Fine Bach cantatas from Paul Figuier at the Festival d’Ambronay

Paul Figuier

Les Talens Lyriques at the Église Abbatiale d'Ambronay

Gilles Vanssons, Christophe Rousset and Les Talens Lyriques

By David Karlin, 05 October 2024

Loading, please wait...

See full listing

“Figuier’s dynamics perfectly conjured the image of the pilgrim trudging on the road to salvation”

Reviewed at Abbaye d'Ambronay, Ambronay on 4 October 2024

Programme to include:

Bach, Vergnügte Ruh, beliebte Seelenlust - Cantata, BWV170

Bach, Geist und Seele wird verwirret - Cantata, BWV35

Bach, Allein zu dir, Herr Jesu Christ - Cantata, BWV33

Bach, Es ist euch gut, dass ich hingehe - Cantata, BWV108

Les Talens Lyriques

Christophe Rousset, Conductor

Paul Figuier, Countertenor

Gilles Vanssons, Oboe

Teenage Mozart’s Mitridate a great success at La Scala

Laura Servidei, 18th May

Christophe Rousset leads Les Talens Lyriques and a stellar cast in a superb rendition of Mozart’s first opera seria.

*****

A forgotten meta-opera at La Scala: Gassmann’s L’opera seria

Laura Servidei, 29th March

Christophe Rousset leads a great cast and an even greater orchestra in Gassmann’s 1769 rarity in Laurent Pelly’s visually striking, but oddly subdued, take on a comedy that thrives on chaos.

***11

Jephtha: Handel's last English oratorio at the Halle Handel Festival

Sandra Bowdler, 30th May

Handel's last English oratorio Jephtha is beautifully performed by Christophe Rousset and Les Talens Lyriques in Halle, although the drama is a bit slow off the mark.

***11

Not quite a premiere, not quite a success: Salieri’s Kublai Khan

Chanda VanderHart, 7th April

Martin G Berger exhaustively reworks the story and the libretto of Salieri's Cublai, gran kan de' Tartari and throws the kitchen sink at this new production, but not everything lands well.

***11

Unhappy ever after: Gluck's Armide returns to Paris

David Karlin, 11th November

Excellent performances and stage direction make a good case for an opera that's on the slow side dramatically.

****1

La Calisto arrives at La Scala for the first time and triumphs

Renato Verga, 30th October

Cavalli's debut at La Scala is a triumph, earning applause that not even a Bohème or a Traviata can sometimes elicit.

*****

More reviews...

David Karlin

David is a co-founder of Bachtrack. He is a musical omnivore interested in almost all types of music, but with a particular love of Italian opera. You can contact him from this link.

Fine Bach cantatas from Paul Figuier and Les Talens Lyriques at the Festival d’Ambronay