Johann Adolf Hasse was twenty-nine years old and on his first visit to Italy when he wrote La Contadina in Naples. The music of the intermezzo, which sparkles with wit and temperament, enjoyed such a great success that a total of thirty-eight productions in major European opera houses can be documented between 1728 and 1769. La Contadina was one of the hits of the eighteenth century.

 

It is hard to believe that this work was composed at the same time as Johann Sebastian Bach’s cantatas and passions. Its strengths include a spirited libretto full of humour and earthy eroticism, and, above all, extremely modern music that is already endowed with all the characteristics of the subsequent “Classical” style. The timeless vitality of the agile recitatives and individually fashioned arias also captivates today’s listeners.

 

At a time of a substantial reappraisal of the work of composers such as Porpora, Vinci, and Mancini, as well as Hasse himself, Glossa and the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis are pleased to be able to reissue this splendid recording which, apart from featuring notable singers in Graciela Oddone and Lorenzo Regazzo, involves fine instrumental players such as Pablo Valetti, Amandine Beyer, Riccardo Minasi and Attilio Cremonesi.