the original insofar as he replaces the oboes with clarinets,
which gives the music a softer edge.
His arrangement of Handel’s Messiah contributed a lot to the
popularity of the work on the continent. It is still heard once in a while
but in general Handel’s own instrumentation has become universally
prevalent nowadays. But, of course, it is interesting to hear Mozart’s
hybrid version, especially when the aria How beautiful are the feet is sung so beautifully.
Back to Mozart, we are reminded that his return to the old opera seria
tradition, in first Idomeneo and then, at the very end of his life La clemenza di Tito, was decidedly retrograde, and that his
audiences may have felt uncomfortable with the ancient stories, but no-one
can deny that he blew new life in the old format and created some of his
most attractive music. In Idomeneo we are in the time shortly
after the Trojan War, and Ilia’s long aria from the beginning of the opera
is a touching meditation over her sad fate.
Handel’s Giulio Cesare is one of the great baroque operas;
Cleopatra has eight arias and her contribution is certainly one of the most
important. The aria Da tempeste from Act III is one of her most
expressive, and Mari Eriksmoen is superb in the role, with effortless
coloratura, and the Stavanger SO accompany with bouncy and vital playing.
The aria from his 1747 oratorio Joshua reminds me of the old
recording with Elisabeth Schumann from 1928 – when she sang it, in German
of course, entitled O hätt’ ich Jubals Harf’ – and this was an
early reference recording for me. Mari Eriksmoen sings it with the same
elegance that Schumann did more than ninety years ago.
An aria from Acis and Galatea in Mozart’s arrangement, sung with
youthful freshness, is followed by one of Mozart’s many concert arias. They
were written either as arias for recital performances or for inserts in
other composers’ works. This particular specimen was composed in 1789, the
same year as Così fan tutte, as an insert aria for Cimarosa’s Li due baroni, and is certainly fully comparable with any aria
that Mozart wrote for his own operas at the same time. Had they been part
of any of his great operas, they would have been just as well-known today
as any of his standard arias from Figaro, Don Giovanni or Così.
The next collaboration – and the last on this disc – is the overture from Das Alexander-Fest, as the title is in German. The first part
finds both masters in ebullient mood; the second is nobly and elegantly
dancing – a somewhat surprising end to an overture; one had expected a more
powerful full stop.
The tragic Donna Anna from Don Giovanni comes next in her second
act recitative and aria. I would have thought that Mari Eriksmoen was more
of a Zerlina or Donna Elvira, but Donna Anna need not be sung by a hochdramatisch soprano, as long as she projects the text
convincingly, which Eriksmoen does; she certainly has the measure of the
role, and she also has the technical ability to toss off the quite advanced
coloratura, whilst a heavier voice easily can go astray there.
Handel composed Teseo in 1712, the year he decided to settle in
England. It is not one of his most frequently performed works, but Mari
Eriksmoen sang in it at Theater an der Wien some time ago, so she is well
inside the role of Agilea. The aria M’adora l’idol mio from the
first act is a virtuoso piece, not only for the soprano but also for the
solo oboist, who is just as much in focus in his obbligato part. It is a
pleasure to hear the instrument and the human voice blend. Full marks for
both! The oboe has a solo role also in Pamina’s aria from Die Zauberflöte, but here the virtuosity is laid on the shelf in
favour of lyrical warmth. The singing is lovely, and this is possibly the
highlight of the whole disc – though competition is keen.
Another relatively early Handel opera is Silla from 1713. It is
said to have been performed only once, for whatever reason. The aria Secondate, oh giusti dei, is, however, on a par with most of
Handel’s other arias. It is florid and has a lot of “go”! Back to Teseo, we meet Agilea again, now in act four, and her happy mood
in the first act has turned into sorrow. A beautiful lamentation, sung with
inwardness.
And so, as conclusion to this varied programme, we return to Don Giovanni and Donna Anna. Here, in the first act she is furious
over Don Giovanni’s attack on her, and she expresses her wrath with
sparkling dramatic tones. A brilliant finale, indeed! No one should regret
acquiring this stimulating recital.
Göran Forsling
Contents
Wolfgang Amadeus MOZART (1756–1791)
Mitridate, re di Ponto, K 87 (K 74a):
1. Al destin che la minaccia [4:58]
George Frideric HANDEL (1685–1759)
Acis und Galatea
(arr. Mozart), K 566:
2. Overture [3:33]
Der Messias (arr. Mozart), K 572:
3. Wie lieblich ist der Boten Schritt [2:14]
W. A. MOZART
Idomeneo, K 366:
4. Quando avran fine omai … Padre, germani, addio! … Ecco, Idamante, ahimè [8:16]
G. F. HANDEL
Giulio Cesare in Egitto, HWV 17:
5. Da tempeste il legno infranto [6:08]
Joshua, HWV 64:
6.6. O had I Jubal’s Lyre [2:42]
G. F. HANDEL
Acis und Galatea (arr. Mozart), K 566:
7. O fühltest du die Qualen … Wie’s Täubchen klagt um den Gemahl
[6:07]
W. A. MOZART
8. Alma grande è nobil core, K, K 578 [4:29]
G. F. HANDEL
Das Alexander-Fest (arr. Mozart), K 591:
9. Overture [5:53]
W. A. MOZART
Don Giovanni, K 527:
10. Crudele? Troppo mi spiace … Non mi dir [6:01]
G. F. HANDEL
Teseo, HWV 9:
11. M’adora l’idol mio [5:57]
W. A. MOZART
Die Zauberflöte, K 620:
12. Ach, ich fühls [3:58]
G. F. HANDEL
Silla, HWV 10:
13. Secondate, oh giusti dei [2:24]
Teseo, HWV 9:
14. Amarti si vorrei [4:54]
W. A. MOZART
Don Giovanni, K 527:
15. Or sai chi l’onore [2:49]
