Editorial Reviews
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In his ground-breaking 1905 biography of Alessandro Scarlatti, Edward Dent pronounced the oratorio Sedecia, re di Gerusalemme a tedious work, and was quite at a loss to explain its contemporary popularity. Dent's damning judgement has dogged the piece ever since, and despite a flurry of interest in the 1960s it has taken until now for it to be revived in its entirety. Il Seminario Musicale first tested the water with performances at the Ambronay and Royaumont Festivals in the summer of 1999: encouraged by the results, they lost no time in taking Sedecia into the studio. This première recording proves Dent's judgement seriously flawed, though if he'd heard it he would surely have come to very different conclusions. Sedecia may not be quite the masterpiece the booklet note writer (and editor of the score) claims, but it is a dramatically compelling work, at least the equal of the magnificent Il primo omicidio, so successfully revived by Rene Jacobs and Harmonia Mundi in 1998. As a genre, Scarlatti's oratorios fared rather poorly in the early-music revival of the last century. Although we can confidently attribute around 30 works to him – making him the most significant composer between Carissimi and Handel – only five scores have so far been published. This new recording is clearly an important event and it is satisfying to be able to recommend it unreservedly. Unlike Handel's English oratorios, Sedecia was written for performance in a religious setting, probably at the Oratorio dei Filippini in Rome around 1706. It's a good 45 minutes shorter than Il primo omicidio (1707), but no less substantial as a drama. Limiting himself to just five main characters, the librettist tells the tragic tale of Zedekiah, the last King of Jerusalem, who set his face against God's will and therefore suffered the death of his sons and his own blindness at the hands of the Babylonian King Nebuchadnezzar. Divided into two halves, the first is full of bravura and battle (the War of the Spanish Succession briefly threatened Rome at this time); the second part is more thoughtful, moving inexorably towards its heart-rending conclusion. With a plot which is more political than religious, and some exceptionally vivid characters, Sedecia feels much more like opera than oratorio, an impression reflected by the scorching, larger-than-life performances of the soloists. Gerard Lesne excels as Sedecia, making so much of his swaggering opening aria that you feel it belongs in one of those 'favourite Baroque aria' collections. His son, Ismaele, is skilfully sung by the sensational treble ('sopraniste') Philippe Jaroussky, and Peter Harvey is rich and powerful as the King of Babylon. Scarlatti's inspiration was running high when he penned this score: I was particularly struck by the gorgeous, ever-so-subtle accompaniments reflecting the emerging Roman concerto grosso. Full texts and translations, enthusiastic booklet notes and a pleasingly close and detailed recording complete the picture. Captivating. Simon Heighes
A. Scarlatti - Sedecia, rè di Gerusalemme / Lesne · Jaroussky · Pochon · Padmore · Harvey · Il Seminario musicale · Lesne, Music, Alessandro Scarlatti, Gérard Lesne, Virginie Pochon, Il Seminario musicale, Philippe Jaroussky, Mark Padmore, Peter Harvey, Patrick Cohen-Akenin, Blandine Rannou, Richard Myron Bruno Cocset, Pascal Monteilhet, Fabrizio Cipriani, Choral, Classical, Classical Composers, Classical Music, Opera / Operetta / Oratorio, Oratorio
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