Scarlatti: Cantatas for Solo Voice with Violins

While the entire corpus of Alessandro Scarlatti’s cantatas boasts over 800 titles, only a precious fraction of them call for two violin parts in addition to the voice and continuo. Of these, the Quartetto Vanvitelli, in its fifth recording for Arcana (and here joined by Lena Yokoyama as second violin), offers us four unpublished cantatas. Works associated with the formidable Roman patronage of the last decade of the 17th century. More specifically, with “La Giorgina” (as Angela Voglia was known), the celebrated soprano linked first to Christina of Sweden, then to the Spanish Duke of Medinaceli, whose lover she was, both in Rome and at the viceregal court of Naples. The singer entrusted with the task of reviving Giorgina’s voice and appeal is Valeria La Grotta, a Baroque specialist and a distinguished interpreter of a repertoire she has also tackled as a scholar by conducting first-hand research of the sources. This is a valuable addition to the catalogue of an iconic composer, the 300th anniversary of whose death will be celebrated in 2025. Valeria La Grotta, Soprano Quartetto Vanvitelli