wyvernfriend
Written on Nov 22, 2014
When Donna Leon, the acclaimed author of the best-selling Commissario Guido Brunetti series, is not conjuring up tales of crime and corruption in Venice, she is listening to opera. Over the years, Leon has noticed that her favourite composer, George Frideric Handel, filled his operas with arias that make reference to animals; rich in symbolism, the perceived virtues and vices of the lion, bee, nightingale, snake, elephant, and tiger, among others, resonate in his works.
In Handel's Bestiary, Leon draws on her love of Handel and her expertise in medieval bestiaries-illustrated collections of animal stories-to assemble a bestiary of her own. Twelve chapters trace twelve animals through history, mythology, and the arias. Each is joined by whimsical original illustrations by German painter Michael Sowa. The accompanying CD includes each aria, expertly recorded by Il Complesso Barocco, Karina Gauvin, Ann Hallenberg, Paul Agnew, and Anicio Zorzi, with Alan Curtis conducting. Fascinating and utterly original, Handel's Bestiary springs to life with Leon's knowledge and wit.
- ISBN10 0434021520
- ISBN13 9780434021529
- Publish Date 5 May 2011 (first published 5 April 2011)
- Publish Status Out of Print
- Out of Print 12 May 2021
- Publish Country GB
- Publisher Cornerstone
- Imprint William Heinemann Ltd
- Format Hardcover
- Pages 144
- Language English
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