It’s a bit of historical fiction on this week’s Sunday Opera (4/11 3:00 p.m.) with George Frideric Handel’s “Alessandro.” Closer to a comedy than a drama, this 1726 work looks at Alexander the Great who, although he’s in mid-conquest of India, cannot make up his mind regarding which of two women he loves. Alexander finally makes up his mind just in time for a happy ending. The cast on this recording features Rene Jacobs in the title role with Sophie Boulin and Isabelle Polenard as the two women vying for his affections. The rest of the cast includes Jean Nirouet, Stephen Varcoe, Guy de Mey, and Ria Bollen. Sigiswald Kuijken conducts La Petite Bande.
We’ll close with the Concerto a due cori No. 1, one of three instrumental pieces that were written as intermezzi for some of Handel’s oratorios.
