Francesco Cavalli - La Calisto (Sébastien Daucé)

Information

Composer: Francesco Cavalli

• La Calisto

Lauranne Oliva; Alex Rosen; Paul-Antoine Bénos-Djian

Anna Bonitatibus; Giuseppina Bridelli; Dominic Sedgwick

Zachary Wilder; David Portillo; Théo Imart; José Coca Loza

Ensemble Correspondances

Sébastien Daucé, conductor

Date: 2026

Label: harmonia mundi

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Today, La Calisto is widely regarded as the most frequently performed and best-known opera by Francesco Cavalli, exemplifying his genius and central role in 17th-century Venetian musical life. Despite a turbulent premiere in 1651 and centuries of relative neglect, the work has gained lasting recognition for its expressive richness and dramatic vitality. In a modern interpretation, Sébastien Daucé reimagines the score with an expanded ensemble of thirty-five instrumentalists, far exceeding the original forces. Under his nuanced and flexible direction, Ensemble Correspondances delivers a vibrant performance, highlighting the opera’s subtlety and enduring artistic power.

Francesco Cavalli (1602–1676) was a leading Italian opera composer of the mid-17th century and a central figure in Venetian musical life. A student of Claudio Monteverdi at St. Mark’s Basilica, he later became maestro di cappella in 1668. Cavalli played a key role in shaping early opera, contributing to the development of recitative and aria forms while composing for relatively small ensembles without formal choruses. His works, including Didone and Egisto, influenced European taste and sparked stylistic exchanges between Italian and French traditions. Widely performed in Venice’s public opera houses, his operas combined musical expressivity with elaborate staging and continue to see modern revivals.

Sébastien Daucé (b. 1980) trained in postgraduate studies at the CNSM de Lyon with Yves Rechsteiner and Françoise Lengellé before performing under conductors such as Kenneth Weiss, Gabriel Garrido, Toni Ramon, Françoise Lasserre, Geoffroy Jourdain, and Raphaël Pichon. He assisted Weiss at the Aix-en-Provence Festival in 2006–07 and worked at the Abbaye-aux-Dames in Saintes. In recent years he has focused on the music of Marc-Antoine Charpentier, editing three operas in collaboration with William Christie. His early recordings with Ensemble Correspondances earned major critical acclaim, receiving distinctions including Choc de Classica, Diapason Découverte, and awards from the Académie Charles Cros.