Part 1

Johann Joseph Fux (1660-1741) – L’Angelica vincitrice di Alcina (Vienne, 1716)

• Aria: Per le furie
• Aria: Si, pugnate
• Gigue (excerpt from Sérénade K. 352 en ut majeur)

Agostino Steffani (1654-1728) – Orlando generoso (Hanovre, 1691)

• Overture Orlando generoso
• Recitativo : A che ti servi Orlando & Aria : In quest’alma che langue

Johann Joseph Fux (1660-1741) – création inconnue (1701)

• Rigadon et Lourré excerpt from the Overture K. 355)

Agostino Steffani (1654-1728) – Orlando generoso (1691)

• Recitativo : Che vidi! Ch’ascoltai? & Aria : Armi, stragi, vendetta
• Monologo Lo dunque senz’armi e senza libertà?

Nicola Porpora (1686-1768) – L’Angelica (1720)

• Affetuoso (excerpt from the Sinfonia, Op. 2, No. 2)
• Aria: La bella mia nemica
• Monologo : Ove son ? Qui mi guida ? & Aria : Da me che volete infauste comete

Part 2

Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741) – Orlando furioso (1727)

• Allegro: Concerto for Strings, RV 121 (D major)
• Aria: Nel profondo, cieco mondo
• Allegro: Concerto RV 156

Georg Friedrich Haendel (1686-1759) Orlando (1733)

• Recitativo accompagnato : Gia per la man & Aria : Già l’ebro mio ciglio
• Recitativo : T’ubbidiro crudele & Aria : Fammi combattere
• Sinfonia
• Monologo : Ah! Stigie larve
• Scena di Folia

Xavier Sabata, countertenor
Le Concert de l’Hostel Dieu (Minori Deguchi, solo violin)
Franck-Emmanuel Comte, harpsichord and musical direction

On stage:

''Orchestral'' version: 15 instrumentalists (10 strings, 2 oboes, bassoon, theorbo, harpsichord) + 1 soloist. ''Da camera'' version: 7 instrumentalists (5 strings, theorbo, harpischord) + 1 soloist.

The mythOrlando furiosocreated by Ludovico Ariosto in the 16th century, represents one of the richest literary sources for dramatic and musical imagination. Between chivalric heroism, romantic turmoil, and psychological instability, it explores the limits of passion and the fractures of the human soul, providing baroque composers with exceptional material to embody the tension between reason and madness, order and chaos.

In this theatrical program, I aim to offer a journey through the various facets of Orlando, using excerpts from operas by Vivaldi, Handel, Steffani, Fux, and Porpora. Each of these composers, in their own way, explores the expressive potential of voice and orchestra to dramatize the story: the recitatives convey psychological tension, the arias reveal Orlando’s innermost struggles, and the instrumental movements evoke inner landscapes and the turmoil of passions.

The dramatic potential of these works lies in the ability of this extraordinary and little-known music (with the exception of Handel) to express the invisible: the rise of anger, the awakening of desire, psychological fragility, fury, and heroic brilliance. Harmonic modulations, virtuosic ornaments, and instrumental dialogues become narrative vehicles, capable of immersing the audience in the heart of Orlando’s epic, at once grandiose and profoundly human.

For this extraordinary project, I wanted to collaborate with countertenor Xavier Sabata, both an exceptional soloist and a charismatic performer, for an intensely dramatic and embodied interpretation. With Le Concert de l’Hostel Dieu, my musical partner of 30 years, we will explore the expressive contrasts of this narrative polyphony, highlighting the evocative power of each emotion conveyed by these exceptional composers. We will focus in particular on emphasizing the intrinsic theatricality of these works, transforming every harmony and every rhythm into a driving force of emotion.

This project, combining recording, video, and concert tours, presents itself as a living encounter between literature and music, where the myth is reborn through the dramatic intensity and expressive subtlety of baroque art. The audience will be invited to follow Orlando through his journey of passions and hallucinations, to perceive the tension of his inner world, and to be swept away by the poetic and musical power of a timeless myth.

By Franck-Emmanuel Comte