Monteverdi’s Orfeo is the first great opera – the moment when psychological truth and musical virtuosity came together to tell a story of love, loss and the power of art.

Sir John Eliot Gardiner – making the first of two appearances this year, tonight with the English Baroque Soloists – transforms the Royal Albert Hall into the 17th-century Mantuan court of the Gonzagas with some of Monteverdi’s loveliest melodies and most colourful instrumental writing, bringing the tale of Orpheus and his beloved Eurydice to fresh musical life.

Monteverdi Orfeo 128’
(sung in Italian)

Cast to include (in alphabetical order):
Krystian Adam tenor
Francesca Aspromonte soprano
Francesca Boncompagni soprano
Gianluca Buratto bass
Mariana Flores soprano
Nicholas Mulroy tenor
David Shipley bass
Andrew Tortise tenor
Gareth Treseder tenor

Monteverdi Choir
English Baroque Soloists
Sir John Eliot Gardiner conductor

There will be be no interval