Leonardo Leo: Sei Cantate Spirituale, Vol. 1 [World Premiere Recording]

Despite his youth, countertenor Miguel Ulla has performed in such emblematic venues as the Teatro Auditorio San Lorenzo del Escorial, the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela and the basilica of Santa María la Real in Covadonga. This is his second CD, in which he performs with ease in a repertoire as interesting as it is little known by Leonardo Leo, to the extent that this is the first time that these cantatas have been recorded.

The training in this production is small, which helps to recreate an atmosphere of meditation that distances itself from theatrical histrionics. However, even in the most serene interventions a delicate stage expressiveness can be seen, sometimes overwhelmed by an intense extroversion but without excesses, the result of the countertenor's sincere commitment to the text. In the instrumental section there are Fernando Reyes on the archlute, the baroque guitar, and the theorbo, along with Javier Jiménez on the organ and, although the solvent interventions of the key and the plucked string alternate for the sake of variety, as expected, in the Last track you can hear a different register of the organ that makes us miss such variety somewhere in all of the above.

To listen, we recommend listening to the HD audio from the NativeDSD platform, because, although it is already available on other digital services, the audio quality is notable.

Let us hope then that the restlessness and energy of the young performers continues to discover new music and ways of seeing it, because there is life beyond the canon.