Handel: Almira, HWV 1 Boston Early Music Festival Orchestra, Paul O'Dette & Stephen Stubbs

• George Frideric Handel (1685 - 1759): Almira, HWV 1:
• 1 Almira, HWV 1: Ouverture 02:47
• Almira, HWV 1, Act I:
• 2 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 1: Durchlauchtigste 01:11
• 3 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 1: Almire regiere 02:31
• 4 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 1: Viva, viva, viva, Almira 00:26
• 5 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 1: Chaconne 01:27
• 6 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 1: Sarabande 02:01
• 7 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 2: Die Nachwelt 01:50
• 8 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 2: Ach wiltu die Herzen 01:37
• 9 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 2: Du hebst mich, grosse Königin 00:39
• 10 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 2: So ben che regnante 02:34
• 11 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 3: Durchlauchigste, des Vaters letzten Willen 00:37
• 12 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 3: Leset, ihr funkelenden Augen 01:17
• 13 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 3: Ach, Schmerz! 00:48
• 14 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 3: Chi più mi piace 04:10
• 15 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 4: Schönste Rosen 04:37
• 16 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 4: Ist hier Edilia? 00:42
• 17 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 4: Du irrst dich, mein Licht 02:56
• 18 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 4: Ich bin versöhnt 00:47
• 19 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 4: Proverai 04:05
• 20 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 4: Schäum' immer Gift und Gallen! 00:17
• 21 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 4: Zürne was hin 01:03
• 22 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 5: Liebliche Wälder 04:36
• 23 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 5: Die Königin ist meiner Liebe Ziel 01:38
• 24 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 6: Vollkommene Hände 01:37
• 25 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 6: Ich liebe Di- wie, seh ich nicht 01:48
• 26 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 6: Geloso tormento 06:43
• 27 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 7: Auf diesen angenehmen Wegen 02:04
• 28 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 7: Wer um Geld und Hoheit willen 00:57
• 29 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 7: Ich stimme solchen Worten bei 00:17
• 30 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 7: Più non vuo 02:22
• 31 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 7: Ritornello 00:33
• 32 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 8: Weil es die Königin befohlen 00:29
• 33 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 8: Am Hofe zu heissen galant 01:24
• 34 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 9: Auf, auf, mein Herz! 00:26
• 35 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 9: Lass das Schicksal blitzen 03:37
• 36 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 9: Dort wird sich Osman finden ein 00:17
• 37 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 9: Ich will euch verdammen 02:35
• 38 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 10: Nein, Amor, nein 00:43
• 39 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 10: Ich will gar von nichtes wissen 02:11
• 40 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 11: Die Königin Almira 01:26
• 41 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 11: Der Mund spricht zwar 02:38
• 42 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 11: Sie wird mich in Verzweiflung stürzen 00:30
• 43 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 11: Courante 01:14
• 44 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 11: Bourree 00:34
• 45 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 11: Menuet 01:03
• 46 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 11: Rigaudon 00:50
• 47 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 12: Wie, träum' ich 01:21
• 48 Almira, HWV 1, Act I Scene 12: Ingrato, Spietato 04:46
• Almira, HWV 1, Act II
• 49 Almira, HWV 1, Act II Scene 1: Durchlauchtigste, aus Mauritanien 00:42
• 50 Almira, HWV 1, Act II Scene 2: Raymondo, der das Reich 02:23
• 51 Almira, HWV 1, Act II Scene 3: Chi sà, mia spema 02:46
• 52 Almira, HWV 1, Act II Scene 3: Doch leerer Trost 01:51
• 53 Almira, HWV 1, Act II Scene 3: Lass ein sanftes Händedrücken 02:08
