Musicologists concur with the judgement of late-17th-century writers and musicians: Alessandro Stradella (1639-82) was the finest Italian composer of his generation. Little is known about him beyond notorious scandals and his grisly death in Genoa at the hands of an unknown assassin; nobody has ever proved who ordered the hit but legends of a jealous patron of a pregnant actress are hard to shake off. One encounters nothing but reverence for the musical accomplishments of the pioneer of concerto grosso instrumentation, innovator of dramatic oratorio, prolific developer of the chamber cantata, etc, so the paltry discography of currently available recordings is perplexing.

One can imagine better documentation than Brilliant Classics accord to these two new Italian recordings of oratorios; neither booklet contains a libretto and I am fed up with labels telling me to find one somewhere at their website. Ester was written during Stradella’s early career in Rome; only the vocal and basso continuo parts survive. Luca Franco Ferrari does not attempt to reconstruct the missing string ritornellos but fields an elaborate basso continuo group of viola da gamba, cello, violone, trombone, theorbo, guitar, harp, harpsichord and organ. The gutsy result is more convoluted than is necessary or plausible and brief choruses are heavy-handed – one imagines Stradella designed them to be sung by only the soloists; the moralistic coda sung by 16 beefy voices sounds silly. Meritorious music includes the stile antico Hebrew chorus conveying lamentation of impending doom (‘Armati sol d’oltraggio’), the bullying bass Aman’s sarcastic instruction for the Hebrews to weep (‘Piangete pur, piangete’) and Esther’s emotive petition to Assuero (‘Supplicante, è prostrate’), but the performance is inadequate.

La Susanna was commissioned by Duke Francesco II d’Este and first performed in Modena’s Oratorio di San Carlo Rotondo in Lent 1681. It has a superior libretto and a helpful surviving musical source that includes a sinfonia and numerous passages requiring three-part strings (played expertly by Harmonices Mundi); Claudio Astronio approaches continuo practice and instrumentation minimally and sensibly, and the choruses are sung rightly by the experienced soloists. Two corrupt old perverts yearning for erotic satisfaction from the virtuous Susanna provide the finest performances: Sergio Foresti suavely implores for relief from the pangs of desire (‘Freddo gelo e fiamma interna’) and Mirko Guadagnini complains that he is fettered in the chains of hopeless lust (‘Ancor io d’Amor fui colto’). Gemma Bertognolli seems to be experiencing vocal discomfort in Susanna’s beguiling music as she bathes innocently while the sinister voyeurs loiter nearby; she is on better form in the prison scene ‘Da chi spero aita, o Cieli’ – an exquisite lament over a ground bass enhanced by increasingly chromatic violins that reminds us that Purcell reputedly admired Stradella’s music. Ensemble Aurora’s more polished version deserves to be reissued (Glossa, 2004 – nla) but Astronio’s capable performance will reward anyone interested in the development of Italian oratorio between Carissimi and Handel.