Il Boemo
("
The Bohemian
") was composer
Josef Myslivecek
, who was close to the
Mozart
family. This Czech film appears to be based partly on unsubstantiated gossip included in the
family correspondence, but
Myslivecek
had a pretty interesting life, even leaving hypothetical romantic intrigue aside; he worked for some years as a miller before turning to composition and, like
in his later years, he was a pure freelancer. His nose was destroyed in a botched surgical effort to alleviate his syphilis symptoms. The film is a project of director
Petr Vaclav
and
Collegium 1704
conductor
Vaclav Luks
, and it is partly aimed at raising the profile of
, which remains low, at least outside Czech-lands.
wrote 26 operas, 55 symphonies, and numerous other works, and
admired him.
's symphonies have been recorded from time to time, but his all-important operatic output, all of it in Italian and in the opera seria form, has not, and therein lies the substantial general interest of this recording. Among the operas is an "
Adamo ed Eva
." Many of the arias here sound a good deal like
, with the uncanny simplicity
so often had, rather than the big, ornate sound of the usual opera seria. Then, one realizes that he was doing this before
learned to sound like himself (
died in 1781). Sample the aria "Il caro mio bene" from the 1780 opera
Armida
(which failed and sank
's previously soaring fortunes).
Luks
assembles a fine group of mostly Eastern European singers, of whom
Simona Saturova
in this aria is a representative example; the veteran countertenor
Philippe Jaroussky
also makes multiple appearances. Under
,
manages an idiomatically sweet Classical-era sound, something that still eludes many groups specializing in the Baroque. Essential for
enthusiasts, this release is enjoyable listening for anyone and may well contribute to the filmmakers' goals; one hopes that the film achieves wide distribution so that album listeners can hear the arias in place. ~ James Manheim