Opera Rara: ORC38

Three of Bellini’s operas – La sonnambula and Norma (both 1831), and his last work, I puritani (1835) – remain classics of the bel canto repertoire, yet the slightly earlier La straniera (The Stranger) remains curiously neglected. In fact, this highly romantic melodrama, first staged at La Scala in1829, was initially a success and only fell from grace when the bel canto style itself became unfashionable. Its plot centres on the identity of the mysterious woman who roams, heavily veiled, through the landscape of Brittany. Ignorant peasants suppose her to be a witch, little suspecting that she is the castoff wife of the King of France. But she has attracted the attention of the local Count, Arturo, who is supposed to be engaged to Isoletta, and who finds himself jealous of her visitor, Valdeburgo. The result is confusion, violence and a tragic ending. The score points forward to Bellini’s greatest works and on its own account includes superb dramatic writing and those characteristic ‘long, long melodies of which he alone had the secret’, as Verdi put it. Opera Rara’s cast boasts singers with the vocal skills and dramatic insight to enliven this neglected masterpiece of romantic opera, which has been lost to Bellini fans for far too long.

The 2CD set comes with a lavishly illustrated book including a complete libretto with an English translation. Article and synopsis by Benjamin Walton – Lecturer of Music, Jesus College, Cambridge.