One of the most enjoyable “gems from” Handel discs in recent years was “Amor e gelosia”, a recital of duets sung by Patrizia Ciofi and Joyce DiDonato that was warmly greeted by Stanley Sadie in these columns (Virgin, 10/04). DiDonato now presents a selection of arias, entitled “Furore”, that is just as fine; indeed, it’s superior in that the accompaniment is provided by a chamber orchestra rather than the spare tones of the one-to-a-part Il Complesso Barocco.

The pieces are by no means all “furious”. But most are passionate, and passion is something that DiDonato does well, as her Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni at Covent Garden showed recently. A good example is the accompanied recitative “Orride larve” from Admeto, where the king rages at his fate. The following aria is quite different, a calm acceptance of death that DiDonato sings with affecting simplicity.

Would that the same could be said of her cadenzas and embellishments. As with many other singers, the decorations hover on the borders of good taste; and starting the da capo of “Sorge all’alma” a third higher was not a good idea.

The selection is refreshingly unhackneyed, “Scherza infida” from Ariodante and “Where shall I fly?” from Hercules being among the few predictable arias; and although there is an excerpt from Serse, it isn’t “Ombra mai fu”. Full marks for including some secco recitatives. And now perhaps we could have a moratorium on Handel recitals: Marijana Mijanovic´, Danielle de Niese, Renée Fleming, Mark Padmore, Ian Bostridge…how many more do we need?