Rather than compiling a Top Ten of Baroque Hits, The Enchanted Island amounts to much more than a gallimaufry of choice gobbets, seasoned with French galenterie.
Nicholas McGegan leads Royal Northern Sinfonia and Samling soloists through a dramatic and thought-provoking performance of Handel's Israel in Egypt to offer an alternative look at the Easter message of hope.
A strong cast and fine playing from La Nuova Musica gives Handel's Berenice a reasonably fair outing, but its original plot weaknesses constrain this opera from being anything more than a curio for the Handel connoisseur.
