It has been claimed time and again that Gabriel Fauré was a reluctant and indeed unsuccessful composer for orchestra. Fauré certainly appears to take little interest in symphonic tone and timbre. The 100th anniversary of the composer’s death on 4 November 2024 offers an opportunity to reassess his orchestral oeuvre.

Jean-Philippe Rameau’s opera Castor et Pollux was an outstanding success, though initially in the reworked version of 1754. The performance material for this work is now available. The volume from the Complete Edition will follow.

Opera or oratorio? There is still uncertainty about the classification of Handel's "Semele". What is certain is that this full-length work is filled with musical gems and lends itself well to staged performances due to its fast-paced plot.

During the fasting season in Handel's London, dramatic works were not allowed to be performed. This prompted the composer to revive an Italian oratorio he had composed thirty years earlier in 1737 and enrich it with choruses.

Georg Friedrich Handel's "Song for Cecilia's Day" HWV 76, composed in 1739, underwent, like many works of genius, revisions and expansions. The new volume in the "Halle Handel Edition" includes all early and late versions, enabling historically informed performance practice based on the latest source evaluation.

Cavalli's opera "Scipione Affricano" offers many possibilities for realisation on stage. In addition to the love plot, the opera also deals with the themes of freedom and slavery. The new edition which is part of the critical edition “Francesco Cavalli-Opere” offers opera houses a dependable basis.

The premiere in 1749 was a failure, but the second version of 1756 was highly acclaimed. Jean-Philippe Despite optimal production conditions and context, the premiere in 1749 was not a success. Only with the second fundamentally revised version of his “Zoroastre” did Jean-Philippe Rameau win the affections of the public. The theme of Louis de Cahusac’s libretto, drawn from ancient Persian sources, is the battle between good and evil, fought out here by the religious reformer Zoroastre and his adversary, the ambitious sorcerer Abramane. This drastic dualistic juxtaposition enabled the librettist to introduce elements of ritual and belief from Freemasonry. With Graham Sadler’s new edition of the second version, published as part of the “Opera Omnia Rameau”, and the performance material available on hire, this successful performance tradition can now be continued.