Classic CD: Arie Napoletane, Bach

Bach, Birthday Cantatas (Arie Napoletane).

Arie Napoletane (Decca).

The opening chorus of the second cantata which easily lives up to its opening line, 'Sound ye drums, Ring out, ye trumpets'.

Countertenor Max Emanuel Cencic's new Arie Napoletane is an engrossing collection of operatic showpieces by Alessandro Scarlatti, Leonardo Leo, Leonardo Vinci and Nicola Porpora.

Italy's southernmost city has always been famous for its popular songs such as O Sole Mio and Funiculi Funicula but in the 18th century, it was also one of the country's liveliest operatic centres.

The well-travelled English historian Charles Burney, touring Naples in 1770, may have found musical activities on the streets to be noisy and vulgar, but one visit to a theatre impressed him with music that was full of fire and fancy. This is just what Cencic catches on this splendidly recorded outing, in partnership with that doyen of Baroque bands, Il Pomo d'Oro, under Max Emelyanychev.

The first Porpora aria is particularly brilliant, with the singer as the wandering Ulysses conveying, in appropriate coloratura, the terror of encountering a fearsome lion. Within a track, Cencic is the lovelorn hero of Leo's opera Demetrio, with exquisitely nuanced phrasing exploring his full and lustrous vocal range.

"Beautiful, cherished eyes, stars of my beloved, my soul longs for you to grant it solace" is the plea poignantly delivered in a moving aria by Alessandro Scarlatti.

Alas, Cencic makes 11 appearances on this disc; the remaining 15 minutes being squandered on a bustling but rather ordinary harpsichord concerto by Domenico Auletta.

The latest release from Masaaki Suzuki and his Bach Collegium Japan features two of Bach's Birthday Cantatas written for the royal court of Saxony.

This is Bach at his very best and the composer knew it, quickly recycling some of this music into the more celebrated Christmas Oratorio, including the opening chorus of the second cantata which easily lives up to its opening line, "Sound ye drums, Ring out, ye trumpets".

Soloists are excellent. Soprano Joanne Lunn deftly embroiders her intricate line into an aria praising the "expertly held flutes" and countertenor Robin Blaze, with two harmonious oboes at his side, urges us, "Do not sing the long-familiar songs."

With gorgeously buoyant yet resonant choral singing and sprightly instrumental backgrounds to match, this is a disc destined for frequent revisits.

Verdict: Two invigorating investigations of Neapolitan operatic gusto and German birthday celebrations.

Arie Napoletane
(Decca)

Bach, Birthday Cantatas
(Arie Napoletane)