Based on the Bärenreiter vocal scores, the three volumes in this series contain some of Handel's best-known arias for mezzo-soprano/contralto, tenor and bass, together with some less well-known numbers of equally high musical quality.

The arias in these volumes contain works from Handel's thirty-year period as an opera composer in London and give an impression of the variety of this extensive repertoire. The arias, placed in the chronological order of the operas, display various distinctive technical features and are mostly presented with the pre-ceding recitative or, in a few cases, in the context of an entire scene.

The forewords by Donald Burrows contain detailed notes on Handel's singers and on the context of the arias of the operas.

Published by Baerenreiter.