The small
Opera Rara
label has been experiencing general success with its eight-volume cycle of
Donizetti
songs, of which this 2025 release is the third; it made classical best-seller charts early that year. It may be that listeners are pleased to discover an almost completely neglected section of the output by a major composer, and all the volumes thus far contain delightful finds. This one, however, might be the strongest one thus far. It focuses on songs in French, with just one exception, the little German mountain pastoral
Rings ruht die grüne Alpenhut
. Most of these pieces date from the height of the composer's career in Paris, and although some are in simple strophic forms, few seem tossed off. Some are quite unusual, such as
La dernière nuit d'un Novice
, a sort of solo cantata that adapts the religious mode of operatic slow numbers to chamber dimensions. Another draw is the American baritone-tenor
Michael Spyres
, a singer with a powerful command of French and the ability to bring his voice down to the salon size in which these works would have been performed. The accompanist is
executive
Carlo Rizzi
, and in addition to his work on the keyboard, he deserves commendation for a good deal of digging these works out from rather obscure sources. This volume, in particular, is essential for
fans, and even singers in general might find items here that could profitably be added to their repertoires. ~ James Manheim