News & Reviews

★★★★

“…Two muscular tenor arias and a fine trio and quartet are also remarkable, but the most celebrated number is the exquisitely lyrical and much anthologised soprano aria ‘Ruhe sanft’, sung with melting elegance on this beguiling new recording by Sophie Bevan. Allan Clayton is bright-toned and full-blooded in the lead tenor role, and the upcoming Stuart Jackson and Darren Jeffery are richly characterful as dastardly Muslims. Ian Page conducts an excellent orchestra with an ideal combination of elegant poise and mercurial sparkle. Any attempt to stage or complete Zaide seems to flop, but who could fail to be charmed by such gorgeous music, so stylishly executed?”

Daily Telegraph, October 2016

“Classical Opera and conductor Ian Page here turn their attention to Zaide with a recording that would effortlessly sweep the boards…

…The performance of the opera’s de facto final quartetto, ‘Freundin, stille deine Tränen,’ is representative of this disc as a whole. Mozart deploys the voices of Zaide, Gomatz, Soliman, and Allazim with intelligence, and Page, the orchestra, and the singers respond in kind. With Bevan’s Zaide as the center of emotional gravity and Page’s conducting providing the necessary centripetal force, they indelibly broaden the theatrical efficacy and musical significance of Mozart’s discarded score… This recording of Zaide is a splendid achievement with which every Mozartean should celebrate the 260th anniversary of the master’s birth.”

Voix des Arts, September 2016

“it is Page who is the hero here. Drawing outstanding playing, he makes every note and inflexion count, his acute perception apparent throughout a performance that crackles with an intensity never achieved at the expense of obscuring orchestral detail or lyrical warmth.”

Opera, December 2016

“As with previous titles in this series we can appreciate the care and attention which Ian Page and Classical Opera bring to the music, with finely shaped melodic lines, and attention to detail and clarity of texture in Mozart’s fine orchestrations…

…Page and his performers give a finely satisfying account of the torso. They combine poised performance with a sense of drama… All in all a highly satisfying release.”

Planet Hugill, September

★★★★

“Conductor Ian Page breathes new life into Mozart’s operatic torso.”

Financial Times, September 2016