Rossane: Julia Lezhneva (soprano)
We are delighted to award first prize to Parnassus Arts Productions, Decca and all of the artists for their vibrant recording of Handel's Alessandro. First performed on 5 May 1726, this opera initiated the Royal Academy of Music's new artistic policy of producing operas designed for a prestigious triumvirate of Italian singers: the castrato Senesino (Alexander the Great), established star soprano Cuzzoni (Lisaura) and the new recruit Faustina (Rossane). Handel's score is packed full of outstanding music, and it gave rise to the famous epithet 'The Rival Queens' for its two leading sopranos, but the opera has been seldom performed or recorded. An old 1985 recording by Sigiswald Kuijken retains commendable aspects, but George Petrou's new performance trumps other versions by fielding three outstanding principals (Max Emanuel Cencic, Julia Lezhneva and Karina Gauvin), and an unusually consistent supporting cast of singers. The assertive band Armonia Atenea plays with fizzy panache. The panel of judges recognises the valuable contribution Petrou has made to the Handel opera discography in recent years, and hopes that the critical and artistic success of Alessandro encourages Parnassus Arts Productions to continue performing and recording complete baroque operas by Handel and his Italian contemporaries.
The Stanley Sadie Handel Recording Prize
