Album: Aleksandra Kurzak, Gioia! (Decca)

There's a gamine appeal about young Polish soprano Aleksandra Kurzak, who brings an innocent enthusiasm to the arias on this debut collection, negotiating the richly ornamented phrases with an almost exultant relish.

Her joie de vivre is well-suited to the "laughing aria" from Die Fledermaus, "Mein Herr Marquis", while her vibrato during "Regnava nel silenzio", from Lucia Di Lammermoor, is so controlled it's astonishing to learn she received no vocal training till she was 19. She had prepared to be violinist or pianist, before following in the footsteps of her mother, with whom she appeared in Le Nozze Di Figaro, from whence derives the seductive "Deh vieni, non tardar".

DOWNLOAD THIS Regnava nel silenzio; Deh vieni, non tardar; Mein Herr Marquis; O mio babbino caro