Cecilia Bartoli & Sol Gabetta - Cecilia & Sol: Dolce Duello (2017) [CD Rip]

The Cappella Gabetta, with cellist Sol Gabetta joined by a Baroque chamber ensemble led by her brother Andrés, has attracted top-notch vocal collaborators: first Vivica Genaux on an album of music by Handel and Hasse, and now no less than Cecilia Bartoli on this collection of Baroque arias featuring solo cello. It may sound like an arcane concept, and the breezy project graphics may have little or nothing to do with it, but the two performers do seem to have fun with the music and to deliver the "sweet duels" promised by the title. Sample the enticing "What passion cannot music raise and quell," from the Ode for St. Cecilia's Day, for a taste of the two "voices" that complement each other as well as in any vocal duet. The performers went to some lengths to find arias with this particular configuration, and it speaks well of their efforts that they've located some rather rare works that stick in the ear. The aria by Haydn's teacher Porpora does not set off vocal fireworks, but it must have been written to showcase the talents of a cellist, and it's as satisfying a duet today as it was on the day it came into existence. The final Cello Concerto No. 10 in D major of Boccherini does not quite fit with the rest stylistically; one of Vivaldi's cello concertos might have been a better bet. Yet this is in the main a fine offbeat choice featuring some star performers. -- James Manheim