Rinaldo (opera)

Rinaldo is an Italian opera by George Friderich Handel. The libretto was written by Giacomo Rossi based on episodes of Torquato Tasso's Geruselemme liberata

Rinaldo was the first opera Handel produced for London and the first Italian opera composed specifically for the London stage. It was first performed in the Haymarket Theater on 24 February 1711. It was a great sucess thanks in part to the participation of two of the leading castrati of the era, Nicolo Grimaldi ("Nicolini") and Valentino Urbani.

Like Handel's other works in the opera seria genre, Rinaldo felt into oblivion for two hundred years. However, starting in the 1970s, it has been revived regularly and has become part of the standard operatic repertoire. There are a several recordings of it, and it is regularly performed. In 1984, a production of Rinaldo was mounted with the American mezzo-soprano Marilyn Horne in the title role at the Metropolitan Opera, the first Handel opera ever performed at the Met. In more recent years, the opera has been revived for the counter-tenor David Daniels, who also participated in a complete recording of it with mezzo-soprano Cecilia Bartoli.