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 Roman subject matter in vogue at the time, the opera held the stage throughout the 1830s and even made it to Vienna and London.

The exile of the title is Settimio, in love with Argelia, daughter of the senator Murena. Before the opera begins, the Emperor Tiberius has banished him from Rome on false evidence put forward in secret by his prospective father-in-law. Murena has subsequently engaged Argelia to the Roman general Publio whose triumphant return opens proceedings. Arriving incognito, Settimio finds Argelia is still in love with him, making him reluctant to defend himself by exposing her father’s machinations. 

Wracked with remorse, Murena decides to throw himself on the mercy of the emperor. Settimio, meanwhile, is taken prisoner and condemned to be thrown to the lions. Not only does he survive, thanks to the aforementioned intervention, but Tiberius pardons Murena in time for everyone to enjoy a happy ending.

Donizetti fans will find that L’esule di Roma features all the hallmarks of the composer’s finest work: strong, memorable melodies, an easy sense of dramatic pacing, and music underpinned by affectionately colourful orchestrations. It also has its share of innovations, including a subtly crafted extended trio to end the first of its two acts and a highly original mad scene for low voice (the role of Murena was originally written for the great Italian bass Luigi Lablache). Opera Rara’s recording includes Settimio’s Act Two prison scene added for the first revival in order to give the character a more effective arc.

Musical standards are as we have come to expect from the label. Carlo Rizzi, now well into his stride as the company’s artistic director, brings powerful theatrical instincts to bear on the score, keeping the action on the boil while shaping the music’s emotional ebb and flow and guiding singers through the opera’s thoughtful soliloquies. The Britten Sinfonia responds with solid, sensitive playing and there are some fine individual contributions, such as a lovely cor anglais solo that accompanies Argelia’s final cavatina. Special mention to the offstage banda who pep up the whistle-along triumphal march. The Opera Rara Chorus also makes a strong contribution, though the microphones have a habit of picking out individual voices.

Italian bass-baritone Nicola Alaimo brings a convincing gruffness to the troubled Murena, creating a compelling portrait of the conflicted senator drive to the edge of sanity. As Argelia, Russian soprano Albina Shagimuratova sings with sweetness as well as strength, throwing herself into the rondo finale and combining a pure, clean coloratura with some exciting, seat-of-the-pants top notes. 

Russian-born Sergey Romanovsky displays a warm, Italianate tenor as Settimio, his top notes secure and his lyrical prison scene suitably pathetic. Catalan baritone Lluís Calvet i Pey makes a distinguished company debut as the thoroughly decent Publio. His voice boasts a rich, heroic timbre while his singing is firm yet flexible. Definitely a singer to watch!

Beautifully recorded with plenty of depth, voices and instruments are deftly balanced (bar the odd chorus moment, see above). Lovers of 19th-century Italian opera will find plenty to enjoy here.

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Composer: Donizetti
Works: L’esule di Roma
Performers: Nicola Alaimo b-bar, Albina Shagimuratova s, Sergey Romanovsky t, Lluís Calvet i Pey bar, Britten Sinfonia, Opera Rara Chorus/Carlo Rizzi
Label: Opera Rara 9293800642 (2CD)