COMPOSERS: Purcell
LABELS: Linn
WORKS: The Indian Queen
PERFORMER: Tessa Bonner, Catherine Bott (soprano), Rogers Covey-Crump (tenor), Peter Harvey (bass); Purcell Simfony & Voices/Catherine Mackintosh
CATALOGUE NO: CKD 035 DDD
The Indian Queen was the last of Purcell’s ‘semi-operas’. The music is consistently attractive, with Act 3’s summoning of the God of Dreams and the lovely ‘I attempt from love’s sickness’ among its arresting moments. The one-to-a-part Purcell Simfony and their ‘pocket chorus’ offer stylish performances that match finesse with dramatic immediacy. But the documentation is woeful – no libretto, no synopsis: unless you research the plot beforehand, you’ll be lost. Graham Lock
Purcell: The Indian Queen
The Indian Queen was the last of Purcell’s ‘semi-operas’. The music is consistently attractive, with Act 3’s summoning of the God of Dreams and the lovely ‘I attempt from love’s sickness’ among its arresting moments. The one-to-a-part Purcell Simfony and their ‘pocket chorus’ offer stylish performances that match finesse with dramatic immediacy. But the documentation is woeful – no libretto, no synopsis: unless you research the plot beforehand, you’ll be lost. Graham Lock
Published: January 20, 2012 at 3:12 pm