Giuseppe Verdi- Simon Boccanegra (1881 version) with: Ludovic Tézier, Marina Rebeka, Francesco Meli, Michele Pertusi, Mattia Olivieri, Andrea Pellegrini, Vasco Maria Vagnoli, Silvia Cialli, choir (led by Fabrizio Cassi) and the Orchestra of the San Carlo Theatre in Naples, conductor Michele Spotti. The performance was recorded in October 2024, in Naples.

Today we listen for the first time to a recording of Simon Boccanegra by Giuseppe Verdi which got released by Prima classic on the 9^th of January, which is a work included in the Discs of the Year 2026 project. The recording was made during a series of concerts of this opera which got performed at San Carlo Theatre in Naples in October 2024. Prima classic is a record label that is already 8 years old and was founded by the soprano Marina Rebeka along with her husband Edgardo Vertanessian, a sound engineer. The melodrama Simon Boccanegra - which contains a prologue and three acts - was composed by Verdi based on libretto by Francesco Maria Piave, and it is based off of the play of the same name by Antonio García Gutiérrez. The score from 1857 was not considered successful due to the original libretto - which was difficult to understand -, so it was due for a revision. The 1881 version with Arrigo Boito's contribution for the libretto was appreciated by the public without being an actual success, but it gained appreciation over time.

We are listening to a cast that brought together some of today's most acclaimed and sought-after opera singers.

In the main role of the Genoese corsair turned Doge we have Ludovic Tézier to delight us with his excellent performance as one of the greatest baritones of our time. His phrasing is elegant, he has a refined legato, while his theatrics are equally successful, which exude the nobility befitting the status of the character which he plays.

Have you ever found yourself humming along while listening to a recording? Well, the voice of soprano Marina Rebeka will make you do just that. The Latvian artist delivers a beautiful interpretation in the role of Amelia Grimaldi with her warm, tender, yet slightly metallic voice, which is well-suited for the part, and she manages to impress us with her multitude of pianissimi and dreamlike trills.

The patrician Jacopo Fiesco (who got changed into Andrea Grimaldi) is played by the bass Michele Pertusi. He has a sombre, introverted voice of cantabile bass, and a well-rounded emission which can become imposing when necessary, just like within the scene of the last act, where the traitor Paolo is condemned.

Amelia's fiancé, the young nobleman Gabriele Adorno is played by the tenor Francesco Meli. A sensitive, highly expressive artist, but with a vibrato that is far too prominent within the higher registrar.

The baritone Mattia Olivieri is Paolo, the Doge's favourite (whom he will betray). He bears a good voice, offers an appropriate interpretation, but not as incisive as required for the character, if we think about the curse scene at the end of Act I, or the condemnation scene in the final act.

The courtier and Paolo's friend Pietro is played by the bass Andrea Pellegrini, which is yet another appropriate voice in this solo ensemble. The tenor Vasco Maria Vagnoli is the Captain of the Guards, while the mezzo-soprano Silvia Cialli is Amelia's maid, with both of the singers being members of the choir at the same time. Although a small role, the Captain's part exposes the soloist to the public, giving him the opportunity to assert himself in this role, which Vagnoli did so brilliantly.

The ensembles are part of the San Carlo Theatre in Naples, while the orchestra provides good support for the vocal artists, and the choir (led by Fabrizio Cassi) is deeply expressive, as per the end of Act I: the hissed lines from Sia maledetto increased the dramatism of the moment. The conductor Michele Spotti was at the helm, who is currently the music director of the Marseille Opera and Philharmonic Orchestra.

Overall, there is a homogeneous cast with voices in beautiful harmony that are growing rarer nowadays, but which pay respect to Verdi's romantic style.