One of Opera Rara’s most fruitful projects has been its determination to shine a light on the works of Gaetano Donizetti. A series of fine recordings have done a great deal to prove that the bel canto composer from Bergamo was far more than merely an adjunct to Bellini or simply a precursor of the kind of work that Verdi would do better.

With a premiere recording of 1828’s L’esule di Roma (The Roman Exile) they puncture another venerable saw – the idea that Donizetti only hit form with Anna Bolena in 1830. 

Composed for Naples, Domenico Gilardoni’s libretto was based on a contemporary Venetian play – Luigi Marchionni’s Il proscritto romano. That in turn channelled an earlier French play that incorporated the story of Androcles and the lion. Donizetti’s hero is indeed spared in the arena by a beast to whom he had previously brought relief (no lions are likely to be harmed in the making of this opera, however, as that particular staging nightmare happens behind the scenes!) With classical...