Monteverdi Festival 2023: baroque opera and sacred music in Cremona

The 40th edition of the Monteverdi Festival in Cremona (22-25 June 2023) celebrated Claudio Monteverdi as a master of musical affetti. Highlights included a reconstruction of the first performance of 'Il Combattimento di Tancredi e Clorinda' by La Fonte Musica under Michele Pasotti, with baritone Mauro Borgioni as Testo. At Teatro Ponchielli, a new production of 'L'Incoronazione di Poppea' was directed by Antonio Greco, with Roberta Mameli as Poppea and Federico Fiorio as Nerone, staging by Pier Luigi Pizzi; the opera will tour to Como, Pavia, Pisa, and Ravenna. The closing concert featured Sir John Eliot Gardiner conducting the Monteverdi Choir and English Baroque Soloists in sacred works, including the 'Pianto della Madonna' sung by Silvia Frigato and Mariana Flores, and 'Beatus vir'. Side events included the Fedra Ensemble's jazz-influenced Monteverdi, a duo recital by tenors Raffaele Giordani and Roberto Rilievi, the vocal quartet PassiSparsi performing villanelle by Orlando di Lasso, and the baroque cabaret 'Arnalta Cafè' with Luca Cervoni en travesti accompanied by Concerto Romano.