I'm a huge fan of Vivaldi (instrumental and vocal music), and I just purchased this set and was overwhelmed by the variety and energy of the music. Most criticisms of Vivaldi center on a supposed sameness to his compostions, however this opera unveils aria after aria filled with interesting and surprising vocal parts and orchestration.
To be fair to potential listeners, this is not a very "natural" style of singing that one might find in Verdi or other Romantic-era composers; this is "Baroque" in a very literal sense of that word: the singing is very technical, elaborate and more concerned with a musical/technical aspect, rather than a dramatic approach that gives primacy to the words in the libretto. However, Vivaldi's highly technical style of writing for the voice never sounds like he's simply writing exercises based on scales and arpeggios, instead (aided by the gifted singers on this recording), the ornamentation, vocal lines and melodies are ear-catching, interesting and "snappy" in a way that one might compare to a well-constructed line in a jazz solo! The orchestration is similarly varied: just listening to the string parts, which are usually only a harmonic cushion or rhythmic accompaniment, provides different contrasts of texture or interactions with the singer(s) throughout the opera. This is Baroque-era string writing of a very high nature, imaginative tecnically, harmoically and orchestrally.
Aside from the compostion of the piece, the interpretation and playing of the singers/orchestra provide further interest and musically delightful results. In my opinion the best of the singers is the contralto who sings Damira, the sultan's mistress (sorry, I'm at work and don't have liner notes with me). She has the hardest music, and sings all of it with intense emotion. She doesn't exactly "nail" every note with precision, but the effect she creates and the feelings she conveys are dead-on. Sara Mingardo is the other contralto on this set, and a personal favorite of mine. As the supposedly legitimate son Melindo, she sings some highly ornate, furious arias, and while she sounds better on other recordings (Opus 111's "L'Olimpiade" for one), her singing is still of a high caliber. The counter-tenor who plays the supposedly illegitimate son Selim is amazing! His voice is like a piercing spotlight with great attack and a truly unique timbre; as far as counter-tenors, it's a vast improvement over the usually effeminate, nasal types recording so often. Both sopranos sing well, especially the flighy, coquettish part of Roxanne. Finally Anthony Johnson as the Sultan Mamud should get applause for even going near the material he has to sing. It is incredibly difficult music, and if he sounds as though he's straining at times, it really doesn't take anything away from the performace. Sometimes it's nice to know that a musician is actually working at what he's doing.
The conducting and orchestra provide the final touches to round off a completely satisfying and invigorating set of music. The sound of the strings, throughout Vivaldi's myraid orchestral voicings, is always impressive. The orchestra can be smooth, warm, icy, piercing, percussive, as the score requires, while always maintaining the fast, fleet passagework that comes up in Vivaldi's instrumental works as well as his operas. (A special treat is the work of the double-bass player: it might seem odd to point out this particular player/instrument, but I thinks he plays with a realy rhythmic flair, as his bass notes pop out and seem to boot the orchestra in just the right places.) Even the recitatives, which can be boring or bland, are engaging, as the singers' beautiful voices couple with a sensitive, lush continuo to provide results which are musically rewarding.
A distinguished work full of surprises, provided by exciting performers.

