Rebirth, Sonya Yoncheva

“Sonya Yoncheva is one of the most sought-after sopranos in the world. While she has triumphed in Verdi and Puccini, she has never forgotten her love for Baroque music, as shown in Rebirth, a new album released by Sony. In this recital, she is accompanied by Leonardo García Alarcón’s ensemble, Cappella Mediterranea. The programme features both well-known and lesser-known composers, including Monteverdi, Francesco Cavalli, Barbara Strozzi, John Dowland and Alessandro Stradella. In addition to arias, she also presents a cover of an Abba song and a Bulgarian melody that pays tribute to her native country.”

Jean-Michel Dhuez for Radio Classique

A recital by Sonya Yoncheva

Thanks to the lockdown in the spring of 2020, Sonya Yoncheva and Leonardo García Alarcón were finally able to make the album they had been talking about for the last decade. In addition to presenting a message of hope, Rebirth also explores the idea that silence and inactivity can spur creative renewal. This fourth album by the Bulgarian soprano spans more than five centuries of music, from traditional songs to pop, focusing in particular on the operatic repertoire of the 17th century.

“[Sonya Yoncheva] [Sonia Yoncheva] returns once again in a musical ‘rebirth’ that brings a new voice and approach to music by Monteverdi, Cavalli, Strozzi and more. Yoncheva’s collaborators are the wonderful Cappella Mediterranea and their artistic director Leonardo García Alarcón. Always game for some reinvention in the service of musical drama, they here set aside their usual incisive attack to become a ‘halo’ of sound around the soprano – tone consciously softened and blurred at the edges, as though the entire ensemble has become a single lute. Alexandra Coghlan for Gramophone.

Artists

Sonya Yoncheva, soprano
Cappella Mediterranea
Leonardo García Alarcón, conductor

Released on 12 March 2021 by Sony Classical – 70 minutes

Purchase the disc on the Fnac website