Mortal Voices

Pergolesi’s beautiful Stabat Mater is his best-known work and one of the finest settings of this sorrowful song to Mary at the Crucifixion. A hidden gem in this concert is Handel’s cantata Ah! che troppo ineguali, an anguished appeal of mortal voices to Mary to extinguish every spark of warlike fury and bring peace – it is paired here with the altogether earthier cantata Il Duello Amoroso. Almost a mini-opera, it tells the story of an 'amorous duel' between the shepherd Daliso and the shepherdess Amaryllis, the music perfectly capturing the drama of the story.

"The AAM players captured the style and grace of this music with lightness of touch and with individuality in phrasing and ornamentation, and the dramatic effects were riveting" Classical Source