

CX 5295
Cimarosa: Il matrimonio segreto (Live)
Label Catalogue Number:
555295-2
555295-2
Running Time: 03:17:03
Release Date: August 2021
Originally recorded in 2020
Originally recorded in 2020
Genre:
Classical
Opera
Classical
Opera
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About
“Da capo!” This is what Emperor Leopold II shouted in the Vienna court theater in 1792 – and all the musicians once again began the musical fun from the beginning. Il matrimonio segreto is the only opera that has ever had the honor of being repeated in full at its premiere, so very much did the comical musical goings-on please its distinguished audience. On the occasion of the fortieth anniversary of the Innsbruck Early Music Festival Weeks, the conductor Alessandro De Marchi again at long last led a performance of Cimarosa’s most popular opera in historical performance practice and in original sound. The music forms a direct transition from the Baroque opera to the Bel Canto era of Rossini and in every way merits a production in which the musical and vocal practice of Cimarosa and Mozart’s times is brought back to life. Nowadays Cimarosa’s opera is always heard in greatly abbreviated versions; repetitions and parts of arias often end up being eliminated. Alessandro De Marchi: “Though precisely these repetitions are interesting because in them the female and male singers, just as then was still the practice, are able to vary and improvise.” The orchestral sound is also more colorfully and sharply contoured when original instruments are used. For the anniversary occasion everybody was supposed to have good reason to laugh, and this opera is optimally suited toward this end. The tradition of the opera buffa, with its origins going back to the commedia dell’arte, in this work experiences a “high point full of irresistible moments of fun, on the stage and in the music” as De Marchi puts it.
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Reviews
“…The present recording offers, as far as I know, the only unabridged version of the opera. Alessandro De Marchi conducts the Orchestra of the Academia Montis Regalis on period instruments with precision, insight and attention to detail, as well as emotional expression in a thoroughly captivating and compelling reading. The audience can be heard mostly between the musical numbers: their applause and laughter give the impression of a real theatrical performance…”
Daniel Floyd – MusicWeb-International.com – 4 February 2022
“… The Academia Montis Regalis orchestra adds greatly to the flow of the performance with some unusually good woodwind playing. Mariangola Martello’s harpsichord accompaniment is a model of its kind. All of the singers are fluent in Italian (essential for this genre) and justify using the complete recitatives. The performance lasts well over three hours, but I was enjoying it so much I hardly noticed the time. The sound is excellent: clear and warm without sounding artificially balanced…”
David Reynolds – American Record Guide – January/February 2022
“… This spirited performance captures the playfulness and affectionate tone of Cimarosa’s comedy.”
David Vickers – Gramophone magazine – October 2021
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