Villazón & Handel - Dopo Notte, from Ariodante

Rolando Villazón sings Handel. You be the judge...

Category:

Music

Tags:

• Villazon
• Dopo
• Notte

[chanteurion]

That was a whole hell of a lot better than I thought it was going to be. Sr. Villazon's voice is much more flexible than I anticipated. I do think however, it's better suited to verissimo arias/roles. But hey, what are concerts and recitals for. IAN BOSTRIDGE on the other hand is amazing singing this piece (or anything Handel for that matter). Ian's "Great Handel" Album is a revelation.

[gslanfranchi]

@chanteurion Thank you for the input. I'll definitely check on this Bostridge's album.

[GiovanniCarestini]

Those who suppose that this should not be sung by a tenor are obviously poor scholars of Handel. The composer himself inserted this aria, in the original key (just as Villazon sings it), into the December 1736 revival of Poro, where it was sung by the tenor John Beard in the role of Alessandro, replacing the aria "Serbati, a in grandi imprese", which was the original number sung by Annibale Pio Fabri, the tenor in the same role in February 1731.

[gslanfranchi]

@GiovanniCarestini

Thank you, this was an useful input into the 'tenor singing Handel'... thing.

[littlechildren01]

i must confess that i was ready to completely hate this,,, but damm, it is actually pretty good!

it ´s nice to be surprised like this once in a while!

[gslanfranchi]

@littlechildren01

I must confess I had the same feelings at the time I first saw it. That's why I decided to upload the video.

[PrimaRagazza]

I actually love this! Even I can hear it's not technically perfect but the *way* he sings it and puts it across is so infectious and by far the most *convincing* rendition I have yet heard. Esp the "ah ah ah" bits, he actually does perfectly IMO - some people unfortunately manage to make them sound a bit er. too joyous - how can I put it? :)

[jaketaz]

I'm not an authority. Here's my two cents anyway:

1. RAPID ONSETS are not the same thing as COLORATURA

2. This aria hides his bad intonation because it's so fast you don't notice. Can't always hide it though - like his first high note at 1:15.

3. At 3:25 - wrong rhythms are not the same thing as either "expression" nor "ornamentation"

4. I don't like this "Spanish Italian" language he has invented here

5. WHAT THE HELL IS HAPPENING from 5:10-5:30

No offense to his fans.

[BaroqueJazzPlays]

OK – seen it a few times now, maybe ‘terrible’ was a tad harsh, I think it was the shock of a tenor (not on my top list of tenors) doing an aria for mezzo... still feels like watching a car crash...

[BaroqueJazzPlays]

Oh dear, from all the 'positive' comments below I feel like I’m the only one who thinks this is terrible... I must be missing something :>0

[skingaz]

I loved this and REALLY don't get people's objection to it. You have an amazing singer, singing amazing music....amazingly! What's not to like? I really do think that all this fixation with "historically-informed" performance (as quoted elsewhere) sucks the JOY out of the music....and that CANNOT be good.

[IA2329]

Very very good but I like Bostridge as well. Impressive ornamentation

[skingaz]

Well, I've compared Bostridge and Villazon on this and I actually prefer Villazon's harder, brighter tone. I know I'll be in a minority with that though.

[vivacecilia]

Baroque is an another thing!!

[mkurnat]

freakin' sweet jacket

[patukott]

Good diction !