1717: Singing Superstars

Available for 34 days

1717, Naples. In a modest room, a young boy undergoes a dangerous operation that will determine his future. If he survives, his voice will never break. Carlo Broschi will become Farinelli – one of the greatest and most celebrated singers in history. This programme explores the rise of opera’s first international superstars. From the extraordinary appeal of the castrati to the fierce rivalries of diva sopranos, it traces how star performers – rather than composers – drive the spread of opera across Europe. As theatres expand and audiences grow, music enters a new age of celebrity, spectacle and commercial ambition. Gillian Moore is joined by a roster of distinguished historians for this major new BBC Radio 3 series, charting a course through 1000 years of classical music history. For the next eight programmes, historian Suzannah Lipscomb is in the chair, as together they travel from the late sixteenth to the early eighteenth century. Producer: Chris Taylor Academic Consultant: Professor Laura Tunbridge, University of Oxford Story Consultant: Kate Leys Series Editor for BBC Audio: Emma Harding Key Changes theme tune composed by Joseph Howard and performed by the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, conducted by Kerem Hasan. MUSIC DETAILS Riccardo Broschi: Artaserse – Son qual nave ch’agitata Ewa Małas-Godlewska (soprano) Derek Lee Ragin (countertenor) Les Talens Lyriques Christophe Rousset (conductor) Gregorio Allegri: Miserere mei, Deus Alessandro Scarlatti: Il Cambise – “Mi cinga la fama” Talenti Vulcanici Carlo Vistoli (countertenor) Mark-Anthony Turnage: Anna Nicole – “Partay!” Eva-Maria Westbroek (soprano) Gerald Finley (baritone) Chorus and Orchestra of the Royal Opera House Antonio Pappano (conductor) George Frideric Handel: Serse – “Ombra mai fu” Andreas Scholl (countertenor) Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin John Gay (arr. Pepusch): The Beggar’s Opera – “Cease Your Funning” / “Why How Now, Madam Flirt?” The Broadside Band Jeremy Barlow (conductor) George Frideric Handel: Alessandro – “Placa l’alma” Lucy Crowe (soprano) Mary Bevan (soprano) London Early Opera Bridget Cunningham (conductor) Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: Die Zauberflöte – Overture Akademie für Alte Musik Berlin René Jacobs (conductor)