Élus
Barbara Frittoli, Dmitri Voropaev, Ekaterina Semenchuk, Mariinsky Chorus, Mariinsky Orchestra, Mattia Rondelli, Yuri Vorobiev
Physical and Digital Release: 24 November 2023
Mattia Rondelli and the Mariinsky ensembles reveal the ceremonial brilliance and expressive warmth of Giuseppe Sarti’s sacred music in the Magnificat and Gloria in excelsis.
13.55€
Digital programme · 18 tracks
Track timings refer to the digital edition.
Barbara Frittoli is widely regarded as one of the foremost Italian sopranos before the public today. In opera she is internationally acclaimed for her interpretations of the great works of Mozart (e.g. Le nozze di Figaro, Don Giovanni, Così fan tutte and Idomeneo) and Verdi (Otello, Falstaff, Simon Boccanegra and Messa da Requiem ). Born in Milan, she graduated with highest honors from the Giuseppe Verdi Conservatory. Today, she is as much in demand for opera as she is for symphonic works and recital. Highlights of Barbara Frittoli’s 2007-08 included Cosi fan tutte with Maestro Riccardo Muti at the Vienna State Opera, a new production of Suor Angelica with Maestro Riccardo Chailly at La Scala and Le Nozze di Figaro at the London’s Royal Opera. Concert performances took her to Chicago, Tel Aviv, London, Berlin, Moscow, London and Vienna. In future seasons she is scheduled to return to the Metropolitan Opera for Don Giovanni and Amelia in Simon Boccanegra, a role which served as her San Francisco Opera debut in autumn 2008. Among her career’s most memorable performances were Otello at the Salzburg Easter Festival (1996) and, again, at the Teatro Regio di Torino (1997) under Claudio Abbado; Così fan tutte (1994) at the Wiener Staatsoper, the Ravenna Festival (1998) under Riccardo Muti and Covent Garden (1998) with Colin Davis; Verdi’s Messa da Requiem (1997) with the Berlin Philharmonic under Claudio Abbado; Don Giovanni at the Salzburg Festival with Lorin Maazel (1999); a live world telecast of Turandot (Liù) from the Forbidden City (1998) with Zubin Mehta; and Otello at the Metropolitan Opera with James Levine, a role which also served as her Bayerische Staatsoper debut with Zubin Mehta. At La Scala, Ms. Frittoli has enjoyed the honor of opening the new season in December 1998, 2000 and 2002 respectively as Leonora in Il Trovatore, Desdemona in Otello and Anaide in Mosè in Egitto, all under the baton of Riccardo Muti.
Dmitri Voropaev, also known as Dmitry Voropaev, is a tenor associated with the Mariinsky Theatre. He graduated from the Glinka Choir College in St Petersburg in 1998 and from the city’s Rimsky-Korsakov Conservatoire in 2003. His Mariinsky debut came in 2000 as Count Almaviva in Rossini’s Il barbiere di Siviglia; after working with the Academy of Young Opera Singers, he joined the opera company in 2014.
A prizewinner at the Rimsky-Korsakov, Mirjam Helin and Operalia competitions, Voropaev has sung roles including Lensky in Eugene Onegin, Nemorino in L’elisir d’amore, Alfredo in La traviata and the title role in Mozart’s Idomeneo. His Da Vinci discography includes Giuseppe Sarti’s Magnificat and Gloria in excelsis, performed with the Mariinsky Chorus and Orchestra under Mattia Rondelli.
Ekaterina Semenchuk is a mezzo-soprano born in Minsk. She studied at the St Petersburg Rimsky-Korsakov Conservatoire with Yevgenia Gorokhovskaya, graduating in 2001, and made her Mariinsky Theatre debut in 1999. Her early international appearances included La Scala and the Salzburg Festival in 2000.
Her repertoire encompasses major Russian and Italian operatic roles, with particular prominence given to Verdi: Azucena in Il trovatore, Eboli in Don Carlo, Amneris in Aida and Lady Macbeth in Macbeth, as well as the Requiem. She has performed at leading opera houses and festivals in Europe and the Americas. A finalist at Operalia in 2000 and Cardiff Singer of the World in 2001, she received a Golden Mask award in 2021 for her performance in the Bolshoi Theatre’s Sadko. For Da Vinci Classics, she appears in Giuseppe Sarti’s Magnificat and Gloria in excelsis with Mattia Rondelli and the Mariinsky forces.
