A rarity from the Spanish Baroque. We have had a few José de Nebra zarzuelas recordings before, but this is the first ever by José Castel, a name I can´t recall ever hearing before. For those of you that don´t know, a zarzuela in the 17 and 18 centuries meant a work with spoken texts and musical numbers, rather like a German Singspiel, but nothing to do with popular music theatre like in the late 19 Century zarzuelas.
This zarzuela is very charming, and the Italian influence that King Carlos III demanded from his composers is evident. At the end there is a terrifying coloratura aria that surely made the soprano hysterical.
The recording is competent, the sopranos are fine, only the tenor seems a little stretched beyond his possibilities, and young conductor Pablo Heras-Casado shows a firm grip of the music.
