Bryn Terfel - Handel Arias (1997)

Bryn Terfel has it all. His rich, deep baritone voice is capable of navigating the rapids and doing the vocal leaps and cartwheels that Handel routinely demands of his singers, even the ones with big, deep voices that usually move more slowly. He is Welsh, and in his mastery of words–clarity of projection and precise emotional expression–he calls to mind another great Welsh performer, Richard Burton. This recital, accompanied by Sir Charles Mackerras with skill and sensitivity, runs the whole gamut of Handel's vocal styles, from military bluster (powerfully present in the first aria, "Arm, arm, ye brave") to humble piety (in the second selection, "Vouchsafe, O Lord"). There is erotic awe in "Where'er you walk," comic grotesquerie in "O ruddier than the cherry," and pure splendor in "The trumpet shall sound." A marvelous recital.