French baritone Florian Sempey has established himself as an important player on the contemporary opera scene. For his first solo recital, Rossini was an obvious choice, primarily because he has already performed the title role in Il barbiere di Siviglia in the major opera houses, from Paris to London, and of course also via Orange and Pesaro.
But there is another reason: "Rossini was the first composer's name I heard in my life. At my grandparents' home hung a bust above the piano, on a rococo stand" - the bust that appears on the cover of this album. Rossini's music is a challenge for singers and also a major and very rigorous technical training for them. It demands the highest standards and degree of precision. This program presents arias in French and Italian, a mix of the most famous (including Figaro's "Sono il factotum") with rarities such as Germano's aria from La scala di seta and Don Parmenione's from L'occasione fa il ladro. It also contains beautiful duets with two dream partners, Karine Deshayes and Nahuel Di Pierro. And who better to conduct the Orchestre de l'Opéra National Bordeaux Aquitaine than the gifted Rossinian Marc Minkowski, who gives this music an inimitable sparkle?
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