Basso furioso José Coca Loza, La Cetra Basel, Andrea Marcon

• George Frideric Handel (1685 – 1759): Ezio, HWV 29, Act III Scene 13:
• 1 Handel: Ezio, HWV 29, Act III Scene 13: Recitativo. Che indegno! 00:57
• 2 Handel: Ezio, HWV 29, Act III Scene 13: Aria. Già risonar d'intorno 04:53
• Antonio Caldara (1670 – 1736): Le profezie evangeliche di Isaia, Pt. 1:
• 3 Caldara: Le profezie evangeliche di Isaia, Pt. 1: Sì, perfida gente 04:44
• Handel: Acis and Galatea, HWV 49b, Pt. 1:
• 4 Handel: Acis and Galatea, HWV 49b, Pt. 1: Accompagnato. Mi palpita il co 02:02
• 5 Handel: Acis and Galatea, HWV 49b, Pt. 1: Aria. Affanno tiranno 03:55
• Caldara: Scipione nelle Spagne, Act III Scene 15:
• 6 Caldara: Scipione nelle Spagne, Act III Scene 15: Di timpani e trombe 04:55
• Handel: Ariodante, HWV 33, Act II Scene 5:
• 7 Handel: Ariodante, HWV 33, Act II Scene 5: Invida sorte avara 06:12
• 8 Handel: Aci, Galatea e Polifemo, HWV 72, Pt. 2: Fra l’ombre e gl’orrori 05:17
• 9 Handel: Tamerlano, HWV 18, Act III Scene 7: Recitativo. Principessa infelice 00:52
• 10 Handel: Tamerlano, HWV 18, Act III Scene 7: Aria. Nel mondo e nell’abisso 04:46
• Caldara: Gionata, Pt. 2:
• 11 Caldara: Gionata, Pt. 2: Occhi, che vi fissate nel sole 13:50
• Caldara: Gioseffo, che interpreta i sogni, Pt. 1:
• 12 Caldara: Gioseffo, che interpreta i sogni, Pt. 1: Ecco il dì, che di gigli e di rose 06:00
• Handel: Ariodante, HWV 33, Act I Scene 7:
• 13 Handel: Ariodante, HWV 33, Act I Scene 7: Voli colla sua tromba 04:04
• Handel: Floridante, HWV 14, Act III Scene 8:
• 14 Handel: Floridante, HWV 14, Act III Scene 8: Recitativo. Ah, traditor Coralbo 00:27
• 15 Handel: Floridante, HWV 14, Act III Scene 8: Aria. Che veggio? Che sento? 03:59
• Handel: Agrippina, HWV 6, Act II Scene 4:
• 16 Handel: Agrippina, HWV 6, Act II Scene 4: Recitativo. Nella Brittania vinta 00:33
• 17 Handel: Agrippina, HWV 6, Act II Scene 4: Aria. Cade il mondo soggiogato 03:26
• Total Runtime 01:10:52

Info for Basso furioso

While there is no proof of any direct interaction between Handel and Caldara, it seems likely that their paths crossed in Italy between 1706 and 1710. Their careers then diverged, with Handel settling in London and Caldara becoming Vize-Hofkapellmeister to Charles VI in Vienna. One quality the two composers shared was the central role they both assigned to the bass voice, which is often employed in the “arie di furore” so characteristic of Baroque opera. These are works designed to showcase the voice’s range, agility and virtuosity.


In this, his first solo recording, the Bolivian José Coca Loza offers a selection of arias composed by Handel for the great virtuosos of the age like Antonio Montagnana and Giuseppe Maria Boschi, and four Viennese arias written by Caldara for Christoph Praun. Also including various premiere recordings, the album offers a significant contribution to the rediscovery of the Baroque repertoire for bass.

Accompanying the extraordinary Coca Loza is Andrea Marcon conducting La Cetra Basel orchestra on period instruments, a partnership whose acclaimed recording of Bach's Mass in B minor already features in the Arcana catalogue.

José Coca Loza, bass
La Cetra Basel
Andrea Marcon, conductor

José Coca Loza
Zurich-based Bolivian bass José Coca Loza’s current and recent seasons include appearances as Alidoro in La Cenerentola at Teatro Sociale di Rovigo (Italy), as Silvano in La Calisto at Festival d’Aix-en-Provence, Opéra de Rennes, Théâtre Graslin (Nantes), Grand Théâtre d’Anger, Théâtre des Champs Elysees (Paris), Théâtre de Caen, as Pallante in Agrippina at Opernhaus Zürich, a tour of Arsilda by Vivaldi with La Cetra Barockorchester at Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Auditorio Nacional de Música in Madrid and Palacio de Festivals de Cantabria in Santander, the title role in Porpora’s Polifemo at Opera National du Rhin, Opera de Lille and Opéra Royal de Versailles, Astolfo in Orlando Furioso at the Bayreuth Baroque Opera Festival, Achilla in Giulio Cesare under the Baton of Gianluca Capuano, the Bass solo in Handel’s Messiah in Boston with the Handel and Haydn Society, Melisso in Handel’s Alcina at the Royal Opera House in London, Alidoro in La Cenerentola at the Wiener Staatsoper, in Prague and on tour with Cecilia Bartoli at Lucerne Festival, Palau de la Musica in Barcelona and Auditorio Nacional de Música in Madrid, Fiorello in Rossini’s Il Barbiere di Siviglia at the Opera de Montecarlo, Jesus in the Johannes Passion in Madrid with RTVE at Teatro Monumental.

