Franco Fagioli / Il Pomo D'Oro / Zefira Valova VENI VIDI VINCI

                                                                VENI VIDI VINCI

Joyce DiDonato / Maxim Emelyanychev / Il Pomo D'Oro AGRIPPINA

                                                                      AGRIPPINA

Franco Fagioli / Il Pomo D'Oro / Maxim Emelyanychev HANDEL Serse

Franco Fagioli has all the intensity and credibility to make him the perfect guide for listeners exploring the musical world of the eighteenth century. As the drama of Serse unfolds, they will discover an opera brimming with both moving and funny moments, and one which reveals the modernity of Handel, who here travels far beyond the conventional musical confines of eighteenth-century opera seria. In this new recording for the Yellow Label, Fagioli and the rest of the cast – Francesca Aspromonte, Inga Kalna, Vivica Genaux, Marianna Pizzolato, Biagio Pizzuti and Andreas Wolf – are accompanied by the renowned period ensemble Il Pomo d’Oro and conductor Maxim Emelyanychev, who give the singers every opportunity to display their vocal talents to the full.

The artists’ delight in historically informed performance practice shines like a beacon from start to finish. In the course of the three-hour production Fagioli brings all the many and varied aspects of the intriguing character of Serse (Xerxes) musically to life. Listeners will share his pain and feel for him as he falls for Romilda, his emotions alternating between loneliness, anger and love. The aria “Ombra mai fu”, with which the king serenades a much-loved plane tree in the opening scene with, is now one of the best-known pieces ever written by Handel. “I did my best to imagine exactly what Serse might have been feeling as he sat beneath the tree, and then tried to bring those feelings into my performance of the aria,” explains Fagioli. The role is one of two that Handel wrote for the celebrated Italian castrato Caffarelli (the other being the title role in Faramondo), an artist whose repertoire the Argentinian countertenor has explored to great acclaim both on stage and in the studio: as well as starring as Farnaspe in the Decca recording of Pergolesi’s Adriano in Siria, he has also released the solo recital album Arias for Caffarelli.

This new recording from Franco Fagioli and Il Pomo d’Oro is a wholehearted celebration of Serse’s many musical delights. Their performance, full of emotional complexity and expressive beauty, is a wonderful gift to the music world.

VALENTIN HADJADJ Girl

Passionate about film and film music, I decided to integrate the music class of the National Conservatory of Music in Lyon to train me. During this course, I honed my feeling about image, developed a personal musical language and worked with different animation schools like « ESIA 3D » or « La Poudrière ».

I also was awarded of the « Third Character », of the « Meridian Workshop » and « Master Class of composition » in Aubagne, but also in the artistic residency DUO, organized by « La Maison du Film Court ».

During my career, I worked on several kind of movies, with different directors by addressing a wide variety of formats : shorts films – with directors like Lukas Dhont, Ann-Julie Vervaeke, Thomas Scohy-, animated films, commercial advertisements, corporate movies and documentary films. Always open to other artistic dimensions, I dove recently into the world of Artificial Landscapes, pluridisciplinary movie putting together dance, architecture, music and video, directed by Jeremy Tran and selected among others festivals to the « Biennale de la Danse » in Lyon. I have also been led to compose several film concerts for orders, for full orchestra or smaller ensembles such as the Debussy Quartet.

In 2012, I had the pleasure of receiving the « Award for Best Young European Composer » at the World Soundtrack Awards of the FilmFestival in Ghent (Belgium), a distinction that gave me opportunity to work on many international projects : Gérard Corbiau (The King is Dancing, Farinelli) entrusted me the music of his last project, and I co-compose currently with Thomas Lauderdale -Pink Martini‘s leader- the music of the second feature film of Bavo Defurne.

