‘O gioia!’ sings everyone on stage at the end of this small masterpiece‚ rejoicing because that which was lost has been found. In the opera the lost item is a gold ring‚ not so very valuable in itself‚ maybe‚ but of vital importance as a token. Let’s hope that all in the audience at the fine little theatre at Cosenza rejoiced as fervently over the discovery‚ 50 years after his death‚ of Cilea’s student­work‚ first given at the Naples Conservatory in 1889‚ preserved only in manuscript and not heard again until this modern première. ‘A small masterpiece’? Even Cesare Orselli‚ writer of the invaluable essay in the accompanying booklet‚ is if anything a little defensive about the absence of ‘structured declamation’ and other features of the ‘formal revolution’ to come. But at this date we can probably recognise this absence as a strength‚ not a weakness. What it means is that the 22 year­old composer could feel free to sing to his heart’s content. Youth is the time for tunes if you’re so lucky as to have them inside you‚ and young Cilea appears to have been a veritable fount. He was also well­skilled in orchestration‚ didn’t undervalue counterpoint‚ and had a workmanlike eye (shown by his many cuts and other alterations in the score) to what was practicable and good theatre. He even had what sound suspiciously like moments of real lit­up‚ carried­away inspiration. The melodramma idillico is in three short acts and has five principal singers. The cast here is stronger on the male than the female side‚ with Gianluca Terranova a particularly attractive lyric tenor (young Di Stefano style)‚ Fabio Maria Capitanucci a warmly resonant baritone worth noting‚ and Andrea Porta a buffo bass who genuinely sings. The women are more uneven‚ Anna Lucia Alessio being not always steady‚ and the powerful Laura Brioli not invariably unsteady. Interestingly‚ the title­role is written (like Mignon‚ as Professor Orselli reminds us) for a high mezzo‚ and Alessio has a warm‚ tenderly expressive timbre when not over­exerted. The players and their conductor give a lively account of the score. The chorus sound also in good spirits in the relatively little they have to do. The recorded sound is good and clear‚ withunobtrusive applause from the audience.