• 54 Almira, HWV 1, Act II Scene 3: Verdruss und Unmuth 00:27
• 55 Almira, HWV 1, Act II Scene 3: Alter schadt der Thorheit nicht 01:21
• 56 Almira, HWV 1, Act II Scene 4: Ich muss allein in diesem Zimmer bleiben 01:18
• 57 Almira, HWV 1, Act II Scene 4: Habbiate pazienza 00:55
• 58 Almira, HWV 1, Act II Scene 4: Tabarco, lass ihn nur herein 01:33
• 59 Almira, HWV 1, Act II Scene 5: Sprich vor mir ein süsses Wort 01:49
• 60 Almira, HWV 1, Act II Scene 5: Wie werd ich mich doch seiner Bitt' entbrechen? 00:39
• 61 Almira, HWV 1, Act II Scene 6: Entzeuch das Blatt nur meinen Augen nicht 01:10
• 62 Almira, HWV 1, Act II Scene 6: Schöne Flammen 02:57
• 63 Almira, HWV 1, Act II Scene 6: Nein, nein, Fernando, nein! 02:26
• 64 Almira, HWV 1, Act II Scene 7: Durchlauchtigste, darf ich die Gnad' erbitten 02:09
• 65 Almira, HWV 1, Act II Scene 7: Nein, Osman muss, was er versprochen 00:21
• 66 Almira, HWV 1, Act II Scene 7: Scepter und Kron 01:07
• 67 Almira, HWV 1, Act II Scene 7: Mein Vater wird zu den zerrissnen Banden 01:18
• 68 Almira, HWV 1, Act II Scene 8: Mi da speranza al core 03:51
• 69 Almira, HWV 1, Act II Scene 8: Almira kommt 00:41
• 70 Almira, HWV 1, Act II Scene 8: Zweier Augen Majestät 03:47
• 71 Almira, HWV 1, Act II Scene 8: Und wo wird sich hie 00:16
• 72 Almira, HWV 1, Act II Scene 9: Ich kann nicht mehr 01:35
• 73 Almira, HWV 1, Act II Scene 9: Move i passi 03:52
• 74 Almira, HWV 1, Act II Scene 9: Hilf, Himmel! Osman kommt 00:19
• 75 Almira, HWV 1, Act II Scene 10: Svenerò 01:01
• 76 Almira, HWV 1, Act II Scene 10: Dort eben kommt 02:26
• 77 Almira, HWV 1, Act II Scene 10: Ob dein Mund 03:07
• 78 Almira, HWV 1, Act II Scene 11: Beglückter Tag 00:44
• 79 Almira, HWV 1, Act II Scene 11: Sanerà la piaga un dì 03:55
• 80 Almira, HWV 1, Act II Scene 11: Raymondo hat mir seinen Fürstenstand entdeckt 00:28
• 81 Almira, HWV 1, Act II Scene 12: Ich komme von Almirens Zimmer her 02:11
• 82 Almira, HWV 1, Act II Scene 12: Der Himmel wird strafen 05:22
• 83 Almira, HWV 1, Act II Scene 13: Wie muss sich doch Tabarco 02:55
• 84 Almira, HWV 1, Act II Scene 13: Schürzchen mit dem Falbala 03:49
• Almira, HWV 1, Act III:
• 85 Almira, HWV 1, Act III Scene 1: Entrée 01:09
• 86 Almira, HWV 1, Act III Scene 1: Bücke dich 02:44
• 87 Almira, HWV 1, Act III Scene 1: Entrée dacapo 01:38
• 88 Almira, HWV 1, Act III Scene 2: Meiner Pracht 02:41
• 89 Almira, HWV 1, Act III Scene 2: Rigaudon 00:51
• 90 Almira, HWV 1, Act III Scene 3: Du stolzer Erdenkreis! 02:24
• 91 Almira, HWV 1, Act III Scene 3: Sarabande 02:03
• 92 Almira, HWV 1, Act III Scene 3: Gefällt ihr nicht 00:23
• 93 Almira, HWV 1, Act III Scene 4: Kommt, vermehrt der Thorheit Ruhm 02:16
• 94 Almira, HWV 1, Act III Scene 5: Quillt, ihr überhäuften Zähren 05:58
• 95 Almira, HWV 1, Act III Scene 5: Was ist das deinen Geist 01:39
• 96 Almira, HWV 1, Act III Scene 5: Gönne nach den Thränengüssen 03:40
• 97 Almira, HWV 1, Act III Scene 6: Ja, Amor, deine Grausamkeit 01:02
• 98 Almira, HWV 1, Act III Scene 6: Blinder Schütz 02:20
• 99 Almira, HWV 1, Act III Scene 6: Unartige Schöne 01:16
• 100 Almira, HWV 1, Act III Scene 7: Edele Sinnen 02:30
• 101 Almira, HWV 1, Act III Scene 7: Fernando, gib mir deinen Degen 00:35
• 102 Almira, HWV 1, Act III Scene 7: Was ist des Hofes Gunst? 01:56
• 103 Almira, HWV 1, Act III Scene 7: Geh, Unvorsichtiger 02:01
• 104 Almira, HWV 1, Act III Scene 8: Vedrai, s’à tuo dispetto 05:27
• 105 Almira, HWV 1, Act III Scene 9: Edilia! 03:20
• 106 Almira, HWV 1, Act III Scene 10: Treuloser Mensch 01:10
• 107 Almira, HWV 1, Act III Scene 10: Kochet, ihr Adern 03:45
• 108 Almira, HWV 1, Act III Scene 11: Durchlauchtigste, der Himmel muss verehren 02:57
• 109 Almira, HWV 1, Act III Scene 11: Werthe Schrift 01:31
• 110 Almira, HWV 1, Act III Scene 12: Entweich, verlasse mich 01:23
• 111 Almira, HWV 1, Act III Scene 13: Quel labbro di Coral 02:31
• 112 Almira, HWV 1, Act III Scene 14: Der kann in Blitz 01:38
• 113 Almira, HWV 1, Act III Scene 14: Was bringt Tabarco mir vor Trost? 00:31
• 114 Almira, HWV 1, Act III Scene 15: Verhängniss 06:50
• 115 Almira, HWV 1, Act III Scene 15: Spielet, ihr blitzenden Augen 02:11
• 116 Almira, HWV 1, Act III Scene 16: Ich brenne zwar 01:38
• 117 Almira, HWV 1, Act III Scene 16: Glaub, Schöne 00:34
• 118 Almira, HWV 1, Act III Scene 16: Mein Betrüben muss verschwinden 01:45
• 119 Almira, HWV 1, Act III Scene 17: Fernando hat sich zwar erklärt 03:01
• 120 Almira, HWV 1, Act III Scene 17: Hoffe, hoffe 01:57
• 121 Almira, HWV 1, Act III Scene 18: Durchlauchtigste, des Himmels hohe Gunst 02:03
• 122 Almira, HWV 1, Act III Scene 18: Wir hoffen 00:52
• Total Runtime 04:00:50