Mariinsky Chorus and Orchestra were established in the historic city of St. Petersburg in the late 18th century, the Mariinsky Chorus and Orchestra have etched their mark in the annals of classical music. As an integral part of the famed Mariinsky Theatre, they have been central to the premieres of numerous operatic and balletic masterpieces. Over the years, works by composers such as Tchaikovsky, Mussorgsky, and Rimsky-Korsakov have come alive through their profound performances.
Throughout its illustrious history, the ensemble has seen various celebrated conductors lead its ranks, each bringing their unique interpretation and vision, ensuring that the orchestra and chorus always remained at the forefront of musical innovation. Their repertoire is vast, spanning from age-old Russian classics to contemporary international compositions, always delivered with impeccable precision and deep emotional resonance.
The Mariinsky Chorus and Orchestra are not just confined to the theatre's interiors; they have graced stages worldwide. Their extensive touring schedule has taken them to renowned concert halls across continents, from the Americas to Asia. This extensive exposure has enriched their sound, ensuring a delightful blend of tradition and novelty.
Their recordings are a testament to their versatility and prowess, having captured the attention of both critics and aficionados alike. Whether performing a melancholic opera, an invigorating ballet score, or an introspective symphonic piece, the ensemble showcases a commitment to musical excellence.
Mariinsky Chorus and Orchestra were established in the historic city of St. Petersburg in the late 18th century, the Mariinsky Chorus and Orchestra have etched their mark in the annals of classical music. As an integral part of the famed Mariinsky Theatre, they have been central to the premieres of numerous operatic and balletic masterpieces. Over the years, works by composers such as Tchaikovsky, Mussorgsky, and Rimsky-Korsakov have come alive through their profound performances.
Throughout its illustrious history, the ensemble has seen various celebrated conductors lead its ranks, each bringing their unique interpretation and vision, ensuring that the orchestra and chorus always remained at the forefront of musical innovation. Their repertoire is vast, spanning from age-old Russian classics to contemporary international compositions, always delivered with impeccable precision and deep emotional resonance.
The Mariinsky Chorus and Orchestra are not just confined to the theatre's interiors; they have graced stages worldwide. Their extensive touring schedule has taken them to renowned concert halls across continents, from the Americas to Asia. This extensive exposure has enriched their sound, ensuring a delightful blend of tradition and novelty.
Their recordings are a testament to their versatility and prowess, having captured the attention of both critics and aficionados alike. Whether performing a melancholic opera, an invigorating ballet score, or an introspective symphonic piece, the ensemble showcases a commitment to musical excellence.
Mattia Rondelli is an Italian conductor who has already appeared on the international scene. His engagements have brought him to some of the most important venues in Italy, Switzerland, UK, Russia, USA, and China. His versatility as a conductor has led to performances of works from both the operatic and orchestral repertoire, wildly ranging from early music to the music of today. He has obtained sensational achievements due to his meeting with Valery Gergiev and the collaboration with Mariinsky eatre. Mattia Rondelli debuted at Mariinsky Concert Hall in 2011 White Nights Festival. at first occasion represented the modern premiere of some sacral pages by Giuseppe Sarti, featuring important soloists as Ekaterina Semenchuk and Barbara Frittoli. He brought also for the first time on Mariinsky stage Verdi Quartet and Quattro Pezzi Sacri. His work of research and performance on Giuseppe Sarti’s music has brought him either important artistic collaborations and academic cooperation with UDK-Berlin and Jerusalem Academy of Music. Essays of these conferences has been published on Forum Musikwissenschaft. In this last period Mattia Rondelli has started a solid collaboration with Sir John Eliot Gardiner, either as musical assistant and for a new research project.
In 2014 he invented, fundraised and organized an event meant to underline the Social value of Music: this was also the occasion in which he conducted at the Milan Conservatory Hall the Italian premiére of Sarti’s Gloria with ‘Accademia del Teatro alla Scala’ orchestra and soloists and Ars Cantica Choir. Mattia Rondelli is a regular guest conductor at MiTo SettembreMusica Festival, Virtuosi del Teatro alla Scala, Turin Teatro Regio, La Fenice Orchestra, St. Petersburg Philharmonia, Chicago Philharmonic, National Opera of Beijing, Arturo Toscanini Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra di Padova e del Veneto, Orchestra da Camera di Mantova, Orchestra del Festival “Settimane Musicali di Stresa”, Marche Philharmonic Orchestra, Pomeriggi Musicali di Milano, Turin Philharmonic Orchestra, Rome Youth Orchestra, Orchestra Cantelli, Accademia di S. Giorgio (Venice), Ars Cantica Choir. With the National Opera Orchestra of Beijing he performed at a gala in honor of the President of the Italian Republic.
