G.F.Handel - Orlando

This new Orlando, recorded live in 2008, shows Malgoire and his period group to advantage. The orchestra sounds better than it did 30 years ago, undoubtedly the result of continued familiarity with period instruments, which has been evident for many years in recording after recording by period-instrument groups. Malgoire’s leadership retains the virtues of his previous recordings: reasonable tempos, almost never rushed; recitatives that are dramatically and realistically delivered; and a sense that we are listening to warm, living characters, undoubtedly helped by the fact that this is taken from a staged performance.

The cast is a very good one. The countertenor Orlando, Christophe Dumaux, has a good voice, not hooty or hollow like many of his ilk; he even has a decent trill. The second countertenor in the cast, Jean Michel Fumas, who sings Medoro, is not quite in Dumaux’s class; he sings well but is somewhat hollow of voice. The Angelica, Elena de la Merced, has an attractive voice and is adept at coloratura, as are all members of this cast. Rachel Nicolls’ Dorinda is also good but slightly strained above the staff. The Zoroastro, Alain Buet, has a somewhat gruff voice but sings well; however, as a baritone, he is not able to reach the lowest notes in his role, F♯ and G, the few times that Handel requires them.

The score is performed without cuts (although Malgoire omits the repeats in the third movement of the overture). Da capo ornaments are mostly tasteful and idiomatic, a rarity on Handel opera recordings these days. Orlando’s arias are the only ones that display recomposition rather than decoration of the vocal line. An exception to Malgoire’s generally sensitive direction is the tempo of the trio that ends act I; it is taken too swiftly and loses its charm. The recitatives, which should be accompanied by harpsichord and cello, aren’t.

The recording venue provides almost no distractions. Singers are always on-mike, and there are almost no stage noises. The audience is absolutely quiet, except for end-of-act applause (too much of it at the end of the opera, where we are given over four minutes of applause).

There are three other recordings of Orlando in the current catalog. Christopher Hogwood’s on L’Oiseau-Lyre is unevenly sung and not very dramatic. I have not heard the live recording on Ponto conducted by Arnold Goldsbrough; its cast, including Janet Baker, Heather Harper, and April Cantelo, promises much, but it is contained on only two discs, with excerpts from another Orlando recording as filler, so it must be severely cut; one can also assume from its recording date, 1963, that it is somewhat old-fashioned in its approach.

The main competition to Malgoire comes from William Christie’s recording on Erato, and formidable competition it is. In general, I prefer Christie’s singers to Malgoire’s on a case-by-case basis, especially his use of women in the castrato roles. On the other hand, Christie’s da capo ornaments are not as idiomatic as Malgoire’s, and Christie also mishandles the continuo.


FANFARE: Ron Salemi