Info for Handel: Almira, HWV 1

In einer überaus üppigen Besetzung hat das Boston Early Music Festval Georg Friedrich Händels allererste Opernkomposition „Almira, Königin von Castilien“ aufgenommen. Für frühere barocke Opern-Einspielungen erhielt das erfolgreiche Ensemble bereits etliche Preise wie den GRAMMY, den Jahrespreis der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik sowie mehrere ECHO Klassik. Die ungarische Sopranistin Emöke Baráth singt die Rolle der Almira inmitten einer auserlesenen Besetzung von Sängern, die alle bereits in den weltweit namhaftesten Konzert- und Opernhäusern auftraten. Händels „Almira“ liegt eine frei erfundene Handlung zugrunde, die mit den unterhaltsamen Zutaten - Liebe und Heiratspolitik der Adligen, Treulosigkeit und Verwechslungen, dann aber glückliches Ende dank des vermittelnden Hofdieners - aufwartet. Das Werk wurde 1705 am Hamburger Opernhaus mit großem Erfolg etwa zwanzigmal gespielt. Zu dieser Zeit leitete Reinhard Keiser die Hamburger Oper und es ist ihm hoch anzurechnen, daß er dem jungen Händel, der zu dieser Zeit als zweiter Tuttigeiger im Orchestergraben sein Geld verdiente, die Chance gab, unter seiner Direktion eine Oper zu komponieren und aufzuführen. Händels Almira ist als Werk nicht ohne die besonderen Umstände der Hamburger Oper denkbar: Verschiedene Stile, ja verschiedene Sprachen wurden gemischt, es gibt deutsche wie italienische Arien, vokale Tanzsätze und Dacapostücke, sowie größere instrumentale Balletteinlagen. Ein buntes Gemisch in der Tat, das so typische Händelsche Melos allerdings ist schon überall vorhanden und schafft eine faszinierende Einheit – jetzt zu hören mit einem hochkarätigen Ensemble!

Emöke Barath, Sopran
Amanda Forsythe, Sopran
Colin Balzer, Tenor
Christian Immler, Bariton
Jan Kobow, Tenor
Robert Mealy, Countertenor
Boston Early Music Festival Orchestra
Paul O'Dette, Leitung
Stephen Stubbs, Leitung

Paul O’Dette
has been described as “the clearest case of genius ever to touch his instrument” (Toronto Globe and Mail). He appears regularly at major festivals throughout the world performing lute recitals and in chamber music programs with leading early music colleagues. Mr. O’Dette has made more than 140 recordings, winning two Grammy Awards and receiving seven Grammy nominations and numerous international record awards. The Complete Lute Music of John Dowland (a 5-CD set for harmonia mundi usa) was awarded the prestigious Diapason d’Or de l’Année, and was named “Best Solo Lute Recording of Dowland” by BBC Radio 3. The Bachelar’s Delight: Lute Music of Daniel Bacheler was nominated for a Grammy as Best Solo Instrumental Recording in 2006.