After his piano studies, Mattia Rondelli earned degrees in both orchestral conducting and music composition from the Milan Conservatory of Music. He then specialized for years with Donato Renzetti, Piero Bellugi and Jorma Panula. As an assistant, he worked at opera productions with Daniele Callegari and Gianandrea Noseda. In addition to his musical education, he holds a degree from the Law School of the Catholic University of Milan.
Yuri Vorobiev is a bass born in Leningrad. He graduated from the Glinka Academic Cappella Choral School in 1998 before continuing his studies at the St Petersburg Rimsky-Korsakov Conservatoire. He joined the Mariinsky Academy of Young Opera Singers in 2002 and the theatre’s opera company in 2009. He was a prizewinner at the Rimsky-Korsakov competition in 2004.
His stage repertoire includes Colline in La bohème, Ramfis in Aida, Sparafucile in Rigoletto, Timur in Turandot, Sarastro in Die Zauberflöte and Gurnemanz in Parsifal. His concert work includes Bach’s Mass in B minor, Mozart’s and Verdi’s Requiems, and Shostakovich’s Fourteenth Symphony. He has toured internationally with the Mariinsky forces and made his Royal Opera House debut as Colline in 2012. His Da Vinci recordings include Sarti’s Magnificat and Gloria in excelsis under Mattia Rondelli.
Giuseppe Sarti [Sardi]
(b Faenza, bap. 1 Dec 1729; d Berlin, 28 July 1802). Italian composer. He was a leading figure in late 18th-century opera.
Giuseppe Sarti: “One of the musicians who best knew all the secrets of the art” Bella Brover-Lubovsky Giuseppe Sarti (1729-1802) is best remembered nowadays as one of the late-eighteenth century Italian composers who “provided” Mozart with one of his quotations in Don Giovanni. In his time, however, Sarti was recognized as one of the central figures of his generation, both with regard to his contribution to most of the extant musical genres and to the sheer breadth of his musical activity. Sarti was described by contemporaries as “one of the…
Giuseppe Sarti: “One of the musicians who best knew all the secrets of the art”
Bella Brover-Lubovsky
Giuseppe Sarti (1729-1802) is best remembered nowadays as one of the late-eighteenth century Italian composers who “provided” Mozart with one of his quotations in Don Giovanni. In his time, however, Sarti was recognized as one of the central figures of his generation, both with regard to his contribution to most of the extant musical genres and to the sheer breadth of his musical activity.
Sarti was described by contemporaries as “one of the musicians who best knew all the secrets of the art” and “one of the most learned composers of his époque.” His employer, Empress Catherine the Great of Russia, declared that “no one composes choruses as well as he does”, and his pupil Luigi Cherubini called Sarti’s melodies “full of charm and tenderness.”
Born in Faenza to a jeweler and an amateur violinist, Sarti began his musical training in 1738 with composer and theorist Francescantonio Vallotti, maestro di capella at the Basilica del Santo in Padua. Sarti’s kinship with Vallotti’s acoustical conceptions later led to his invention of a tool for measuring vibrations. As a composer, Vallotti’s guidance gave Sarti a firm grounding in monumental choral style, both devotional and dramatic, along with a liberal treatment of dissonance and a taste for harmonic complexity. Later, Sarti studied with the famous Giambattista Martini in Bologna, with whom he retained strong personal and professional ties long after the completion of his years of study (1739-42).
Sarti started his professional career as organist of Faenza Cathedral and theater director in his native city (1748-52), where he wrote his first opera, Pompeo in Armenia. In 1753- 1775 (excluding 1765-68), he worked in Copenhagen as an Italian opera company and court music director; and in 1766-67 he served as maestro di coro at the famous Ospedale della Pietà in Venice.
In 1779 Sarti replaced the late Giovanni Andrea Fioroni as a maestro di cappella of the Milan Duomo. His victory in the competition for the post (with an eight-voice mass for the feast of the nativity of the Holy Virgin Mary, patron saint of the cathedral) along with Teatro Alla Scala’s successful revival of his Le gelosie villane greatly increased his reputation and won him many pupils. (Sarti retained this position even when working outside Italy, dispatching to Milan numerous sacred compositions.)
