Divas of Mozart's Day
Patrice Michaels, soprano
Peter Van De Graaff, bass-baritone
Classical Arts Orchestra
Stephen Alltop, conductor
Cedille Records CDR 90000 064

"Michaels was in top form -- her voice luminous, diction clear and phrasing exquisite. She negotiated the octaves with deceptive ease and her acting was bewitching . . . [The] Classical Arts Orchestra . . . played with spirit and finesse." (Chicago Tribune -- on the concert presentation of Divas of Mozart's Day)

Acclaimed soprano Patrice Michaels evokes the leading prima donnas of classical-period Vienna by singing pieces tailored to their talents by Mozart and fellow composers Salieri, Martin y Soler, Cimarosa, Righini, and Stephen Storace.

Hear works written for Nancy Storace (the original Susanna in The Marriage of Figaro), Caterina Cavalieri (the first Constanze in The Abduction from the Seraglio), Luisa Laschi Mombelli (the first Countess), Adriana Ferrarese (the first Fiordiligi), and Louise Villeneuve (the first Dorabella).

Portraits of these singers emerge through the radiant voice of Patrice Michaels and the period-instrument prowess of the Classical Arts Orchestra, conducted by Stephen Alltop. The program includes two never-before recorded Mozart recitatives and a rarely heard duet Mozart wrote for the 1788 Vienna production of Don Giovanni.

You can find out more about the concert performances of this program at www.mozartdivas.com

Click here to download the CD booklet.