AT THE OPERA
Favourites, Part 11
Prepared and presented by Camille Mercep

Rossini, G. The Italian girl in Algiers. Opera in two acts. Libretto by Angelo Anelli. First performed Venice, 1813.   

Rossini, G. The Italian girl in Algiers, Act I   
[01:11:30]

Rossini, G. The Italian girl in Algiers, Act II   
[01:09:21]

   ELVIRA: Kathleen Battle, sop
MUSTAFÀ: Samuel Ramey, bass
LINDORO: Ernesto Palacio, ten
HALY: Nicola Zaccaria, bass
ISABELLA: Marilyn Horne, mezz
TADDEO: Domenico Trimarchi, bar
Prague Philharmonic Choir; I Solisti Veneti/Claudio Scimone.Total Time: 2:20:51
Erato 2564 68335-9

   Elvira mourns the loss of the love of her husband, Mustafa. Mustafa, the ruler of Algeria, plans to marry her to Lindoro, his Italian slave. He orders his henchman, Haly, to find him an Italian wife. An Italian ship is ship-wrecked on the coast and, on board, is Lindoro’s fiancée, Isabella, who has come to look for him. She and her travelling companion, Taddeo, are found by Haly and brought to Mustafa, who is delighted to have an Italian beauty to marry. Isabella immediately recognises Lindoro and upsets Mustafa’s plans by insisting that Lindoro should become her personal servant. Left alone, they plan to escape but are foiled when Mustafa arrives. Lindoro tells Mustafa that the reason that Isabella is delaying marrying him is because he does not belong to the noble order of the Papataci, but that he and Taddeo can initiate him. During the preparations for the ceremony, the guards are given too much to drink and the lovers escape. On realising that he has been tricked, Mustafa begs Elvira’s forgiveness. No more Italian girls for him!

Rossini, G. Gran Dio! Deh, tu proteggi il mio prode campion ... Giusto Dio che umile adora, from Tancredi (1813).    Aleksandra Kurzak, sop; Warsaw Chamber Choir; Sinfonia Varsovia/Pier Giorgio Morandi.
Decca 478 3553 [08:23]

Rossini, G. Notturno à due voci: La regata veneziana; La pesca, from Soirées musicales (1830-35).    Renata Scotto, sop; Bianca Casoni, cont; Giuseppe Nait, ten; Teodoro Rovetta, bass; Antonio Beltrami, pf.
LP EMI 1C 065 99868 [08:32]

Rossini, G. La danza. Tarantella napoletana Gia la luna è in mezzo al mare, from Les soirées musicales (1830-35; arr. Sadin).    Rolando Villazón, ten; Maggio Musicale Fiorentino O/Marco Armiliato.
DG 479 4959 [03:13]

23:00 MUSIC OF THE NIGHT
To northern Africa
Prepared and presented by Dan Bickel

Ibert, J. Escales (1922).    Christopher Bowman, ob; Suisse Romande O/Neeme Järvi.
Chandos CHSA 5168 [15:03]

Prokofiev, S. Suite from Egyptian nights, op 61 (1938).    Leningrad Philharmonic SO/Gennady Rozhdestvensky.
LP Melodiya C10-10453-4 [20:03]

Saint-Saëns, C. Suite algérienne, op 60 (1880).    Swiss-Italian O/Francis Travis.
Chandos CHAN 9837 [19:46]