Many listeners will be more familiar with Mozart’s setting of this opera, composed just two years earlier when he was 17. Both works draw on the same libretto by Giovanni de Gamerra, yet their musical priorities diverge in telling ways. While Mozart’s version reveals a greater degree of melodic invention, Johann Christian Bach demonstrates a keen instinct for dramatic pacing and a notably heightened theatrical sensibility, one that marks a clear departure from the more intellectualized approach associated with his father.

The assembled cast proves consistently engaging. A young Julia Varady brings a finely shaped classical line, her tone carrying an appealing steely edge. By contrast, Sylvia Geszty offers a warmly upholstered soprano as Cecilio, her coloratura dispatched with ease and supported by an evenness of tone across the range that sustains both agility and fullness.