Album: Julia Lezhneva, Rossini (Naïve)

Few young singers have been as widely celebrated so early in their careers as Kiri Te Kanawa's protegé, the moon-faced Russian soprano Julia Lezhneva.

She has chosen for her debut recital recording a selection of several of Rossini's longer arias, and it's easy to understand why: Lezhneva's voice is perfectly suited to a flamboyant coloratura piece such as "Tanti Affetti", from La Donna del Iago, with her tiptoeing trills teetering delicately along. But the standout here is "Assisa a' piè d'un salice", Desdemona's celebrated "Willow Song" from Shakespeare's Othello, for which the liquid harp glissandi and subtle strings of the Sinfonia Varsovia provide the most delightful, sensitive setting.

DOWNLOAD THIS Assisa a' piè d'un salice; Tanti Affetti; Bel raggio lusinghier