Description:

The star of this bubbling performance is undoubtedly Oliviero de Fabritiis. And if you think that’s a polite way of compensating for a mediocre cast, think again. The singers are excellent, but it’s de Fabritiis who elevates the entire experience. His conducting doesn’t just shape the orchestra; it draws a remarkable level of precision, rhythmic clarity, and expressive unity from the singers as well, fusing stage and pit in a way that’s rarely heard.

Gianna Pederzini brings true contralto credentials to the role of Isabella, her interpretation backed by decades of experience (including her later turn as Madame de Croisy in the world premiere of *Dialogues des Carmélites*). She opts for transpositions in both arias, which leads to some creative harmonic retooling to accommodate her preferred keys. Nino Ederle lends Lindoro a masculine charm, excelling in the lyrical passages, though he wrestles a bit with the coloratura. As Mustafà, Vincenzo Bettoni finds the perfect balance between comic flair and vocal authority—more Le Nozze di Figaro than Barber of Seville, but with a dose of both. And in the smaller role of Haly, a 24-year-old Giuseppe Taddei already shows his promise. He must have made quite the impression on de Fabritiis, who chose to preserve Haly’s Act II aria amid a sea of cuts.

In Mono

OD 12033-2