Juan Diego Flórez & Vincenzo Scalera – The Salzburg Recital

The Salzburg Festival, where the world’s most famous artists come together, is always good for great concert experiences – and yet this unique concert is sure to go down in the annals of the festival. With a varied programme of popular Italian airs by Tosti and Leoncavallo, tender French songs by Henri Duparc and old favourites from Italian bel canto, the “Peruvian vocal miracle” (Die Presse) was an utter delight at his soldout lieder recital in the Grosses Festspielhaus. The first of the three encores brought for many the covert climax of the evening: Floréz plucked a guitar and accompanied himself in Consuelo Velázquez’ “Bésame mucho”. With infinite tenderness, gentle heights, heartfelt devotion and seemingly never-ending top notes, Floréz conquered every heart in the house, prompting storms of enthusiastic applause.