Work: L'elisir d'amore: Una parola, Adina

At the Barbican, Cecilia Bartoli and Rolando Villazón entertained a festive audience in a concert of bel canto highlights, determined not to let a cold put a chill on the evening.

The Mozart and bel canto program that Cecilia Bartoli and Rolando Villazón have concocted for their European tour this December is so packed with greatest hits that it feels like a festive gift. 

In a somewhat long-overdue debut at the Concertgebouw, bel canto royalty Juan Diego Flórez and rising star Pretty Yende wowed the Amsterdam public with a generous programme of bel canto music.