Pietro Mascagni (1863-1945)
Ode à la joie (Alla gioja), cantate pour solistes, chœur et piano

Rosita Santi, soprano
Michael Alfonso, ténor
Massimiliano Fichera, baryton
Stefano Rinaldi Milani, basse
Andrea Trovato, piano
Chœur Città di Firenze
Ennio Clari, direction

With its monumental structure, Alla gioja looks like a typical conservatory work. Many decades later an older Mascagni judged it to be «a composition beyond my reach» despite «the great beauty that it contains». The only exception was salvaging the baritone’s romanza for “Qui sedes” in the Messa di Gloria. For almost fifty years, the scores for orchestra and for voice and piano mysteriously disappeared, and it was only recently that the manuscript was returned to Mascagni’s heirs, who have generously made it available for the edition edited by Ennio Clari. Thus, to celebrate the 150th anniversary of the birth of Mascagni, Alla gioja has been brought back to life.