The Opera Tattler

Reviews of Performances and their Audiences

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Category: Les Arts Florissants

  • Les Arts Florissants’ Actéon/Dido and Aeneas

    * Notes * This year a second obscure French Baroque opera was seen at Cal Performances last Thursday, this time from Les Arts Florissants (pictured). Marc-Antoine Charpentier's Actéon, only rediscovered in 1945, is the first half of a show being toured by the French based Baroque ensemble whose name comes from a chamber opera by the…

  • David et Jonathas at BAM

    * Notes * William Christie and Les Arts Florissants are currently performing Charpentier’s David et Jonathas at BAM. The production is from Festival d’Aix-en-Provence and is directed by Andreas Homoki of Opernhaus Zürich. The set consists of wooden walls that can shift and move along two Cartesian axes. The blond wood used for walls and furniture…

  • Les Arts Florissants’ 2nd Performance of Giulio Cesare

    * Notes *The second performance of Giulio Cesare at Salle Pleyel came together better than the first. Les Arts Florissants sounded more cohesive. The concertmaster did not break any strings this time, and her intonation was more accurate, but her playing for "Se in fiorito ameno prato" was still screechy and not beautiful. The horn…

  • Les Arts Florissants’ Giulio Cesare

    * Notes *The Tuesday opening of Giulio Cesare at Salle Pleyel was stunning. For one thing, most of the singing was breathtaking. Both low voices were lovely, these being Andreas Wolf (Curio) and Umberto Chiummo (Achilla). The latter enunciated particularly well, and his aria "Se a me non sei crudele" was strong. Rachid Ben Abdeslam…