Sarti’s Giulio Sabino, composed in 1781 for the Venetian Teatro St Benedetto, became one of the most popular opera seria in the late eighteenth century, revived more than twenty times by various theaters throughout Europe. A year later, Sarti’s most successful comic opera, Fra i due litiganti il terzo gode, on a libretto after Carlo Goldoni’s Le nozze, was performed in the Teatro alla Scala, Milan. It also enjoyed European-wide success, being performed in several different languages under alternative titles; in Vienna alone it received over 60 performances (in both Italian and German) by 1790.
(Its characters and intrigues are very similar to Mozart’s Le nozze di Figaro; and one aria–‘Com un agnello’) was quoted in Don Giovanni’s second-act finale.)
In April 1782, the Grand Duke of Russia Pavel Petrovitch, traveling incognito with his wife in Italy, heard Sarti’s Alessandro e Timoteo staged in Parma’ Teatro Ducale. The Grand Duke recommended Sarti as Giovanni Paisiello’s successor as St-Petersburg’s imperial chapel director. The empress Catherine the Great duly extended the invitation, and in 1784 Sarti moved to the Russian capital.
In St-Petersburg, Sarti enjoyed great popularity among a broad circle of music lovers as one of the most esteemed late-century “domestic” Italians. Although invited to Russia as representing the current Italian style, he displayed a remarkable openness towards local culture and musical idioms and willingly assisted the progression of Russian music. During his two periods of appointment as a court Kapellmeister (1784-87 and 1793-1801), Sarti worked in a variety of styles and genres, composing dramma per musica and comic operas, chamber cantatas and official ceremonial music, as well as spiritual choral works employing Russian Orthodox texts. He also worked as Conservatory director, presented organ recitals at St Petersburg’s Catholic church, and served as music instructor to the Theatre School. Sarti’s fascination with Russian national style culminated in his involvement in a work on a grandiose historical spectacle, The Early Reign of Oleg (along with Carlo Canobbio and Vassily Pashkevitch), on a libretto written by Catherine the Great.
Apart from his affiliation with the imperial courts of Catherine II and Paul I, Sarti enjoyed patronage from Prince Gregory Potemkin, Count Sheremetev and others from the St-Petersburg and Moscow aristocratic elité. In 1787- 91 Sarti’s family lived in a Ukrainian residence given by Potemkin, who additionally offered him the directorship of the Music Academy in the newly founded city Ekaterinoslav (Dnepropetrovsk), later moved to Kremenchug. Sarti also accompanied the imperial journey to the Crimean peninsula, visiting Belorussia, southern Russia, Ukraine and Bessarabia; his music was played at every significant stop. In 1796, upon his presenting a lecture on his invented tool for measuring vibrations and establishing a pitch standard for the St Petersburg orchestras, to the St Petersburg Academy of Sciences, Sarti was accepted as its member. In 1801, after the death of Paul I, Sarti decided to return to Italy. On the way, he was visiting one of his daughters in Berlin where he died in 1802.
Sarti’s sacred compositions masterfully combine highly elaborate contrapuntal techniques with the dramatic effects, rich and expressive orchestration and melodic opulence of opera. Sarti also displayed a highly successful flair for combining the unique tradition of the a cappella singing in the Russian Orthodox Church with his personal style. His most innovative compositions were created and performed for elaborate Russian state celebrations: the end of the Second Turkish War (1787-91) and the conclusion of a Yassy treaty. He was most celebrated in Russia for his solemn imperial style and his respect for Russian national sentiment.
Magnificat in D and Gloria in G
John A. Rice
Sarti composed this Magnificat for two four-part choruses (SATB, SATB) each accompanied by its own orchestra. In the opening movement the two choral-orchestral groups create a massive, brilliant sound: a sonic magnificence in keeping with the text’s opening word. At “Et exaltavit” the tempo quickens (Più allegro), and the choruses alternate, tossing material back and forth as if echoing one another. Sarti made the second movement, “Quia respexit,” a soprano solo, very different from the first movement, this solo uses the galant style to convey charm and gracefulness. The words “omnes generationes” (all generations) caused Sarti, momentarily, to bring back the choruses.The third movement returns to grandeur of the first, to express the meaning of the words “Quia fecit mihi magna.” But the mood suddenly changes at the words “Et misericordia” (and mercy), to which Sarti responded with the first sustained music in the minor mode and chromaticism in the melodic lines.The quiet, mysterious ending of that minor-mode passage emphasizes, by way of contrast, the brilliance of the movement that follows, “Fecit potentiam”.
