On Wednesday, August 18, 2010 at 9:54:02 AM UTC-7,
rich...@hotnail.com wrote:
Since there is a little interest, still, in Handel and English opera,
I thought it might be interesting to compare three versions of the
same aria, from Xerxes. The first I know is the Cavalli, which is here
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6bA2UuYw4Jg&feature=related
I love Cavalli, but in fairness this is not a very sensual
performance, and this is Jacobs in his rather dry earlier period, but
still interesting.
The second will make you more interested, I hope. It is by Bononcini,
one of Handel's rivals (and actually more successful in his day than
Handel). You will see how much Handel took from Bononcini (we would
call it copyright infringement), and what he did with it, which was
even more important. That is here
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hiMlfAWBNzs
Again, I don't think it is quite fair to judge and compare exactly to
Handel. This is with harpsichord only, and not the most artistic of
voices. Surely there would have been ornamentation, and a filling out
of the instrumental line, but it is a fascinating comparison.
Finally, Handel's own, and here there is a wealth to chose from,
including Lesley Garrett, Ian Bostridge, and such lesser lights as Listitsian, Horne and Caruso (ok). I decided to go with the Otter
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qiha0FxW9UY
An instrumental version of that aria was used in a Japanese movie:
https://operawire.com/opera-meets-film-how-kon-ichikawas-use-of-ombra-mai-fu-explores-theme-in-the-makioka-sisters/
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