A gripping performance by The English Concert at Carnegie Hall on Sunday
Alexander Chance sang the messenger Lichas with idealistic fire and purposeful clarity.
The drama — all its ambiguity, violence and pain — is right there in the music.
NYT Critic’s Pick, The New York Times
The annual Carnegie Hall visit of Harry Bicket and the English Concert, the superb period-instrument orchestra, is a required date for Handel opera fans.
Soprano Hilary Cronin was a dazzling, lyrical Iole, her precisely calibrated da capo arias capturing the princess’s serene acceptance … She also excelled in the fast, showy aria in which she warns Dejanira to beware of jealousy.
The continuo players—Jonathan Byers (cello), Sergio Bucheli (theorbo) and Tom Foster (harpsichord and organ)—dovetailed seamlessly with the bigger band. Extra color moments came from those mocking oboes
Wall Street Journal
Harry Bicket, The English Concert and an indefatigable cast, bring glory to Handel’s Hercules
A splendid display of finely tuned voices and mesmerizing Baroque energy
Hilary Cronin … stole the show as Iole with one beautifully executed aria after another. Her satiny tone, coloratura, command of dynamics, drama and pinpoint coloratura paid dividends
Seen and Heard International
