Parental Advisory stickers weren't an option in 1701, so Pope Clement XI censored public performance in Rome with an outright ban on opera. Rather than sit around for ten years waiting for the trouble to blow over, Handel, Scarlatti, and Caldara turned their attention to dramatic oratorios, composing scores of religious works that were operas in all but name. Continuing her tradition of scrupulously researched and imaginatively programmed collections, Cecilia Bartoli's Opera Proibita presents virtuosic arias from this unique period in the musical history of her native city. Marc Minkowski and Les Musiciens du Louvre provide riveting accompaniment to Bartoli's astonishingly flexible and musical voice. The album comes with a comprehensive digital booklet that provides fascinating insight into the world of “forbidden opera.”