Vivaldi's Tito Manlio

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Given that so few of Vivaldi's operas have been recorded complete, it might seem rather a pity that two rival versions of Tito Manlio (written in only five days in 1719 for a princely wedding in Mantua, which was cancelled at the eleventh hour when the bride failed to turn up) should appear almost simultaneously. However, these recordings—from Modo Antiquo, conducted by Federico Maria Sardelli (CPO 777 096-2, rec 2003, 195′) and from Accademia Bizantina, conducted by Ottavio Dantone (Naïve op 30413, rec 2005, 185′) do in fact provide a valuable opportunity to reflect on some of the problems involved in presenting complete Baroque operas on CD. Even the finest audio recordings of opera, of course, provide only half the intended experience. Indeed, if Baroque operas set in ancient Greece and Rome were, for their original audiences, a kind of 18th-century equivalent to a lavishly produced Classical TV costume drama, in which genuine historical events provide the setting and raison d'être for assorted romantic entanglements, then a CD version is the equivalent of a radio play, in which everything must be conveyed by voices alone, without any help from stage action or visual spectacle—or even, where these particular recordings are concerned, from sound effects.