Welcome back for this week’s look at the latest CD and DVD releases in the opera world.

This week, Decca celebrates Pavarotti while many artists release solo albums. There are also some historical performances that audiences will not want to miss.

Songs of Passion 

The new album is a collection of vocal and instrumental music by John Dowland and Henry Purcell, performed by mezzo-soprano Lea Desandre, lutenist Thomas Dunford, and the Jupiter Ensemble.

Repertoire includes Dowland’s Lachrimae and vocal works from his First and Second Book of Ayres, as well as vocal selections from Purcell’s “Dido and Aeneas” and “The Fairy Queen.” Baritone (and fellow Erato artist) Huw Montague Rendall makes a guest appearance in Purcell’s “Strike the Viol,” and Jupiter Vocal Ensemble members Laurence Kilsby, Jess Dandy, and Alex Rosen join Desandre as soloists on other featured tracks.

Vivaldi: La Gloria e Imeneo

Naïve Classiques releases Abchordis Ensemble and Andrea Buccarella’s Vivaldi album featuring Teresa Iervolino and Carlo Vistoli. The album will continue the company’s exploration of Vivaldi’s lesser-known works.

Passing Fancy: Beauty in a Moment of Chaos

AVIE Records releases the debut of New York City early music ensemble Sonnambula. The new album traverses music by several Renaissance composers who were forced to conceal their identities for social, religious, or ethnic reasons.

Gluck Arias

Signum Classics releases Ian Page and The Mozartists’ latest album featuring Gluck arias sung by the celebrated mezzo-soprano Ann Hallenberg.

The backbone of the program is provided by three arias from “Il trionfo di Clelia” as well as previously unrecorded arias from “Ipermestra” and “Le nozze d’Ercole e d’Ebe.” There are also arias from “Orfeo ed Euridice” and “Paride ed Elena.”

Alba: Beyond Borders

Maria Brea and pianist Dror Baitel explore the connection between Latin American and Jewish cultures. Lexicon releases this testament to the enduring power of music to transcend boundaries and bring together rich and resonant musical traditions.

On Serenata a Napoli

Samoan tenor Pene Pati explores the Italian art form of canzone napoletana. Characterized by its lyrical expressions of passion, melancholy, and joy, Neapolitan song enjoyed a golden age in the late-19th and early-20th centuries. Alongside such beloved hits as “O sole mio” and “Funiculì-Funiculà,” the album includes songs by Francesco Paolo Tosti, Enrico De Leva, Mario Pasquale Costa, Salvatore Gambardella, and others.

DONIZETTI SONGS VOLS 5 & 6

Opera Rara releases the fifth and sixth volumes in its Donizetti Song Project, featuring 18 songs in Italian and 19 songs in French performed by the charity’s Artist Ambassador Ermonela Jaho and Artistic Director Carlo Rizzi.

Luciano Pavarotti: Novanta

Decca Records releases “Novanta,” the ultimate greatest hits package of Luciano Pavarotti. The 2LP set includes his most popular arias, signature songs, iconic live moments, rarities, new discoveries, and previously unreleased tracks.

Novanta is part of Decca’s year-long campaign posthumously honoring the legendary opera singer’s 90th birthday in October 2025.

Novanta consists of almost 100 minutes of music across 74 tracks. Alongside opera, Italian classics, and sacred music, the collection will include several special recordings, including duets with Tracy Chapman, Bono, Elton John, and Andrea Bocelli, as well as two previously unreleased arias from Llangollen.

Broken Eyes

Alois Mühlbacher releases his new album on Solo Musica featuring Johann Sebastian Bach’s cantatas. The album features him together with his mentor Franz Farnberger, and the ensemble PALLIDOR, founded in 2023.

Gilbert & Sullivan: The Gondoliers

William Morgan, Mark Nathan, Ellie Laugharne, Gwen Davies, Yvonne Howard, Richard Suart, Ben Mcateer, Catriona Hewitson, Arthur Bruce, Dan Shelvey, Cheryl Forbes, and Oskar McCarthy star in the 12th opera by Gilbert and Sullivan from the Scottish Opera. Derek Clark conducts the production by Stuart Maunder.

George Bizet: 20 Songs

Ondine releases the debut album by the award-winning Lithuanian mezzo-soprano Justina Gringytė, who is accompanied by acclaimed pianist Malcolm Martineau for this recording of George Bizet’s long-forgotten masterpiece.

Wennerberg-Reuter – Stenhammar – Hallén

BIS releases pianist Peter Friis Johansson’s album, which has assembled a group of renowned musicians, including violinist Johan Dalene and soprano Sofie Asplund, for a program that juxtaposes three generations of Swedish composers.

Schubert: Quintette Imaginaire

Alpha releases Sandrine Piau’s new album featuring Quatuor Psophos. The album features teh soprano and ensemble in music by Schubert.

In a statement, Piau said, “Today, the Psophos Quartet and I are together exploring … the harmonious relationship between the hairs of the bow and the grain of the voice. Alpha Classics, our loyal partner, has once more accompanied us in this venture … in which voice and strings intermingle and dissolve in an imaginary Schubertian quintet.”

Le Coeur et la Raison: Clérambault, Lalouette.

Alpha releases the new album by the ensemble La Néréide. The ensemble of three sopranos, Camille Allérat, Julie Roset, and Ana Vieira Leite, performs works by Louis-Nicolas Clérambault and Jean-François Lalouette.

The World Feels Dusty

Dame Sarah Connolly and Joseph Middleton present a program of art songs from a variety of composers. Among the composers on the recording include Chausson, Barber, Debussy, Copland, and Errollyn Wallen. Chandos Releases.

Bridges of Voice and Soul

Delos releases Arsen Soghomonyan’s debut album. He is joined by the Kaunas City Symphony Orchestra and Constantine Orbelian. The recording comprises Italian repertoire staples including Puccini’s “Nessun dorma” and “E lucevan le stelle,” Verdi’s “Niun mi tema,” Leoncavallo’s “Vesti la giubba,” and many more.

Advena: liturgies for a broken world: Music of Mark Buller.

Craig Hella Johnson and Conspirare perform the world premiere recording of “Advena: liturgies for a broken world”

In a statement, Johnson said, “We find ourselves in a pivotal cultural moment – one that calls for expressions of beauty and truth, offered both for inspiration but also as acts of resistance. This collaborative art – Mark Buller’s music and the words of Leah Lax and Euan Tait – creates a space of welcome where we are reminded of our shared humanity, our urgent need for bold truth-telling, and our capacity to heal and grow.”

Campra: Requiem & Miserere

Les Arts Florissants and William Christie perform music by André Campra, whose works are marked by elegance, emotional clarity, and spiritual depth.

Penatatone releases.

Hans Gál: Music for Voices, Volume Three

Carolyn Sampson joins the Pixels Ensemble, Borealis Choir, and Bridget Budge for music by Hans Gál. Stephen Muir conducts the recording released on Toccata Classics.

Hector Berlioz: Roméo et Juliette

Alfreda Hodgson, Philip Langridge, and John Shirley-Quirk star in Berlioz’s work with the Chor des Bayerischen Rundfunks (Südfunk-Chor) and Radio-Sinfonieorchester Stuttgart des SWR. Gary Bertini conducts the recording released by SWR.

The live recording is from 1982.

Boris Papandopulo: Hrvatska misa (Croatian mass)

Croatian composer Boris Papandopulo’s mass is recorded by Darija Auguštan, Sonja Runje, Tomislav Mužek, and Ljubomir Puškarić. The Chor des Bayerischen Rundfunks is conducted by Ivan Repušić.