Organization

Singer

Mezzo-soprano

Cecilia Bartoli

Dancer

Xavier Laforge

Conductor

Gianluca Capuano

Gran Teatre del Liceu

Cecilia Bartoli Concert

Barcelona

Spain

Concert Various

Public

Concert

Approved

The last traces of the presence of the great Cecilia Bartoli at the Gran Teatre del Liceu date back to the 1990/91 and 1993/94 seasons respectively, when she appeared in five performances of the opera Il barbiere di Siviglia and gave a recital accompanied by György Fischer. The wait has been far too long and it is with great satisfaction that we welcome Cecilia Bartoli back to the Liceu for this splendid return visit.

The empathy between Cecilia Bartoli and Les Musiciens du Prince is obvious on stage: the idea of founding this period instrument ensemble in 2016 was hers and she is its artistic director.

Bartoli prepares a new programme for every performance because she enjoys developing her programmes as much as she enjoys singing them. This one, dedicated to Farinelli and his time , reveals a new facet of her ever-renewed talent, which she reveals on stage in the light-hearted manner we know so well.

That Carlo Broschi, better known as Farinelli (1705-1782), was a highly popular singer is shown by the wealth of wonderfully enthusiastic eye-witness accounts and tributes which have come down to us. A riding accident was apparently the reason used to justify his castration and he completed his studies with Porpora. Thus this archetype of the castrato , who was to give rise to countless artistic fantasies, was born. After triumphing in Munich and London, he became a legend at the court of Philip V of Spain. The King was passionately fond of Farinelli's voice, which was the only cure for his morbid melancholy, and every evening for nine years, according to the chroniclers, Farinelli had to sing the same five arias by Hasse, Ariosti and Giacomelli. In time he also became an important counsellor to the King.

This fascinating tale was the starting point for the research that went into the programme Cecilia Bartoli is to present at the Liceu, in which she invites us to enjoy the acrobatics and depth, the intensity, subtlety and shades of meaning of her unforgettable voice. Welcome home, Cecilia!

English

Cecilia Bartoli Concert by Various, From (2022/2022), Conductor Gianluca Capuano, Gran Teatre del Liceu, Barcelona, Spain

Performance credits (Cast & Crew )

Cast

Programme, About & Synopsis

Photos

Further reading

Performance Dates & Venues

Venues