Mostly Mozart Arias: A Survey of Recent CDs

Sento amor
Arias from Mozart's Mitridate, Ascanio in Alba, concert aria K. 255; Gluck's Telemaco, Orfeoed Euridice; Handel's Tolomeo, Partenope
David Daniels, countertenor
Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment
Harry Bicket, conductor
Recorded in 1999
Virgin Veritas (distributed by EMI) 5 45365 2

Concert Arias
K. 83, 294, 316, 368, 416, 418, 419, 538
Natalie Dessay, soprano
Orchestre de l'Opéra de Lyon
Theodor Guschlbauer, conductor
Recorded in 1994
EMI Classics 6 66386 2

Mozart Heroines
Arias from Ascanio in Alba, Die Entführung aus dem Serail, Idomeneo, Lucio Silla, Zaide, Die Zauberflöte
Natalie Dessay, soprano
Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment
Louis Langrée, conductor
Recorded in 2000
Virgin Classics (distributed by EMI) 5 45447 2

Mozart / Strauss
Arias from Lucio Silla, Don Giovanni, Idomeneo / Salome, Guntram, Ariadne auf Naxos, Arabella, Die ägyptische Helena
Jane Eaglen, soprano
Israel Philharmonic Orchestra
Zubin Mehta, conductor
Recorded in 1997
Sony Classical SK 60042

Mozart
Arias from Così fan tutte, Le nozze di Figaro, Idomeneo, Don Giovanni; concert aria K. 528
Barbara Frittoli, soprano
Scottish Chamber Orchestra
Sir Charles Mackerras, conductor
Recorded in 2000
Erato (distributed by Atlantic) 86207-2

Airs de concert et d'opéras
Arias from Don Giovanni, Le nozze di Figaro, La clemenza di Tito, Così fan tutte; K. 79, 505
Véronique Gens, soprano
Melvyn Tan, piano
Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment
Ivor Bolton, conductor
Recorded in 1998
Virgin Veritas (distributed by EMI) 5 45319 2

Concert Arias
K. 217, 272, 294, 528, 538, and aria from Il re pastore
Valerie Girard, soprano
Virtuosi di Praga
Oldrich Vlcek, conductor
Recorded in 1991
Discover International (distributed by Koch International) DICD 920204

Opera and Concert Arias
Arias from Le nozze di Figaro, Idomeneo, Così fan tutte, Don Giovanni; K. 217, 528, 577, 583
Barbara Hendricks, soprano
English Chamber Orchestra
Ion Martin, conductor
Recorded in 1997
EMI Classics 5 56568 2

Sumi Jo Sings Mozart
Arias from Die Entführung aus dem Serail, Die Zauberflöte, Il re pastore, Le nozze di Figaro, Der Schauspieldirektor; K. 217, 383, 418, 419, 538, 580, 582
Sumi Jo, soprano
English Chamber Orchestra
Kenneth Montgomery, conductor
Recorded in 1995
Erato (distributed by Atlantic) 14637-2

Mozart Opera Arias
Arias from Lucio Silla, Die Zauberflöte, Il re pastore, Mitridate, Die Entführung aus demSerail, La clemenza di Tito, Zaide
Sandrine Piau, soprano
Freiburger Barockorchester
Gottfried von der Glotz, conductor
Recorded in 2001
Naive (distributed by Harmonia Mundi) E 8877

Rare Mozart Arias
Arias from Mitridate, Ascanio in Alba, La Betulialiberata; concert arias K. 255, Anh. 245
Nathalie Stutzmann, contralto
Moscow Virtuosi
Vladimir Spivakov, conductor
Recorded in 1994
RCA Victor (distributed by BMG Classics) 68187-2

THERE has never been a dearth of recorded Mozart opera aria recitals: one fondly recalls solo albums by such artists as Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, Eleanor Steber, Erika Köth, Teresa Stich-Randall, and Leontyne Price, to name but a few favorites from the LP era. Nor were the then underplayed concert arias neglected by the major record companies between 1956 and 1991, thanks to the (cumulatively) more or less comprehensive coverage by artists such as Rita Streich, Gundula Janowitz, Margaret Price, Edita Gruberova, Edith Mathis, Lucia Popp, Teresa Berganza, and Janet Baker. Practically all of that material, and then some, has since been reissued in compact-disc format, which however did not discourage the next generation of performers from assembling their own assortments of Mozart arias for CD consumption. The Mozart recitals of Kathleen Battle, Kiri Te Kanawa, Cecilia Bartoti, Renée Fleming, and Vesselina Kasarova have been on the shelves long enough to have earned a certain "classic" status.

Oddly enough, the period-instrument craze that began some two decades ago was slow to make an impact on this genre of Mozart recording. After the fairly exceptional Emma Kirkby-Academy of Ancient Music release on L'Oiseau-Lyre and a Lena Lootens/Christoph Prégardien...