Henry Purcell's short opera Dido and Aeneas, concise and seemingly perfect in its proportions, has the kind of simplicity that stirs disagreement over interpretation. This release by Britain's period-instrument Armonico Consort goes toward one extreme, but its sheer high spirits are likely to find favor with everyone except for those who like a very sober approach to the opera. Some might think of director Christopher Monks as a kind of British counterpart to the Italian musicians who have been bringing crackling high ...
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Henry Purcell's short opera Dido and Aeneas, concise and seemingly perfect in its proportions, has the kind of simplicity that stirs disagreement over interpretation. This release by Britain's period-instrument Armonico Consort goes toward one extreme, but its sheer high spirits are likely to find favor with everyone except for those who like a very sober approach to the opera. Some might think of director Christopher Monks as a kind of British counterpart to the Italian musicians who have been bringing crackling high energy to Baroque opera and instrumental music. Here is a performance that emphasizes not only the tragedy, but also the low comedy in Purcell's score, and if the antics of the witches' trio are a bit broad, listeners can be assured they won't be bored. Ultimately Dido and Aeneas stands or falls on its Dido, and here the news is very good: mezzo-soprano Rachael Lloyd brings a profoundly human quality to the role. There have, to be sure, been bigger voices in the part, but given the modest...
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