Recording

Gluck Arias | Ann Hallenberg with The Mozartists & Ian Page

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Gluck Arias | Ann Hallenberg with The Mozartists & Ian Page
The cover artwork for The Mozartists’ album of Gluck arias

FIRST PUBLISHED 14 NOV 2025 | LAST UPDATED 11 DEC 2025

Ian Page and The Mozartists’ latest recording, released on Signum Classics 26 September 2025, is a programme of Gluck arias sung by Ann Hallenberg. With this album, the acclaimed Swedish mezzo-soprano secured her third International Opera Award in the Recording (Solo Recital) category, following previous wins in 2014 and 2016.

The backbone of the programme is provided by three arias from Il trionfo di Clelia (Bologna, 1763) that were written for the renowned castrato Giovanni Manzuoli (1720-1782) – one of the greatest singers of his day – and the disc also includes previously unrecorded arias from Ipermestra (Venice, 1744) and Le nozze d’Ercole e d’Ebe (Dresden, 1747). Also featured is Gluck’s revised version of the exquisite ‘Che puro ciel’ from Orfeo ed Euridice (written for Parma in 1769), and the popular ‘O del mio dolce ardor’ from the last of the composer’s three so-called ‘reform’ operas, Paride ed Elena.

The album won the ‘Best Operatic Recital’ Award at the 2025 International Opera Awards, making Ann Hallenberg a three-time winner in that category (after 2014 and 2016), while Ian Page’s previous Gluck recording with The Mozartists (Blessed Spirit – a Gluck retrospective) was selected by Gramophone magazine among the top 10 Gluck recordings of all time. Following previous partnerships in the opera house and the concert hall, this is Hallenberg and Page’s first collaboration in the recording studio.

Ann Hallenberg with Ian Page & The Mozartists in one of the recording sessions
Ann Hallenberg with Ian Page & The Mozartists in one of the recording sessions

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­Ian Page says: ‘In an age where so much music of the past is being explored and made available, Gluck nevertheless remains one of the most neglected and undervalued of the great composers, a name that continues to crop up more often in textbooks than in opera houses or concert halls. The programming and recording of this album was a hugely enjoyable and rewarding process, and we hope that the disc will inspire a new wave of Gluck enthusiasts.’

The album was released on Signum Classics and is available to purchase from The Mozartists' website.

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