Other performances include Caronte in L´Orfeo with L’Arpeggiata, his Royal Opera House Covent Garden debut as Lesbos alongside Joyce DiDonato in the season opening production of Agrippina, Astolfo in Orlando Furioso at Tchaikovsky Hall, Der Messias at the Mozart Woche in Salzburg, at Theatre Champs Elysees and Grand theatre Geneve, Haly in L’italiana in Algeri with Ensemble Mattheaus at Salzburg Festival and at the Opéra Royal de Versailles, Clistene in L’Olimpiade with La Cetra Barockorchester at Amsterdam Concertgebouw, Mustafa in L’italiana in Algeri with Orquesta Ciudad di Granada, Truffaldino in Ariadne auf Naxos at the Festival de Música de Canarias, Mozart’s Requiem with Tonhalle Orchester Zurich and with The Hague Philharmonic.

After completing his studies at the Music Conservatory of Basel, he joined the Opera Studio at Theatre Basel, where he sang such roles as Melisso in “Alcina”, Alte Diener in “Elektra”, and Marchese d’Obigny in “La Traviata”. He is a pupil of Silvana Bazzoni since 2014.

Andrea Marcon
is one of the most renowned musicians and specialists in the field of early music and classical music. Born in Treviso in northern Italy, he studied at the Schola Cantorum in Basel with Jean-Claude Zehnder, Hans Martin Linde and Jordi Savall as well as Luigi Fernando Tagliavini, Hans van Niewkoop, Jesper Christensen, Harald Vogel and Ton Koopman.

He has been artistic director of La Cetra since 2009. In fact, his partnership with La Cetra Barockorchester Basel began back in 1999 with the ensemble’s very first concert. Since then, he has led it from highlight to highlight on international concert tours.

As founder of the legendary baroque ensembles “Sonatori de la Gioiosa Marca” and the Venice Baroque Orchestra, Andrea Marcon has performed in all the world’s major concert halls for many years. He has also worked as a guest conductor with the Munich and Berlin Philharmonic Orchestras, the Bavarian and Hessian Radio Symphony Orchestras, the Bamberg Symphony Orchestra and many others, and in recent years has also devoted himself to the symphonic repertoire of Beethoven, Schubert, Mendelssohn, Schumann and Brahms. As an opera conductor, he has been invited to conduct at the Frankfurt Opera, the operas in Valencia, Seville and Lausanne, La Fenice and the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow, among others. In spring 2023, he made his debut at La Scala di Milano.

Over 80 often award-winning recordings as a conductor, harpsichordist and organist, some of which include rediscoveries of Vivaldi, Caldara, Marcello, Galuppi, Porpora, Cimarosa and Boccherini, document the rich repertoire he is still involved with today.

In 2021, he was awarded the Handel Prize of the City of Halle for his services to Handel’s music.

La Cetra
is now one of the leading Baroque orchestras in the world, and the ensemble has an unprecedented international presence with performances in the most important concert halls such as the Concertgebouw Amsterdam, Philharmonie de Paris, Festspielhaus Baden-Baden, Konzerthaus Wien, Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, Theater an der Wien, Carnegie Hall New York and at the most renowned festivals such as the Innsbruck Festival of Early Music, Festival de Granada, Festival Aix-en-Provence and many more. In August 2023, La Cetra has a residency at the Musikfest Bremen.

La Cetra owes its dynamic development above all to the award-winning harpsichordist and conductor Andrea Marcon, under whose musical direction the orchestra has been since 2009.

La Cetra’s explicit credo is that scholarly background work, intensive study of historical instruments, performance practice and the historical context of the works performed ultimately serve only one purpose: to make so-called early music accessible to people today – in lively, gripping, contemporary interpretations. La Cetra was awarded the European Early Music Prize for this in 2009.

La Cetra is also active as an opera orchestra, realising a baroque opera production every season with the Theater Basel, and has also been a guest at the Dutch National Opera and La Scala di Milano with staged productions.

Numerous critically acclaimed CD recordings document La Cetra’s rich oeuvre. Recent releases include the three-CD recording of Leclair’s violin concertos with Leila Schayegh – honoured with the Diapason d’Or – as well as the albums “Sopranista” with Samuel Mariño, “Traversée” with Patricia Petibon and “A tribute to Bach” with Maurice Steger.

The CD release of Monteverdi’s “Vespro di Natale” with Andrea Marcon on Deutsche Grammophon in October 2022 was enthusiastically received by audiences and the press.

Booklet for Basso furioso