In 2015, I composed the music for the animated film « April and the Extraordinary World » directed by Franck Ekinci and Christian Desmares with among others the voice of Marion Cotillard, Jean Rochefort, Olivier Gourmet and Marc-André Grondin. The film received in June the Cristal for Best Feature Film of the Annecy Film Festival. (Valentin Hadjadj)

Julia Lezhneva / Franco Fagioli / Diego Fasolis VIVALDI Gloria

Julia Lezhneva, Franco Fagioli and Diego Fasolis: three stars of the Baroque unite to record Vivaldi’s most popular choral work. Julia Lezhneva – “a serene, sleek voice, beatific in timbre, with a bell-like resonance” (Financial Times) – adds the glorious solo motet Nulla in Mundo Pax Sincera. Franco Fagioli – “one of today's great vocal technicians” (The Guardian) – records the Nisi Dominus with its haunting ‘Cum Dederit’. Diego Fasolis and I Barocchisti are today’s Vivaldi interpreters par excellence.

Franco Fagioli HANDEL Arias

Countertenor Franco Fagioli’s latest album, Handel Arias, is set to be released January 12 via Deutsche Grammophon. Recorded with specialist period-instrument ensemble Il Pomo D’Oro, the album features Fagioli’s personal selection of twelve arias from Handel’s rich and colourful operatic world including excerpts from Serse, Rinaldo and Ariodante.

“When I was recording,” Fagioli says, “it was as if I was taking snapshots of moments I wanted to capture for ever. In choosing the arias, my only criterion was this: which pieces move me the most when I sing them?” The result is a very personal selection revealing Fagioli’s deep veneration for this great Baroque composer. “Handel’s operas are a must for any countertenor,” he observes. “His inimitable style captivated both singers and audiences. You could say he was the Broadway star of the Baroque.”

Alongside highlights such as “Ombra mai fu” from Serse or the bravura aria “Venti turbini” from Rinaldo, Fagioli has also chosen miniature gems such as the radiant, ethereal “Ch’io parta?” from Partenope, or “Dopo notte” from Ariodante. Regardless of the popularity of the arias, he has arrived at his own individual interpretations with the awareness of his strengths. Fagioli was determined that the recordings should convey the emotional development of the various roles even without the context of the complete opera, and he succeeds so well in this that we hear even the most famous arias with fresh ears.

Franco Fagioli has found the perfect partners for his foray into Handel’s sound worlds in the musicians of Italian Baroque ensemble Il pomo d’oro. Since it was formed in 2012, the orchestra has been exploring the subtleties of historical performance practice and in their recordings with Fagioli its players let all the nuances of the scores shine through, showing the extraordinary, weightless beauty of his voice, with its three-octave range, to full advantage from start to finish.

The Argentinian countertenor is a dynamic performer as his vocal virtuosity brings the characters he plays to life while he harnesses his tremendous ability to express emotion. He is in his element in Handel’s colourful Baroque operas and is able to deploy his monumental talent to the utmost.

Franco Fagioli / Armonia Atenea / George Petrou ROSSINI

Berlin, 2 July 2015. Franco Fagioli, acclaimed worldwide for his captivating artistry and beguiling vocal agility, has become the first countertenor ever to sign an exclusive recording deal with Deutsche Grammophon. The singer’s new relationship with the Yellow Label, announced in Berlin yesterday, reflects his status as one of the brightest stars of Baroque and early 19^th-century bel canto opera. Recent reviews of the Argentinean-born artist’s work confirm his place among the finest performers of our time: Forum Opera, for example, has praised Fagioli as “today’s greatest countertenor: subtle, sensitive and virtuosic”. His extensive and constantly evolving repertoire includes everything from works by Monteverdi and Frescobaldi to Mozart and Rossini.

Earlier this year Franco Fagioli teamed up with a fine cast, including sopranos Malin Hartelius and Emmanuelle de Negri, to make a live recording of the original version of Gluck’s revolutionary opera Orfeo ed Euridice, first performed in Vienna in 1762. They were joined by the period-instrument orchestra Insula and chamber choir Accentus under Laurence Equilbey’s direction. Orfeo ed Euridice, set for international release on 11 September, marks Fagioli’s first complete recording of an operatic title-role and the first appearance of the original Vienna version of Gluck’s masterwork on Deutsche Grammophon’s Archiv Produktion.

