In a sense, Rolando Villazón's collection of Handel arias might be considered a crossover album. It faces the risks of albums that attempt to meld two musical styles in the hope of creating something fresh and appealing, but that run the risk of alienating fans of the styles being merged, who can be put off by what they perceive as musical compromises. In this case, the potentially opposing camps are fans of Villazón who love the authority and stylistic panache he brings to the Romantic bel canto operatic repertoire, and on ...
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In a sense, Rolando Villazón's collection of Handel arias might be considered a crossover album. It faces the risks of albums that attempt to meld two musical styles in the hope of creating something fresh and appealing, but that run the risk of alienating fans of the styles being merged, who can be put off by what they perceive as musical compromises. In this case, the potentially opposing camps are fans of Villazón who love the authority and stylistic panache he brings to the Romantic bel canto operatic repertoire, and on the other hand, listeners who demand adherence to the strictest standards of authentic Baroque period performance practice. Both groups could reasonably approach this album with some trepidation; might Villazón give up his characteristically robust Romantic fervor in the service of this relatively chaste repertoire, or, conversely, might he sully this music by importing the mannerisms of nineteenth century Italian opera? Happily, the musical solutions that he and conductor Paul...
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