Until making this recording Rolando Villazón had sung “barely a note of Handel in public”. There will be some who will question whether his superstar status justifies yet another Handel aria disc, but much of this is invigoratingly performed, and has a smacking impact that some half-hearted anthologies desperately lack. It may be more difficult for some to overlook the inclusion of castrato arias with the vocal part knocked down an octave, which spoils the way the music is balanced, and is unnecessary to what is otherwise a decent programme, no matter how pleasantly the booklet-note attempts to justify it (and the topic of vocal transposition in Handel’s own performances is poorly explained). I disagree with Paul McCreesh’s dismissive remark in the booklet essay that “Handel’s operatic tenor arias aren’t always his best music” – perhaps music from Radamisto (first version), Partenope, Sosarme, Ariodante and Atalanta were not among the “dozens” of arias examined during preparations for the project – but it’s fair to acknowledge that Villazón’s choice to record “Ombra mai fù” follows in the footsteps of Caruso and Tito Schipa.

It is splendid to hear a singer of abundant personality leaping into the suicide scene from Tamerlano with such dramatic authority. Listening to Villazón’s lively rendition of Bajazet’s “Ciel e terra armi di sdegno”, I find myself eager to see him sing the role on stage. He certainly sings extrovert arias very well, albeit in a slightly idiosyncratic way (one imagines that most of Handel’s best opera singers in London were no different in that respect). Moreover, the enthusiasm seems infectious: McCreesh’s Gabrieli Players have rarely sounded better and more dramatically attuned in this repertoire. Grimoaldo’s anguished soliloquy from Rodelinda, which resolves into a gorgeous pastoral aria, is excellently accompanied by the orchestra, although Villazón’s soft lyrical singing occasionally feels a bit closed in, as if a champion racehorse is being kept in a paddock that is too small; in this regard “Caro figlio” from La Resurrezione is much better sung. This disc is zany in some ways, but offers fine rewards.