This recording shows exactly what Handel and Baroque Opera in general are able to do, when handled by the right conductor/singers/musicians. This music is never boring, never "reserved, emotionally cool, etc." or any other adjectives sometimes used to describe (bad) performances from the genre. It's more music than drama, YES, but that's to be expected from this period, and with music and an approach this good, who needs "dramatic cohesion" anyway?
Handels' music here is full of surprises, in terms of the sequence of arias presented here. Colorful orchestration, interesting vocal melodies and turns of phrase, plenty of room for both technical and expressive virtuoso singing, all combine into a springboard for conductor Jacobs and the Frieburg Baroque Orchestra to make the music become personal and really become something more than what's written on the page.
Immediately recognizable is the sound of Jacob's orchestra: it's crisp but never metallic, intense and full of emotion (compare to the sounds of the strings on recordings by Manze of other Handel works), and lets Handel's voicings, harmonies, orchestrations, etc. really shine through. I'm not a music theorist, but Jacobs alllows anyone to hear what Handel is doing within the orchestral parts, and not just through them i.e. why he voices the strings and/or winds one way versus another at different points in the piece. Jacobs also allows the musicians considerable improvistory freedom: there's too many to mention, but a good example is the 4(!) harpsichord solos in Armida's showy aria "Vo Far a Guerra." These and other ad-lib parts show off the players' chops in an effort to make the music sound alive and not like a museum piece that is being dusted off for historical interest.
Of course most people listen to opera(s) primarily for the singers, and I don't feel that this set is deficient in that part at all. Some reviewers didn't care for some/all of the singers, but personally I feel they all contribute something unique and exciting to the performance. Inga Kalna's Armida covneys the right amount of emotional uncertainty in the character: her music expresses love for the hero alongside anger and menace, in a series of arias that can be intsnely longing or searingly furious. She handles all of these with technical and melodic displays that are quite impressive. Rutherford's Argante is sung with confidence that allows him to portray the spooky, sinister side of the villain. Perrson's Almirena is actually quite varied: she is able to express the militarisitc tone of a general's daughter in "Combatti di forte," which is sung with an upbeat lilt that makes it "swing" in a way, while showing the sensitivity and delicateness of her in the famous "Lascia Chio pianga." Lawrence Zazzo as the leader of the Christian army Goffreddo has a truly unique counter-tenor voice. The timbre is full and round, not nasal, feminine, limp, etc. like many counter-tenors; I hope he does a recital disc soon. The other two counter-tenors really don't hold up too well: Dumaux is tolerable and comptetent but lackluster, and Visse is just plain annoying (thank goodness he has a very small role). Finally, Vivica Genaux in the title trole has received many mixed responses. In my opinion, and it's only an opinion, she's amazing in up-tempo numbers, handling the runs and coloratura brillinatly (try her Farinelli CD!), but on the slower, more melodic pieces she sounds a bit uninvolved (her recent Bel Canto outing shows this deficieny). However all in all she does a good job, and the sound of her voice may or may not be to everyone's liking, so listen and see what you think.
Not a brief review, but this set is amazing and will continue to reveal more and more delights every time you listen to it. Pick this up especially if you want a good introduction to what Handel is capable of, or if you enjoy Handel and want a particularly daring, exciting interpretation of one of his better works.

This was one of the first opera aria recital CD's that I've ever purchased, and it got me hooked on Baroque opera, French or otherwise. I picked up this record originally because I found the singer very attractive; not the deepest reason, but the MUSIC turned out to be immnesely enjoyable, even if they would've put artwork or a photo of an opera-house on the cover.

To begin with, Petibon's voice is beautiful. As the other reviewer(s) put it, it is a cool, vibrato-less voice that might SEEM shrill, but her voice is never unpleasant. In fast or slow pieces, she is always a pleasure to listen to. Besides the sheer beauty of timbre of her voice, her musicanship is incredible: her interpretations are always appropriate, coloring the piece with humor, excitment, sex appeal (especially the Armida piece), anger, you-name-it. Technically she is very impressive, and handles the disc's runs, cascades, top-notes, etc. very well. (This disc is by no means a firweworks display though).

The orchestra plays with the same degree of musicianship, technicality and beauty. In some of the Rameaus pieces (especially the march), the instrumental textures really show off the great harmonies and voicings that Rameau is famous for; this disc is a great introduction to the composer's music, I wish she recorded Rameau more often.

Finally, the music itself is unique, interesting and entertaining all at the same time. The 2 two excerpts from Lully are not conventional arias, but they display how well the composer was able to blend drama into music. His music is both at the same time, and it soudns cliched but you have to hear it to treally understand it. The piece from Charpentier from "David and Jonathan" is stirring, and shows off what a talented singer and skilled orchestra can do with good music: it is musical, stirring, anguished and not something you will (probably) ever hear at the Met.
A wordy review, but this is one of my favorite records, one that I think everyone who has an intrest in the Baroque period should listen to. If you''re looking for an introduction to this very unique corner of classical music, try this CD.

Having never heard this set of concerti or anything by this orchestra/leader, I was satisifed for the most part. Vivaldi keeps you guessing quite often with where the music is going, always delivers a melodic, exciting and rhythmic force, and keeps you aware that he's making the players work hard and (ideally) feel something in the music.

The only reservation I have about this recording is that Biondi's intepretation(s) do take liberties at times. Sometimes the music is a bit too snappy/sleek (at least for what I look for in Vivaldi), (E.G. the #7 for 4 Violins), and one wishes for a little more passion. At other times the music seems a bit too dance-like, especially in the #6 Concerto for Solo Violin.

Some of the reviewers have expressed distate for Biondi's liberties, other have found them refreshing. This is my first approach to this set of music and the performers, so I'll just say that you can't go wrong with this CD. Biondi is definitely making the music his own, it's up to the listener is they enjoy that.