Valerie Masterson sparkles in stirring coloratura showpiece

Arne: ARTAXERXES - The soldier tir'd of war's alarms, 1986

THE SONGBIRD: Born in 1937, British soprano Valerie Masterson’s career began with opera in 1963 (Frasquita and Nanetta for a season in Salzburg), but switched focus in 1964 to operetta as she became a principal soprano in Gilbert and Sullivan works at the legendary D'Oyly Carte company in England and on tour. In the 1970s, her career expanded to encompass opera, concert, and recital appearances in many major musical centers (Paris, Aix, Prague, Geneva, San Francisco) with, of course, a focus on British opera companies including English National Opera (1971 debut as Konstanze), Glyndebourne (1972 debut also as Konstanze), and Royal Opera at Covent Garden (1974 debut as Woglinde). Other popular roles included Sophie, Cleopatra, Semele, Manon, Marguerite, Micaela, Susanna, Figaro's Countess, Fiordiligi, Pamina, Mimi, Gilda, and Violetta.

THE MUSIC: Thomas Arne's "Artaxerxes" was the first English opera seria, premiering at Covent Garden in 1762. Its plot is based on the historical figure Artaxerxes, who succeeded his father Xerxes who was assassinated. The work was a considerable success seeing hundreds of performances in many productions across the UK and America through the early 19th century. It has been revived only a few times in the modern era, most recently at Covent Garden to commemorate Arne's 300th anniversary, a production that was recorded and released on Linn Records. The most famous aria is an heroic showpiece consisting of seemingly endless strings of triplets: "The soldier tir'd of war's alarms" is sung by the character Mandane in Act 3.