Always aware of the need for contrast, for musical chiaroscuro, Sarti found plenty of opportunity for novelty in “Suscepit Israel.” The choruses give way to solo soprano and alto. As in “Quia respexit” the galant style predominates, but here triple meter gives the music in sound of a tender, slow minuet. From the words “Sicut locutus” to the end of the Magnificat, Sarti’s setting unfolds in a series of connected movements, culminating with a great fugue (“Sicut erat in principio”). The two chorus first sing fugal expositions in alternation, but eventually produce a contrapuntal climax by singing in eight parts simultaneously.
Vocal soloists play an important role in this Gloria, whose aria-like movements for soli and the long orchestral introductions at the beginning of almost every number remind us of Sarti’s lifelong interest in the theater. The opening chorus in G major, with extensive writing for soloists, is a sonata-form movement laid out on a large scale. It will return, with different words, at the end of the Gloria. With “Laudamus te” begins the succession of solo numbers. A solo violin contributes a concertante part to the alto solo “Gratias agimus tibi,” in which Sarti gave both the vocal and instrumental soloists opportunity to perform cadences. The soprano returns as soloist in “Dominus Deus,” a very brilliantly orchestrated piece. Although Sarti did not divide this Gloria into two parts, the fugal chorus “Domine Fili” in effect marks the end of the first of two parts. Sarti must have had a fine tenor available when he wrote this Gloria. The tenor solo “Domine Deus, Agnus Dei” begins with a note sustained for four measures, demanding from the performer a good messa di voce. Sarti later gave his tenor opportunity to display his coloratura singing. In “Qui tollis peccata mundi,” the first movement in the minor mode, the alto soloist sings in alternation with
the chorus. This very short movement serves as a kind of introduction to the much longer soprano aria that follows, which–alone among the solo numbers in the Gloria– features the slow-fast structure very frequently encountered in late eighteenth-century opera arias. The soprano and alto soloists predominate near the beginning of the Gloria; the tenor and bass predominate near the end. Sarti made “Qui sedes” the tenor’s second solo; it is followed by the first and only bass solo, “Quoniam tu solus sanctus.”. A short slow passage in G minor serves as an introduction to the final movement, “Cum Sancto Spiritu,” which, as mentioned earlier, reuses the music of the first chorus. It thus brings to a satisfying conclusion a work in which Sarti explored a wide variety of vocal effects, tonalities, and instrumental sonorities in music that skillfully exploits conventions shared by theatrical and sacred music.
Sarti: Magnificat
Mariinsky Chorus & Orchestra, Mattia Rondelli · Complete
A listening selection from Giuseppe Sarti: Magnificat • Gloria in excelsis · C00806
Selected awards, reviews and interviews. Radio broadcasts and podcasts are listed separately below.
Forum Opéra
A favourable historical review of the earlier Sony edition of this 2011 Mariinsky recording, rated four out of five. Fort celebrates the luxuriant orchestral sound, excellent chorus and Rondelli’s generous direction, while expressing reservations about Barbara Frittoli’s vocal tone.
Read the review ↗ - Forum OpéraMusica
Rated 4 out of five in Musica, issue 355, p. 120. The official review index identifies Mattia Rondelli, the Mariinsky Orchestra and Chorus, and the four soloists in Sarti’s Magnificat and Gloria and confirms the rating and review page. The complete critical text is not reproduced in the index.
Read the review ↗ - MusicaIl Corriere Musicale
A historical review of the earlier Sony edition of this Mariinsky recording. Stefani praises the performances and Rondelli’s direction, while questioning the recorded sound and the lack of editorial information about the reconstruction. These reservations concern the edition reviewed.
Read the review ↗ - Il Corriere MusicaleBroadcasts, conversations and listening features dedicated to this recording.
Se questa è musica
Episode 11. Sarti’s Magnificat and Gloria, performed by the Mariinsky ensembles under Mattia Rondelli.
Listen to the episode ↗ - Se questa è musicaRai Radio 3 · Primo Movimento
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