Part II: Handel’s Singers
90.9 WGUC (90.9 FM or listen online at www.wguc.org)

Description: Not long after he took up residence in London, Handel started writing opera for the King’s Theatre in Haymarket Street. He quickly won the favor of the fickle English public with virtuoso writing for soprano and the unique voice of the male soprano or castrato. Starting with Rinaldo in 1711, Handel would write operas for three decades. He befriended, and wrote works specifically for, particular singers, including the operatic superstars of his day: the rival sopranos Faustina Bordoni and Francesca Cuzzoni, and the brilliant castrato Senesino, among others. We’ll revel in the astonishing variety of Handel’s arias and duets with performances and stories from the great Handelians of our own day, including Renée Fleming, Cecilia Bartoli, Lorraine Hunt Lieberson, David Daniels, and Andreas Scholl.