German coloratura soprano Simone Kermes has the dramatic fervor and technical skill to arrest an entire auditorium, which is what she has done since 1993, when she won First Prize at the Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy University Competition. A specialist in Baroque and early Classical music, Kermes possesses a gripping, balanced voice that cuts through strings and woodwinds like a hot knife through butter. Her Handel is emotionally pure and her phrasing, brilliant (“Piangerò”). Vivaldi is arguably where she soars highest, drawing from a deep well of energy and drive (“Agitata da due venti”).