ヴィンチ: 歌劇「アルタセルセ」

カウンターテナー5人が出演する不思議なバロックの舞台。

レオナルド・ヴィンチ(1690-1730)の音楽は生命力と劇的表現にあふれ、カストラートが君臨していた時代に、新しい世代の歌手たちがダ・カーポ・アリアやカント・フィオリートで輝きを見せ、鋭い迫力と劇的表現の直接性を持ったアリアを数多く作り上げました。この歌劇『アルタセルセ』は、1730年に初演。台本作家メタスタージオの作品のなかでも、『オリンピアーデ』『ディドーネ』に並ぶ当時の人気作でした。ジャルスキー、ツェンチッチのベテラン、若手のファジョーリ、サバドゥス、ミネンコの5人のカウンターテナーの繰り広げられる饗宴。そしてファソリス&コンチェルト・ケルンの彫りの深いオーケストラは、弦の音色の美しさ、ノリの良さ、独特の強調によって、このオペラの斬新さが感じられます。

このHome of Operaシリーズは、多くの方に低価格で音楽を聴いていただきたく、歌詞・対訳は付いておりません。
ワーナーミュージック・ジャパン

The opera libretto Artaserse (Artaxerxes) by Pietro Metastasio was the hit of the 18th century opera seria. It was set more than 40 times, including once in English (by Thomas Arne), and its popularity lasted into the 19th century. The opera by Leonardo Vinci recorded here, however, was the very first one, dating from 1730. It's easy to see even at this late date why Metastasio's libretto appealed to opera composers and operagoers so much. The story, concerning the Persian king Xerxes' son Artaxerxes I (based very loosely on actual events), features royal pomp, young love, betrayal, tragic self-sacrifice, and, to top it all off, a happy ending. Musically the opera is odd by present-day standards; it called for an all-male cast, women being banned from Roman theaters at the time. The cast consisted of five castrati, sung here by countertenors, and one tenor, the villain Artabano. It's a big work, with sober processionals and spectacular arias for almost all the characters. French countertenor Philippe Jaroussky has never been in better voice, but the performance is equally notable for introducing some lesser-known countertenors, such as the creamy-voiced Valer Barna-Sabadus as Semira, Artaserse's frustrated lover. It's not until now, as a matter of fact, that a critical mass of countertenors has been available to perform music of this difficulty, and the results are worth hearing on several levels. Slowly but surely, the history of opera in the 18th century is being rewritten.