Last night at the Barbican Centre, my husband and I were entranced by the mesmerising beauty of Philippe Jaroussky’s voice and the talented ensemble of Concerto Koln (Cologne). What a great night for Baroque music it was! With an impressive opening with “The Arrival of the Queen of Sheba” by Handel, the evening went from strength to strength.
At one point, Jaroussky (a countertenor) made an incredibly virtuosic coloratura aria which was met with thunderous applause and much jaw-dropping.
After the concert, Jaroussky had a cd signing for his new cd of forgotten castrato arias, JC Bach: La dolca fiamma. I was second in line at the event, and when I met him, I found him to be delightfully down-to-earth, slightly aghast about the many photos there were of him behind him, and incredibly friendly. An all-around pleasant man, who wore nice modern attire. For a man who has nearly single-handedly brought about a revival in castrato and Baroque music, he seemed slightly shy and this made him all the more agreeable.
I wholeheartedly recommend Jaroussky’s music for not only is he extremely talented, but very pleasant, polite and he seemed genuinely interested in his meeting his fans. If only more performers could be like Monsieur Jaroussky!
He took time to converse with me, which was so nice!
He signed a programme for me, and one for my mother.
I wholeheartedly support your report and views of this charming young man. I was fortunate to be at Foyles the evening before Barbican where M Jaroussky performed three songs from his Opium CD (and an encore) in the intimate Gallery (to about 100-120 person audience) on the third floor of this famous bookshop. Afterwards, he answered questions from the audience, then adjourned to sign CDs and programmes and chatted away as if each of us had all been personal friends. And what a great time we all had at the Barbican – three encores weren’t enough for the audience but it’s good to see that PJ still had the energy to further entertain his fans. How long do we wait for a return??
Thanks Peter. I heard about the Foyles event and I’m sorry I missed it, but I was very lucky to be second in line to meet him after the Barbican event. I wish the music world could have more artists like Jaroussky because he’s got talent and kindness!
Thank you a lot for generous sharing your experience!
Every meeting with Monsieur Jaroussky is an unforgettable event, full of emotion and true feelings. He is an incredible person, an really Sunshine and a great musician.