Leppard's approach at the time was admirable - he won converts for this repertoire in the face of intense scepticism. And we must always be grateful to him for having done so, and for persuading well-known singers, like Dame J.B., to appear in his productions.
However, the scholarship behind the idea of a tiny ensemble is pretty impeccable, since the salary-books for the musicians survive... we even know their names individually. One point where I'd disagree slightly is the assumption that they were only string-players... musicians of that time were almost
always multi-instrumentalists, and within that group of 5-6 players (plus Cavalli himself at the harpsichord/organ) there would have been the capacity for timbre-changes... doubling on lutes, recorders, possibly cornetts, and some other instruments. So I doubt it was limited to "only" a string ensemble. (The existence of many of these operas in "top instrumental line and continuo only" versions surely can't be accidental - Rene Jacobs has, let's remember, invented whole inner parts for his performances, and they're entirely speculative in nature).
But the point is well-made that the band used for a 400-seater theatre would be inappropriate in the ROH (I'm not aware of ENO ever having tried to do Cavalli - although they did Monteverdi last year, I wasn't around for that show).
I fear the Jacobs approach isn't based on genuine HIPP concerns - but instead on trying to "repackage" these operas with an "early music symphony orchestra" to make them "acceptable" to a large-scale opera-going public with TOP-type musical expectations
More tomorrow once I've seen it
David Alden's producing, so there should be something worth seeing. We ought to remember that the C17th productions had phenomenal stage-machinery and special effects, and lavish costumes... so "tarting-up" the scores is probably the wrong approach in terms of keeping audience attention?