Famed for his three-octave range, technical command and charismatic stage presence, Franco Fagioli studied singing at the Superior Art Institute of the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires. He made his career breakthrough in 2003 as winner of the “Neue Stimmen” International Singing Competition and has since achieved distinction as a concert artist and on the opera stage, appearing with conductors of the calibre of Rinaldo Alessandrini, Gabriel Garrido, Nikolaus Harnoncourt, Marc Minkowski and Riccardo Muti. Fagioli made his debut at the Salzburg Whitsun Festival in 2007, with Muti, who immediately invited him to perform again the following year. He made his first appearance at the Summer Festival in 2012, as Andronico in Tamerlano, under Minkowski. In 2014, he made his debut at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, as Idamante in Mozart’s Idomeneo. 

“It is a great honour to work with Deutsche Grammophon,” comments Franco Fagioli. “I am delighted with Orfeo ed Euridice and look forward to many other projects in the future.”

Ute Fesquet, Vice President Artist and Repertoire of Deutsche Grammophon, welcomed Fagioli to the Yellow Label. “Franco Fagioli’s extraordinary voice can dazzle, delight and move listeners to tears. He takes a special place in our family of artists not only as DG’s first ever countertenor but also as a performer of the highest calibre.” (Deutsche Grammophon)

La Cetra / Marcon CALDARA La concordia de' pianeti

This release marks the world-premiere recording and rediscovery of Antonio Caldara’s La Concordia de’ pianeti, a musical serenade of operatic magnitude composed for the court of Austrian Emperor Karl VI, featuring the creme de la creme of the day’s singers, including the legendary castrato Carestini (Franco Fagioli’s part).
Unearthed and edited by Andrea Marcon, the piece offers a series of virtuosic arias, breath-taking cantilenas and ethereal duets performed by some of the finest singers of today.
Franco Fagioli and Daniel Behle, two of today’s hottest vocalists, lead a distinctive cast of early music “shining stars”, including soprano Veronica Cangemi in a welcome return to Deutsche Grammophon / Archiv. The dynamic La Cetra Barockorchester, one of the most coveted period ensembles active today, lends an idiomatic touch to the program.
This is a major new release under the Archiv imprint featuring a world-class cast of singers. The opera is new to the repertoire and the catalogue altogether and has been recorded both in studio conditions and live performances in Dortmund. (ArkivMusic)

Franco Fagioli / Alessandro De Marchi / Academia Montis Regalis PORPORA Arias

Porpora (1686 - 1768) wrote operas from 1708 up until 1747 and was revising them until at least 1760 but it is with his works in the 1720's such as Meride e Selinunte (1726) that he came to prominence as part of the new Neapolitan style. The selection here includes Ezio, Semiramide riconosciuta, Didone abbandonata, Meride e Selinunte from the 1720's, Polifemo from 1735 and Carlo il Calvo from the same decade. Il verbo in carne is in fact an oratorios written for Christmas 1748 for Dresden.
Porpora taught two of the finest singers of his age, Farinelli and Cafarelli. Fagioli has explored arias by Porpora and others written for Cafarelli on his previous disc. Here, he includes two arias written for Farinelli from Polifemo which was written for London as a rival to Handel. As might be expected from a distinguished teacher, Porpora knows how to write for the voice and to show it off to its best advantage. The arias here often have a largeness of scale and can last up to eight minutes (with the aria from the cantata Vulcano lasting nearly 10). But that does not imply simplicity of scale, within these structures Porpora includes an astonishing number of notes and Fagioli copes superbly. The arias are all in the mezzo-soprano range and need Fagioli's style of high counter-tenor singing. But they also need his incredible facility with singing complex passage-work at high speed.
The results are breathtaking. Fagioli makes a very particular sound. He has a vibrato warmed voice with a soft-grained timbre, but he can move it with alarming dexterity. The more bravura items such as the opening Set tu la reggi al volo from Ezio or Gia si desta la tempesa from Didone abbandonata are done in a supremely bravura manner with style and expressivity. Listen and marvel. Often Porpora throws in trumpets and drums, and the orchestra contributes to the overall dazzling virtuoso sound.
In the slower items, Fagioli brings a shapely poise to the music. When writing the gentler pieces Porpora's style veers towards the galant, rendered stylishly by Fagioli, De Marchi and his ensemble. But the slower pieces are never simple, Porpora still includes a remarkable number of notes, and the vocal lines are often quite wandering.
Throughout Fagioli is accompanied with bravura and style by De Marchi and the Academia Montis Regalis who acquit themselves with no less virtuosity.
The CD booklet includes an article giving background to Porpora's career, with full texts and translations, but you will struggle to discover when and where each aria was first performed and by whom.
With a recital disc like this, you are never quite certain how representative of the composer's style these arias are. There are no simple pieces here, the sort of arias like Handel's Verdi prati which puzzled his Italian singers and required fits of temper from the composer to persuade them to sing. But the disc does give the lie to the idea of Porpora writing generic arias which are suitable for anything. There is some profoundly expressive music here, in stunning performances, and I now look forward to a complete opera by Porpora. In the mean time, we have this disc from Fagioli. Listen and marvel! (Robert Hugill)

