Inaudito: Il soffio di Partenope

THE BREATH OF PARTENOPE

Baroque Ensemble of Naples

Tommaso Rossi, recorder

Ugo Di Giovanni, archlute

Manuela Albano, cello

Anonymous, 17th century
Tarantella

A. Scarlatti (1660–1725)
Sonata in G major for recorder and basso continuo (1699)
Tempo giusto, Arioso, Allegro, Allegro, Largo, Presto, Gigue

L. Leo (1694–1744)
Sonata VII for recorder and basso continuo
Largo, Allegro, Largo, Allegro

N. Fiorenza (?–1764)
Sonata for solo recorder by Signor Fiorenza
Amoroso e Largo, Allegro, Largo, Allegro

L. Leo
Sonata in G minor
Largo, Presto, Largo (Arpeggio), Allegro

F. Mancini (1672–1737)
Sonata IV in A minor for recorder and basso continuo (1724)
Spiritoso, Largo, Allegro, Largo, Allegro spiccato

The Baroque Ensemble of Naples was founded on the initiative of Tommaso Rossi, Raffaele Di Donna, and Marco Vitali, making its debut on May 2, 2010, to mark the 350th anniversary of Alessandro Scarlatti’s birth. Since then, as part of the activities of the Alessandro Scarlatti Association of Naples, the ensemble has performed numerous programs centered on the music of the great composer, within the framework of a true research project. This project led, in 2012, to the ensemble’s first recording, dedicated to the complete cantatas with obbligato flute by Scarlatti.

In 2014, the group released its second album, featuring Leonardo Leo’s flute sonatas—recorded here for the first time ever.

In recent years, the ensemble has performed for Radio3 and has been invited to festivals and concert seasons including the Valletta International Baroque Festival (Malta), Ravello Festival, Festival Leonardo Leo, Opera Giocosa di Savona, Magie Barocche in Catania, A.M.A. Calabria Concerts, the University Concert Institution of Rome, and the Accademia degli Sfaccendati.

In 2019, the ensemble released the project Il Soffio di Partenope on the Sony-Deutsche Harmonia Mundi label. This work is dedicated to wind music by composers of the Neapolitan school, and is part of a research project carried out in collaboration with the Abchordis Ensemble of Basel.

In 2021, they released a CD featuring flute sonatas by Robert Valentine, titled An Englishman in Rome.