Emöke Baráth & Andreas Scholl

The Roman general and statesman Gaius Julius Caesar and the Langobardic queen Rodelinda cannot have had very much in common. One ruled as dictator over Ancient Rome, the other endeavoured in the seventh century to do her utmost to stay on the throne. But strangely enough, both attracted the interest of the early eighteenth century. Caesar and Rodelinda were given star treatment pre-eminently in the operatic compositions of the Baroque era – countless interpretations in music theatre tell stories woven around these two protagonists. However, they attained immortality in music above all through George Frideric Handel, who in February 1724 breathed new stage life into the Roman and in February of the following year the Langobardic queen. And suddenly the two personalities were no longer so alien: Cesare loves Cleopatra, and Rodelinda loves Bertarido. But in each case, happiness in love is baulked by political intrigues, and the couples have to overcome overwhelming passions, greed for power and treachery on the way to living happily ever after.

Soprano Emöke Baráth and countertenor Andreas Scholl are supreme experts in the realm of head-spinning Baroque vocal virtuosity and well versed in the highs and lows of passions sculpted in music. In their Bayreuth Baroque debut they invite us in arias and duets to relive in a new and intimate way two of the most poignant and thrilling theatrical works ever written.

With areas and duets from George Frideric Handel’s Giulio Cesare in Egitto, Rodelinda, regina de’ Longobardi et al.