Review of Mark Minkowski – Handel: Alcina | Concerti.de

Mark Minkowski and Magdalena Kozina have been working together for over twenty years, and in recent years they have overcome a remarkable series of outliers in the Baroque repertoire. Rameau's Phèdre, Charpentier's Médée and now Handel's famous love magician Alcina. The eleven minutes of Alcina's aria “A mio coeur” became the perfect climax to the magic opera and ballet of 1735, perfectly performed by the Louvre musicians and a sensitive and stylistic ensemble. While Kozina tells the story of the suffering of a seductress who loses her magical abilities, it is impressive. Minkowski celebrates hedonism that is always minimally rough and addictive. In the theatrical work created for Covent Garden, Handel proved himself a master not only of composition, but also of exquisite vocal direction and hypnotic illusion.

Handel: Alcina

Magdalena Cosina (Alcina), Irene Morley (Morgana), Alois Mühlbacher (Oberto), Anna Bonitatibus (Ruggero), Elisabeth Deschang (Bradamante), Valerio Contaldo (Oronte), Alex Rosen (Melissa), Louvre Musicians, Mark Minkowski (line)
Pentacles

Magdalena Kozina

She really wanted to be a pianist. When her big dream was shattered at the age of 12 by a serious hand injury, Magdalena Kozina, born in the Czech Republic in 1973, turned to singing. Today she is an internationally successful mezzo-soprano singer

Mark Minkowski

As a conductor, Mark Minkowski is a specialist in historical performance practice, and has gained a particular reputation as an interpreter of little-known Baroque works. Born in Paris in 1962, he learned the bassoon for the first time and gained his first conducting experience in various bands and symphony orchestras. With…continue