Händel - Sacred Cantatas

Classics Today 10/10; Penguin Guide: Rosette; BBC Music Magazine: Pick of the Month.

This album features Handel's Latin motets, highlighting the period around 1705 when Handel shifted his focus to Italy due to uncertainties in Hamburg's opera scene. Sponsored by Ferdinand de Medici and later by influential Roman cardinals, Handel produced music for the elite, including the "Salve Regina" likely performed at Vespers in Rome in 1707. The album includes "O qualis de cœlo sonus," inspired by the Pentecost, and "Cœlestis dum spirat aura," written for St. Anthony's Day in 1707. Also featured is the "Trio Sonata in G minor" and "Laudate pueri," which could have been composed for various joyous church festivities. The performers include soprano Emma Kirkby and London Baroque, directed by Charles Medlam, recorded in 1999.