Born in the Papal States, Gaspare Spontini (1774-1851) was once the biggest fish in France’s operatic pond. The Napoleonic period was his heyday, but even afterwards when his works were more rarely staged, he was admired by the cognoscenti with both Berlioz and Wagner enthusiasts at one time or another.

In 1803, Spontini settled in Paris where he made his fortune thanks to a handful of hits and the patronage of the Empress Josephine. Following the success of La Vestale in 1807, Fernand Cortez, ou la Conquête du Mexique was commissioned by Napoleon himself, and it has to be admitted the whole things smacks of the Imperial penchant for despotic bluster (indeed, the heroic figure of Cortez was a thinly disguised homage to the Emperor and the work’s themes were meant to whip up support for the ongoing French war against Spain). Look beyond the celebration of colonialism and the militaristic crowd scenes, and you can hear why, in his Spontini obit in Evenings with the Orchestra, Berlioz ranked Fernand Cortez on a par with La Vestale.

The opera is dominated by the figure of the famous – or infamous, depending on your...