Philippe Jaroussky - The Handel Album (2017)

'Recording an album entirely devoted to Händel is an unmissable opportunity for any singer who loves Baroque music, but especially for a countertenor. In fact the sheer choice of arias, each more wonderful than the one before, is staggering, but does mean that every singer can find the numbers best suited to his or her voice and personality. Although it’s only in the last few years that I’ve been able to play the big Händel roles on stage – Sesto in Giulio Cesare, for example, or Ruggiero in Alcina – for this recital I wanted to choose a selection of arias from less well-known operas. I’ve been performing some of them for many years now and I felt ready to record them with my ensemble, Artaserse, a group of players who have gained further maturity from the experience of performing around the world over the years.

This recording also stems from observations about the repertoire, and the castrato repertoire in particular. Today, we singers almost always sing arias that weren’t written for us, and so have to adapt to play roles that are more ‘off-the-peg’ than ‘bespoke’. When Händel revived an opera with a different cast, however, he had no hesitation in transposing entire roles to adapt them to his new singers. I therefore decided to do the same with some of the arias on this album, in order to be able to perform them as comfortably as possible. I very much hope you will enjoy listening to the album as much as we all enjoyed making it!' Philippe Jaroussky

Tracklist:
1 Handel: Imeneo, HWV 41, Act 1: "Se potessero i sospir' miei" (Tirinto) - Philippe Jaroussky
2 Handel: Riccardo I, ré d'Inghilterra, HWV 23, Act 1: "Agitato da fiere tempeste" (Riccardo) - Philippe Jaroussky
3 Handel: Siroe, re di Persia, HWV 24, Act 3: "Son stanco, ingiusti Numi … " (Siroe) - Philippe Jaroussky
4 Handel: Siroe, re di Persia, HWV 24, Act 3: "Deggio morire, o stelle" (Siroe) - Philippe Jaroussky
5 Handel: Serse, HWV 40, Act 2: "Sì, la voglio" (Arsamene) - Philippe Jaroussky
6 Handel: Radamisto, HWV 12, Act 2: "Ombra cara" (Radamisto) - Philippe Jaroussky
7 Handel: Radamisto, HWV 12, Act 3: "Vieni, d'empietà mostro crudele! … " (Radamisto) - Philippe Jaroussky
8 Handel: Radamisto, HWV 12, Act 3: "Vile! Se mi dai vita" (Radamisto) - Philippe Jaroussky
9 Handel: Radamisto, HWV 12, Act 3: "Qual nave smarrita" (Radamisto) - Philippe Jaroussky
10 Handel: Flavio, re de' Longobardi, HWV 16, Act 2: "Privarmi ancora … " (Guido) - Philippe Jaroussky
11 Handel: Flavio, re de' Longobardi, HWV 16, Act 2: "Rompo i lacci" (Guido) - Philippe Jaroussky
12 Handel: Amadigi di Gaula, HWV 11, Act 2: "Sussurrate, onde vezzose" (Amadigi) - Philippe Jaroussky
13 Handel: Tolomeo, re d'Egitto, HWV 25, Act 3: "Che più si tarda omai … " (Tolomeo) - Philippe Jaroussky
14 Handel: Tolomeo, re d'Egitto, HWV 25, Act 3: "Stille amare" (Tolomeo) - Philippe Jaroussky
15 Handel: Giustino, HWV 37, Act 1: "Chi mi chiama alla gloria? … " (Giustino) - Philippe Jaroussky
16 Handel: Giustino, HWV 37, Act 1: "Se parla al mio cor" (Giustino) - Philippe Jaroussky
17 Handel: Ezio, HWV 29, Act 1: "Pensa a serbarmi, oh cara" (Ezio) - Philippe Jaroussky
18 Handel: Flavio, re de' Longobardi, HWV 16, Act 1: "Son pur felice al fine … " (Guido) - Philippe Jaroussky
19 Handel: Flavio, re de' Longobardi, HWV 16, Act 1: "Bel contento" (Guido) - Philippe Jaroussky