Wonder Women
Céline Scheen (soprano), Luciana Mancini (mezzo-soprano), Benedetta Mazzucato (mezzo-soprano), Vincenzo Capezzuto (countertenor)
l’Arpeggiata/Christina Pluhar (theorbo)
rec. 2023, Prieuré de Vivoin, France
Texts and English translation provided
Erato 5419795916 [70]
I find myself a long way from my usual reviewing areas. As I have remarked before, because of the gap between requesting discs for review and receiving them here in New Zealand, there are occasions when I wonder what prompted me to ask for a particular disc. This is such a case, and my recollection is that I felt this disc should not go unreviewed, and I was interested to hear the artists – Christina Pluhar and L’Arpeggiata – and composer – Barbara Strozzi – of whom I had heard a good deal about. So my review will be from the viewpoint of the interested, rather than knowledgeable, listener.
Christina Pluhar’s conception for this album is explained in her contribution to the excellent booklet notes, but also in the secondary title of the disc: Music by and about women – Tragic and comic stories by and about heroines, saints, witches, sorceresses and mere mortals. When I browsed the disc description and contents before requesting it, I noted the presence of works by Barbara Strozzi and some other 17th century women composers, and I must have seen the mention of traditional works, but had forgotten about them in the time before first listening. So I was a little unprepared by the definitely not early baroque, Mexican folk song, La Bruja, that opens the recording. Undoubtedly well performed – the opening from Pluhar’s theorbo is exquisite – but not what I was expecting (mea culpa), and not really to my taste. Of the three other folk songs, two Mexican and one Italian, in the first six tracks, I very much enjoyed La Llorona, but rather less so the other two. It meant that by the end of track 6, I wasn’t feeling especially positive about the release, but looking at the tracklist, I saw that the remaining ten tracks were all what I’d “signed up for”.
So let me talk about the works that are from the Italian early Baroque, starting with the first of the Strozzi pieces, Che si puo fare? (What can I do?), which is absolutely stunning in its melancholy beauty, beautifully sung by soprano Céline Scheen. Indeed it is the three works by Barbara Strozzi that shine above all the other works on the disc. Her story is quite remarkable. She was the adopted child of Giulio Strozzi, founder of a Venetian music academy, taught by prominent composer Francesco Cavalli, performing as a singer in aristocratic circles, whilst raising four children out of wedlock (the father is thought to be a Venetian nobleman). She became financially independent, and ended up supporting her penniless adoptive father. She formed connections with several aristocratic women, including the Archduchess of Austria, Anna de’Medici.
The works by the other women composers rely more on drama to make an impact, and don’t impress me as much as Strozzi’s ability to weave a beautiful and soulful melody without recourse to florid outbursts. Francesca Caccini is described in the notes as being the best-known woman composer of the age, but neither of her works engaged me greatly.
There are three instrumental works, but beyond the composers (Cazzati & Falconieri) and titles, I can tell you nothing about the reasons for their inclusion as the notes remain silent about them. What I can say is that I absolutely love the playing of l’Arpeggiata in them, and wish that the group had recorded a full disc of 17th century chamber works, but as far as I can tell, all their recordings, and there are plenty of them, concentrate on vocal works.
The four singers are quite a contrast. I had not encountered Céline Scheen before, but she is quite definitely someone to look out for. The two mezzos, Benedetta Mazzucato and Luciana Mancini, have contrasting voices and styles. The former has the more typical rich sound, and I liked her contributions. Mancini’s voice is very different, gutsy, almost raw in places, and I am not exaggerating when I say that I thought that the singer on La Bruja was a man, but was in fact Mancini. I was equally startled by the singing of alto Vincenzo Capezzuto. I am quite sure that few people, listening “blind”, would have said that they were hearing a man singing. Are either of these observations relevant to the experience of hearing them sing? No, not at all. I didn’t really warm to Mancini’s style, but I appreciated that it was very appropriate for works like La Bruja, and a more conventional mezzo voice would have sounded wrong. Capezzuto’s delicate voice is well suited to the two gentle folk songs which are his solo contribution to the album; there is also a trio, from Jácara, where Scheen and Mancini’s stronger voices overwhelm his.
The recording is very natural, allowing the listener to hear all performers well (with the exception already mentioned). The booklet notes do a remarkable job, given how little is known about most of the composers (again with the exception already mentioned).
A mixed bag then, both in music and performance, or to be more accurate, style of performance. I understand the reasoning behind the inclusion of the folk songs, but I think they sit uncomfortably with the Baroque arias.
David Barker
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Contents
Anonymous
Jácara: No hay que decirle el primor
Antonia Bembo
Produzioni armoniche (1701) No.16 Abbi pieta di me
Francesca Caccini
La liberazione di Ruggiero dall’isola d’Alcina: Cosi perfida Alcina
Lasciatemi qui solo
Francesca Campana
E gia rotto lo strale
Maurizio Cazzati
Capriccio sopra sette note
Suonate a due violini e basso continuo, op.18, no.12 La Strozza
Andrea Falconieri
Il primo libro di canzone, no.56 La Benedetta
Isabella Leonarda
Motetti (12), op.7, no.1 Nive puer (arr. Christina Pluhar)
Barbara Strozzi
Che si puo fare (arr. Christina Pluhar)
L’amante consolato
L’amante segreto (arr. Christina Pluhar)
Traditional
La Bruja (arr. Christina Pluhar)
La Llorona (arr. Christina Pluhar)
La Lloroncita (arr. Christina Pluhar)
La canzone di Cecilia (arr. Christina Pluhar)
