Indeed, there is an instrumental quality to her beguiling soprano that makes light of the demands of these mini-masterpieces.
“Ombra Compagna: Mozart Concert Arias,” performed by Lisette Oropesa, Antonello Manacorda, il pomo d’oro, is The Sunday Times’ Recording of The Week! Read the full review below!
Lisette Oropesa, prized as a bel canto heroine and for her performance in Verdi’s La traviata, declares Mozart her favourite composer from her earlier career as a flautist. Indeed, there is an instrumental quality to her beguiling soprano that makes light of the demands of these mini-masterpieces. The finest solos here were made for three singers Mozart admired: his first love and eventual sister-in-law, Aloysia Weber; Luisa Villeneuve, his first Dorabella in Cosi fan tutte; and the Prague soprano Josepha Duschek. Oropesa’s tangy soprano soars in Vorrei spiegarvi (for Weber), challenging the oboe obbligatist with her pearly notes, and she suggests a sultry sensuality in Vado ma dove? (Villeneuve) and estimable trills in Bella mia fiamma (Duschek). Oropesa’s dazzling debut recital whets the appetite for more.
Hugh Canning
