At the dawn of the 19th century, the guitar was a very widespread instrument both in courtyards and living rooms. Vienna and Paris were cultural centres of great appeal, attracting artists and musicians from all over Europe. The transcription of operatic pieces was a common practice and intended for those who wished to remember, listen to and in some way perform the beautiful pieces heard in the theatres. On this CD there are arias and cavatinas by more or less known authors, all linked to the Neapolitan school; the transcriptions were done by François Doisy, Anton Diabelli, Mauro Giuliani, Roger Dias, George Henri Derwort, and many of them are recorded here for the first time. The soprano Alessandra Borin performs this “bel canto” florilegium with an incredible ductility of her vocal technique, accompanied by Alessandro Marchiori playing a copy of the historical guitar Etienne Lapravotte (ca 1830), built by the luthier Gabriele Lodi di Carpi (Modena, Italy).