Mayr: Elena
) | Label: Naxos Opera Catalog: 8660462-63 Format: COMPACT DISC Graczyk, Mira; Thum, Harald; Mallmann, Niklas; Simon Mayr Chorus; Ochoa, Daniel; Concerto de Bassus; Mattersberger, Andreas; Schäfer, Markus; Wagner, Julia Sophie; Zhi, Fang; Hauk, Franz; Feith, Anna; Capitelli, Anna-DorisDuring the 1813–14 carnival season in Naples, Simon Mayr wrote a much-admired opera semiseria called Elena. The post-revolutionary Napoleonic era saw great enthusiasm for the rescue opera genre and Elena is a perfect example, in which a complex plot, based on French models, sees an innocent falsely accused of a capital offence. Mayr’s subtle accommodation of Neapolitan opera and Viennese Classicism ensures a series of choruses and recitatives that drive the action forward, punctuated with arias, romances, ensembles, lyric richness and moments of witty buffo color.  Price: $38.98 |