Eternal Heaven is a collection of sublimely beautiful arias and duets by Handel. Conceived as a spiritual experience, it ranges from blissful serenity to urgent drama as it tells a love story. All the numbers, sung to English texts, have been selected from Handel oratorios by the lutenist Thomas Dunford and the mezzo-soprano Lea Desandre, both exclusive Erato artists. They are joined by the British countertenor Iestyn Davies and by the instrumentalists of Dunford’s Jupiter Ensemble. Expressing the narrative behind the programme, Thomas Dunford has described Eternal Heaven as “a baroque West Side Story”. It draws on works with both sacred and secular elements, including the Ode for the Birthday of Queen Anne (‘Eternal source of light divine’), Theodora, Solomon and Semele. BBC Radio 3 has called it “A very contemporary take on some great Handel favourites.”