Il pastor fido is the opera Handel wrote for London after the tremendous success of Rinaldo, but its Arcadian theme of shepherds undergoing the trials of love makes it a more intimate and less ambitious piece. It is perhaps this pastoral aspect that David Bates and his forces have in mind for this recording, seeking beauty and clarity of tone rather than a sense of a fully-fledged operatic drama per se.
Anna Dennis as Mirtillo has a beautifully rounded, sensuous quality to her voice, to which she adds a sense of yearning when appropriate. Lucy Crowe’s full tone matches this as Mirtillo’s beloved, Amarilli. Madeleine Shaw as Dorinda is also driven to distraction by the claims of love and interprets her aria Se m’ami, oh caro vividly as the musical expression of a sigh. Although there is occasional unevenness in the other parts, the spacious and resonant acoustic of London’s Temple Church provides a theatricality and depth to the recording that is alluring. All Handelians will want ...
