Flavio Ferri-Benedetti & Il Basilico - Arias for Domenico Annibali (2016)

Flavio Ferri-Benedetti, one of today s key countertenors for Italian baroque, pays homage to the once-admired but often underestimated castrato Domenico Annibali, who was greatly appreciated in a time when Senesino, Farinelli, Caffarelli or Carestini were fighting for supremacy on Europe s stages. His 25-year career had him traveling between Italy, England, Germany and Poland, singing for composers such as Handel, Porpora, Zelenka but, most importantly, for Hasse, with whom he premiered most of his operatic roles together with the great prima donna Faustina Bordoni. In this exciting and varied recital, half of the programme is brand new to disc, including some rare gems such as Feo s 'Andromaca', Latilla s 'Romolo' or Porpora s 'Filandro'. Annibali s season in London for Handel is not only represented by Arminio s breathtaking prison aria, but also by the duet from 'Berenice', here featuring Italian soprano Carla Nahadi Babelegoto. Ensemble Il Basilico, under the guidance of Eva Saladin, accompany Ferri-Benedetti and his portrayal of baroque affetti, with a range of three octaves from baritone to mezzosoprano, as castrati were wont to do.

Tracklist:
01. Giovanni Alberto Ristori: Le fate - Bellezze adorate
02. Johann Adolf Hasse: Cleofide, Act III - Cervo al bosco
03. Nicola Porpora: Germanico in Germania - Qual turbine che scende
04. George Frideric Handel: Arminio, HWV 36, Act II - Vado a morir
05. Francesco Feo: Andromaca - Quel nocchier che vana ogn'opra
Nicola Porpora: Filandro
06. Terra e questa
07. D'esser gia parmi
08. George Frideric Handel: Berenice, HWV 38, Act I - Se il mio amor fu il tuo delitto
09. Johann Adolf Hasse: Irene - Perfidi, sul mio core
10. Jan Dismas Zelenka: Il serpente di bronzo, ZWV 61 - Gia ripiglia vermiglia la rosa
11. Gaetano Latilla: Romolo - Cosi geloso un angue
Giovanni Alberto Ristori: Componimento per musica
12. Si, rifiorite
13. A vostro dispetto