Handel's Italian-language cantatas form a little-known subdivision of his work, and this disc from the Albany label does a wonderful job introducing them. These three cantatas for soprano and continuo are early works. They may have been written for a gathering of connoisseur noblemen in Rome around whom Handel felt he could take some chances -- rather than the pastoral themes they favored, sort of the situation comedies of their day, he wrote blazing little tragic scenes that shift between recitative and aria in a way that among Handel's contemporaries only Bach could have matched. They give a soprano something to dig into, and for the most part
Melissa Fogarty has a dramatic sense that really draws the listener in. The liner notes are admirably clear in laying out what this music was about; the accompanimental players, using period instruments, are superb; and the two trio sonatas that separate the three cantatas are ideal little breaks in the dark mood. The only thing wrong with this recording is that
Fogarty is less satisfying to listen to in Handel's punishing passagework, of which there is plenty, than she is in slower music. On the whole, though, it's a good introduction to an unusual non-public side of Handel's musical personality.