Antonio Caldara, born in Venice around 1670, served as maestro di cappella in both Mantua and Rome. From 1716 until his death in 1736 he was vice-Kapellmeister at the Habsburg court in Vienna, where he was a favourite of the Emperor Charles VI, himself a skilled musician. Caldara’s output, sacred and secular, was prodigious: during his years in Vienna he composed around 40 operas or small-scale dramatic pieces for the Carnival season and for the imperial family’s birthdays and name-days.

Writers on Caldara tend to the view that his operas for Vienna are formulaic – perhaps on account of the pressure he was under – compared to his earlier works. This might be so: certainly, two “rage” arias here – “Non tremar” and “O mi rendi” have much in common, such as vigorous string parts and roulades for the voice. But much is striking, albeit not strikingly dramatic. Nine arias are to texts by Metastasio. Two are from La clemenza di Tito: “Opprimete i contumaci” is marked by an obsessive violin figure, while “Se mai senti” – which Mazzolà rewrote and recast for Mozart – has an unusually extensive and touching ritornello. “Mentre dormi” is a charming lullaby, scored for two recorders. The librettist of the remaining arias was Apostolo Zeno, Metastasio’s predecessor as Caesarean Poet. “Tutto fa nocchiero esperto” is surprisingly gentle, considering the storm-at-sea metaphor, with an almost Bachian violin obbligato, affectingly played by Markus Hoffmann.

If I’ve concentrated on the accompaniments, it’s because Caldara’s scoring is so rich. Philippe Jaroussky, a male soprano rather than a countertenor, brings this obscure repertoire to life: seamless legato, fluent runs and – unlike some of his confrères – no cause for alarm above the stave. A fine follow-up to Jaroussky’s “Carestini – The Story of a Castrato” (3/08).