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Artist Spotlight: Leah Dexter on “Terra Nostra”
Darkness, the alto aria from Terra Nostra
The aria “Darkness” that Stacy Garrop composed for the mezzo-soprano, was a very personal and moving piece to perform and record, that left me in a completely vulnerable state. It changed me forever. From Lord Byron’s poignant, powerful words, to the affected wailing and whispering of the accompanying female chorus, the piece evokes images of ultimate terror, destruction, desolation and sadness. A dramatic powerhouse of an aria, it was incredibly difficult to bring this piece to life with the images presented and how they relate quite closely to the current state of the world. I am hoping that the listening audience will be moved just as much as I was and feel just how powerful this particular scene is, and also, how tragically beautiful.
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Haymarket Opera Company presents early-18th-century master Leonardo Vinci’s rare operatic gem, Artaserse (1730). A prominent figure of the Neapolitan School of opera, whose work influenced composers such as Johann Adolph Hasse and Giovanni Battista Pergolesi, Vinci’s three-act opera seria centers on the Persian prince, Artaserse, who must bring his father’s murderer to justice amidst betrayal, deceit, and mistaken identity.
Cedille Records augments its 2018 release, Notorious RBG in Song, critically proclaimed “an engrossing, episodic portrait” (WQXR) and “vivid and beautiful” (Classics Today) — with a digital single, “On the Joys of Recorded Music,” in anticipation of what would have been Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s 93rd birthday (March 15).
To celebrate our new opera album (3/13 release) Leonardo Vinci: Artaserse (Haymarket Opera Company) we’ve revised/expanded our RBG 90th birthday playlist of her favorite vocal music on Cedille — now starting with albums supported by the Ruth Bader Ginsburg Fund for Vocal Recordings, created in 2022.
Enjoy 25% off Cedille’s Weekly Featured Release.