Christoph Willibald Gluck: Orfeo ed Euridice
Boston Baroque
Boston Baroque Orchestra and Chorus
Martin Pearlman, conductor
CAST: Owen Willets (Orfeo); Mary Wilson (Euridice); Courtney Huffman (Amor)
Of Gluck's two interpretations of the Orpheus story, Orphée, the French version, is probably the more striking -- with a famous, bravura aria and couple of well-known ballet numbers. But this version, in Italian, was the original, and is widely regarded as Gluck's masterpiece. Its premiere, in 1762, was a landmark event in 18th-century musical theater.