Franco Fagioli ARIAS FOR CAFFARELLI

Franco Fagioli is one of the leading countertenors of the new generation. His performances as Handel heroes have been unanimously acclaimed. Born in San Miguel de Tucumán (Argentina) in 1981, he studied the piano in his home town, then singing at the Instituto Superiore de Arte of the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires. In 1997 he founded the choir of San Martín de Porres for the adolescents of his region. He then began to specialise in the countertenor register.

In 2003 Franco Fagioli won the prestigious Bertelsmann singing competition Neue Stimmen in Germany, which marked the start of his international career. Since then, he has appeared at the Teatro Colón, the Karlsruhe, Bonn, Essen, and Zurich operas, the Teatro Carlo Felice in Genoa, and the Théâtre des Champs-Élysées, among others. He has enjoyed immense success with his interpretation of the title role of Giulio Cesare in Zurich, Helsinki, Oslo, and Karlsruhe. In 2011 he was awarded the Premio Abbiati in Italy and the Italian magazine L’Opera named him best countertenor of the year for his performance as Bertarido in Rodelinda.

Notable appearances in the past few seasons have included Handel’s Teseo (Staatsoper Stuttgart), Ariodante (Karlsruhe Handel Festival), and Bertarido (Martina Franca), Telemaco/Il ritorno d’Ulisse in patria (the work’s Argentinian premiere), Gluck’s Orfeo (Teatro Colón), Cavalli’s Giasone with Chicago Opera Theater, and the world premiere of Osvaldo Golijov’s Ainadamar at the Teatro Argentino de La Plata. During the 2010/11 season, he sang Nerone/L’incoronazione di Poppea in Cologne and Dresden and Arsace/Aureliano in Palmira at the Festival della Valle d’Itria. His engagements in 2011/12 included revivals of L’incoronazione di Poppea, a new production of Giulio Cesare in Helsinki, Poro in Halle and Basel, and Arbace/Artaserse (Hasse) at Martina Franca.

In November 2009, his first solo recital in Europe, at the Staatsoper Stuttgart, ended with a standing ovation. He has also appeared with Cecilia Bartoli in London and Brussels as the special guest of the prima donna. Franco Fagioli works regularly with such conductors as Rinaldo Alessandrini, Alan Curtis, Diego Fasolis, Gabriel Garrido, Nikolaus Harnoncourt, Michael Hofstetter, René Jacobs, Konrad Junghänel, Jose Manuel Quintana, Marc Minkowski, Riccardo Muti, and Christophe Rousset.

His discography includes Gluck’s Ezio, Handel’s Teseo and Berenice, the solo album Canzone e cantate, and Vinci’s Artaserse with Philippe Jaroussky, Max Emanuel Cencic, Daniel Behle, and Concerto Köln.