The singer, accompanied by Ensemble Artaserse, wows sold-out crowd at St. James by-the-Sea Church in La Jolla with performances of Baroque opera and instrumental music that were nothing short of miraculous
San Diego Early Music Society began its 40th season with an astonishing concert Sunday night. French countertenor Philippe Jaroussky, accompanied by Ensemble Artaserse, thrilled a sold-out crowd at St. James by-the-Sea Church in La Jolla with performances of Baroque opera and instrumental music that were nothing short of miraculous.
The concert was wisely divided in two, with the first half occupied by composers known mostly by opera cognoscenti, though the quality of the selections and their performances made an argument for their future familiarity.An instrumental sinfonia by Giovanni Ferrandini, for example — diminutive in size but rich in brilliant string writing — was a perfect introduction to Ensemble Artaserse’s ability to dart and move, changing direction, articulation and tempo on a dime and in perfect unison.
It was Jaroussky’s singing, however, that the audience came for. While his vocal pyrotechnics have made him justifiably famous, to these he has added an interpretational scope and the ability to control dramatic and emotional intensity and pacing. His reading of a recitative and two arias by Hasse elided with the ending of the opening sinfonia, launching a striking emotional arc that lasted the entire concert.
The second half featured more familiar names. Though Handel was born in Germany, he traveled to and studied in Italy, and finally, met with such success and admiration in England that he anglicized his name, took up residence, and was finally buried in Westminster Abbey. International in a way Bach was not, Handel was to master and enlarge operatic forms, creating some of the Baroque’s most beloved arias.