Arias for Bass

Featuring

Alexandre Baldo
Ensemble Mozaique
Antonio Caldara

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Recording & Production

The arias on this album had never been recorded before this project, and the performer, Alexandre Baldo, created a modern edition of the manuscripts for this recording.

Composition History

The arias on this album were discovered in long-forgotten music manuscripts by Italian composer Antonio Caldara at the Österreichische Nationalbibliothek in Vienna.

Composer Biography

Antonio Caldara, born in Venice, likely studied counterpoint with Giovanni Legrenzi and cello with Domenico Gabrielli, two legendary Venetian masters.

Composition History

The arias on this album were composed for Christoph Praun, a bass singer and member of the Viennese Hofkapelle from 1715-1764, who was one of the most sought-after singers of his time.

Historical Context

Emperor Charles VI, a great music lover, invested tremendous amounts of money in operatic productions, making his reign a golden age for Vienna's musical scene.

Composer Biography

Caldara composed relentlessly until his death in 1736, with exhaustion possibly contributing to his demise, as he composed five psalms, a Magnificat, and three new operas in his last year alone.

Composer's Artistic Vision

Caldara's unique style, as heard on this album, synthesizes the virtuosity of the Neapolitan school, the instrumental rhetoric of the Roman school, the counterpoint of the Viennese school, and the harmonic fantasy of the Dresden court.