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The Guardian 0

Top soloists bring Thomas Arne’s The Judgment of Paris to life; plus, an evening with the outstanding Schumann Quartet

• The fire that ravaged the first Covent Garden theatre in 1808 destroyed more than an auditorium; it claimed much of Britain’s 18th-century musical heritage, including a pipe organ Handel had played, and many full scores. Thomas Arne’s opera Artaxerxes and his masque of 1742, The Judgment of Paris, were victims of the flames, but fortunately parts of the masque had been published, and Congreve’s text still existed, so in the 1970s editor Ian Spink was able to rebuild its recitatives and choruses. Now, 40 years later, this charming piece is available in a world premiere recording from the Dutton label that features a first-rate lineup of soloists.

Tenor Ed Lyon sings Paris, the shepherd charged with the decidedly un-PC task of choosing which goddess is the sexiest. It’s a tough job, but someone has to do it; no wonder he sings “Save me from Excess of Joy”. Sopranos Mary Bevan, Susanna Fairbairn and Gillian Ramm as, respectively, Venus, Pallas and Juno, vie with each other for the prize, with tenor Anthony Gregory as Mercury, Jove’s messenger. It’s all sung with a suitable lightness of touch, with sparkling accompaniment from the Brook Street Band, all artfully directed by John Andrews.