Kate Lindsey, Arcangelo & Jonathan Cohen - Tiranno - The Observer

The UK-based American mezzo-soprano Kate Lindsey, versatile in repertoire from early to ink-still-drying, is skilled at building diverse material into a satisfying theme. Her 2020 album Arianna explored the abandonment of Ariadne by Theseus. Her latest, Tiranno, with Arcangelo conducted by Jonathan Cohen (Alpha Classics), examines tyranny and oppression through the figure of the Roman emperor Nero.

In addition to Handel’s turbulent dramatic monologue Agrippina condotta a morire, and Alessandro Scarlatti’s Il Nerone, two works are given premiere recordings: Bartolomeo Monari’s La Poppea and Scarlatti’s La morte di Nerone. The exchange between Nero and Lucan (tenor Andrew Staples) from Monteverdi’s L’incoronazione di Poppea is a particular highlight. Emperor and poet spin whispered, ever more erotic lines in drooling celebration of love. The players of Arcangelo deftly match their subtle colours. In the celebrated duet Pur ti miro, Lindsey is joined by the rising-star soprano Nardus Williams as Poppea, both pressing the dissonant harmonies almost to a point of distortion, to expressive and ecstatic effect.