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Virgin Classics invites you to enjoy the world premiere recording of Viviadi’s Il Farnace in a version that Vivaldi prepared specially for the city of Ferrara in 1737-38 after its success in Venice. This is not only the first time the Ferrara version of Farnace has been recorded, but also the first time it has been heard, as the planned performances of 1738 were cancelled due to the local failure of the Vivaldi opera that preceded it, Siroe.
Farnace was never staged again anywhere, and the only surviving trace of its music is in the form of an incomplete score carefully notated and preserved by Vivaldi in his personal collection. It is the only remaining opera of Vivaldi never to have been performed since the composer’s time, and, unlike all the others, has remained unrecorded until now.
The chances are that Vivaldi never completed this Farance. However, with the reconstruction of the third act by Diego Fasolis and Frédéric Delaméa, this album presents a rare opportunity to discover a work bursting with riches, the last fruit of Vivaldi’s unprecedented operatic output. In this recording, the cast is led by the brilliant countertenor Max Emanuel Cencic in the title role with the support of conductor Diego Fasolis and the famed I Barocchisti ensemble.