While best known for his recitals and recordings of virtuoso solo lute music, Paul O’Dette is also active as a conductor of Baroque opera. Together with Stephen Stubbs he won a Grammy as conductor in 2015 for Best Opera Recording, as well as an Echo Klassik Award, for their recording of Charpentier’s La Descente d’Orphée aux Enfers with the Boston Early Music Festival Chamber Ensemble. Their CDs of Conradi’s Ariadne, Lully’s Thésée, Lully’s Psyché, with the Boston Early Music Festival Orchestra on the CPO label, were nominated for Grammys in 2005, 2007, and 2008; their 2015 BEMF CD of Steffani’s Niobe, Regina di Tebe on the Erato/Warner Classics label was also nominated for a Grammy, and received the coveted Jahrespreis der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik. In addition to his activities as a performer, Paul O’Dette is an avid researcher, having worked extensively on the performance of seventeenth-century Italian and English solo song, continuo practices, and lute repertoire. He has published numerous articles on issues of historical performance practice, and co-authored the John Dowland entry in the New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians. Paul O’Dette is Professor of Lute and Director of Early Music at the Eastman School of Music and Artistic Co-Director of the Boston Early Music Festival.

Stephen Stubbs
who won the Grammy Award as conductor for Best Opera Recording in 2015, spent a thirty-year career in Europe. He returned to his native Seattle in 2006 as one of the world’s most respected lutenists, conductors, and Baroque opera specialists. In 2007 Stephen established his new production company, Pacific MusicWorks (PMW), based in Seattle, reflecting his lifelong interest in both early music and contemporary performance. The company’s inaugural presentation was a production of South African artist William Kentridge’s acclaimed multimedia staging of Claudio Monteverdi’s opera The Return of Ulysses in a co-production with the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. PMW’s performances of the Monteverdi Vespers were described in the press as “utterly thrilling” and “of a quality you are unlikely to encounter anywhere else in the world.”

Stephen Stubbs is also the Boston Early Music Festival’s Artistic Co-Director along with his long-time colleague Paul O’Dette. Stephen and Paul are also the musical directors of all BEMF operas, recordings of which were nominated for five Grammy awards, including one Grammy win in 2015. Also in 2015, BEMF recordings won two Echo Klassik awards and the Diapason d’Or de l’Année. In addition to his ongoing commitments to PMW and BEMF, other recent appearances have included Handel’s Amadigi for Opera UCLA, Mozart’s Magic Flute and Così fan tutte in Hawaii, Handel’s Agrippina and Semele for Opera Omaha, Cavalli’s Calisto and Rameau’s Hippolyte et Aricie for Juilliard, and Mozart’s Il re pastore for the Merola program in San Francisco. He has conducted Handel’s Messiah with the Seattle, Edmonton, Birmingham, and Houston Symphony orchestras. His extensive discography as conductor and solo lutenist includes well over 100 CDs, many of which have received international acclaim and awards. From 2013 to 2018, Stephen Stubbs held the position of Senior Artist in Residence at the University of Washington School of Music.

Robert Mealy
is one of America’s most prominent Baroque violinists. He is concertmaster and Orchestra Director for the Boston Early Music Festival, where he has led this distinguished ensemble in festival productions, international tours, and recordings of a wide variety of repertoire for over a decade. While still an undergraduate at Harvard College, he was asked to join Tafelmusik. Since then, he has recorded over 80 CDs of early music on most major labels. He has appeared at international festivals from Berkeley to Bergen, and from Melbourne to Moscow. A devoted chamber musician, he co-directs Quicksilver, whose recordings and festival appearances across America have received much critical acclaim. He has led Baroque ensembles for the Mark Morris Dance Company, and accompanied Renée Fleming on the David Letterman Show.

As principal concertmaster for the Grammy-nominated orchestra of Trinity Wall Street, he has performed all of Bach’s sacred works and is now embarked on a similar traversal of Handel’s oratorios. He recently completed a survey of Bach’s sonatas for violin and harpsichord at the Smithsonian, and is recording the entire cycle on the museum’s Stainer violin. In January 2018 he made his Carnegie recital début as a soloist. A keen scholar as well as a performer, Mr. Mealy is Director of the distinguished Historical Performance Program at The Juilliard School. He has led his Juilliard students in frequent performances at Alice Tully Hall as well as on international tours, including performances as conservatory-in-residence at the Utrecht Festival, regular appearances at Les Jardins de William Christie in Thiré, and on an extended tour to India. From 2009 to 2015, he was a professor at Yale, holding a joint appointment at both the graduate School of Music and Yale College. Prior to that, he taught at Harvard for over a decade, where he founded the Harvard Baroque Chamber Orchestra. In 2004, he received Early Music America’s Binkley Award for outstanding teaching and scholarship. He still likes to practice.

Booklet for Handel: Almira, HWV 1