JOHANN CHRISTOPH PEPUSCH (1667-1752): Venus and Adonis (First Recording).

Description: Described as a “masque”, this 1715 English-language stage work is really a miniature Italianate opera with 15 da capo arias connected by parlando recitative and served as a model for Handel’s Acis and Galatea. Virtuosic and dynamic, it also sports several attractive uses of obbligato wind instruments for dramatic effect in selected arias. And, at 85:03, it’s the longest single CD we’ve seen yet. English libretto. Ciara Hendrick, Philipp Hyde (sopranos), Richard Edgar-Wilson (tenor), The Harmonious Society of Tickle-Fiddle Gentlemen; Richard Rawson.