Leonardo Garcia Alarcon - La Finta Pazza14 December 1645: for the pleasure of the Queen Mother Anne of Austria, and attended by a young King Louis XIV, Cardinal Mazarin put on the first Italian opera in Paris. The Italian company, invited at great expense, performed Sacrati's La Finta Pazza, composed in Venice in 1641. To capture the young 7 year old monarch's interest, a flurry of monkeys, bears and ostriches was added! The opulent set decoration by Giacomo Torelli, boasting machinery the

it was initially consigned to respectful oblivion

but takes it on 'a walk through the Asian tradition' in the course of seven variations

This is a sort of self-portrait of the Great Organ of the Royal Chapel of Versailles

he finds a unique and warm voice that takes you on a musical journey into many different landscapes

Razor sharp hooks incite sing-along choruses within songs that are equal parts punk in aggression and heavy metal in sheer power that dig deep down to the roots of heavy rock and roll

And now they're taking care of a little one together

Odd Borge Sagland - Response

A leading authority on the fortepiano

He continued his studies in Aspen and then in Paris with such masters as Darius Milhaud

an album steeped in everyday emotional states and crafted for cathartic

he eventually created almost 400 scores

and it is prevalent throughout this album