What Opera Are You Listening to Now?

[Pohjolas Daughter]

Don Carlo(s) is one of my favourite Verdi operas and I have three different recordings, though what I essentially have is recordings of three different operas.

The Giulini, which would be my first choice, is of the five act version translated into Italian, which restores the Fontainebleau Act I, which Verdi cut for the first Italian performances. The singers are Domingo, Caballé, Verrett, Milnes and Raimondi, all of whom are very fine in their respective roles.

I also have Karajan, who chooses to record the four act version, which cuts the Fontainebleau act, moving Carlo's aria Io la vid to the Monastery scene, which now becomes the first scene of Act I. His soloists are Carreras (in what I believe to be one of his finest recorded performances), Freni, Baltsa, Cappuccilli and Ghiaurov. Apart from the sound, which has a ridiculously wide dynamic range (some parts almost impossible to hear whilst others blast you out of your seat) it is a very fine performance.

Finally I have the Abbado version, which is also five acts but in the original French. This includes an appendix of music either cut before the first performance, or once included and then subsequently cut by Verdi. It is the least satsifactory of the three performances, but it is very interesting to hear the opera sung in the language Verdi composed it to, and it's also interesting to hear the appendices. The cast is variabale (Domingo, Ricciarelli, Valentini-Terrani, Nucci, Raimondi as Philip and Ghiaurov as the Inquisitor) and none of them have particularly idiomatic French, but it's virtually note complete and is certainly worth hearing.

I've reviewed all of them on my blog http://tsaraslondon.com/2017/04/09/verdis-don-carlos-a-comparison-of-three-different-recordings/

Here you go (on CD--haven't checked vinyl yet and this is presuming also that I have all of my Verdi opera CDs organized properly!    ):

Domingo/Caballé/Raimondi/Verrett, etc., with Giulini/Royal Opera House, Covent Garden on EMI
Christoff/Filippeschi/Gobbi/Stella, etc., Roma/Santini on EMI
Lemeni/Picchi/Silveri/Neri/Caniglia/Stignani, etc., Roma Della RAI/ Previtali/ live 1951 on Opera Magic
Bergonzi/Tebaldi/Ghiaurov/Fischer-Dieskau/Bumbry, etc., Covent Garden/Solti on Decca

Thinking that I had had others on CD?  Could be wrong...will check LPs some other time.

The Karajan one that you described sounds particularly tempting!

PD

[JBS]

Anyone have opinions on this one?


I have only two recordings of this opera, the Guilini and Muti with Pavarotti and others

[Tsaraslondon]

The Karajan one that you described sounds particularly tempting!

PD

Were it not for the sound, I'd rate this performance much more highly. Perhaps if I lived in the middle of nowhere or had a completely soundproofed listening room, I'd listen to it more. As it is, I live in a small flat in the centre of London. Even listening on headphones doesn't eliminate the problem, because if you turn the volume up high enough to hear some of the quieter passages, you risk severe ear damage when the next orchestral tutti comes in.

I really do like the performance though, particularly Carreras's Carlo and Baltsa's Eboli. I gave it a separate review on my blog too http://tsaraslondon.com/2019/05/11/karajans-studio-don-carlo/

Thread duty. Today I'm listening to Gergiev's excellent recording of the 1872 version of Boris Godunov.

[Tsaraslondon]

Anyone have opinions on this one?

I've heard it once, I think, quite a long time ago, but it hasn't stayed in the memory. I like Pappano's Verdi and I do like Alagna singing in French, but, aside from him and Van Dam, the cast is still light on French speakers. I should give it a spin again.

[Pohjolas Daughter]

I've heard it once, I think, quite a long time ago, but it hasn't stayed in the memory. I like Pappano's Verdi and I do like Alagna singing in French, but, aside from him and Van Dam, the cast is still light on French speakers. I should give it a spin again.

When you mentioned French versions, I immediately thought of Alagna and am also curious as to what you think of this set.  I'm a big fan of Karita Mattila, but haven't heard her singing in French before and would be most curious to hear what you think of her Elisabeth.

Were it not for the sound, I'd rate this performance much more highly. Perhaps if I lived in the middle of nowhere or had a completely soundproofed listening room, I'd listen to it more. As it is, I live in a small flat in the centre of London. Even listening on headphones doesn't eliminate the problem, because if you turn the volume up high enough to hear some of the quieter passages, you risk severe ear damage when the next orchestral tutti comes in.

I really do like the performance though, particularly Carreras's Carlo and Baltsa's Eboli. I gave it a separate review on my blog too http://tsaraslondon.com/2019/05/11/karajans-studio-don-carlo/

Thread duty. Today I'm listening to Gergiev's excellent recording of the 1872 version of Boris Godunov.

The volume issues could be maddening.  Fortunately, for the time being anyway, I am able to use my speakers and at a decent level and don't have to deal with headphones.; however, I could be tempted to give that up to live in London!   

PD

[Tsaraslondon]

however, I could be tempted to give that up to live in London!   

PD

You say that at a time when I'd be happy to pack up sticks and move somewhere  else in Europe. I'm not exactly happy with the current political and economic climate at the moment.

[André]

Extracts only, but sustantial ones: 50 minutes of Rosenkavalier where Della Casa sings the Marschallin as well as Octavian and Rothenberger, Octavian and Sophie. Both alternate as Octavian. Della Casa's Marschallin and Rothenberger's Sophie are simply stunning.



As an encore they duet as Arabella and Zdenka in the scene and aria Die schönen rosen...Aber der richtige. When the discs' content had been played out Spotify followed it by the string sextet from Capriccio. A nice bit of cyber programming 

[André]

From this box, performances from the RCA vaults:



Recently I listened to a fine performance of this opera by Mitropoulos with singers Mario del Monaco, Zinka Milanov, Cesare Siepi and Leonard Warren - a splendidly sung, dramatically acted performance. This one from RCA tops it in its most important roles (Ernani and Elvira), with gorgeous singing from Bergonzi and Price. The Mitropoulos set comes up trumps with its larger than life Carlo and Silva (Warren and Siepi). The slight flicker in Mario Sereni's voice (Carlo) reminds me of Rolando Panerai. He is excellent and falls short only by Warren's standards. What tips the balance though is the excellent playing of the Rome orchestra, the dynamic conducting of Thomas Schippers and the excellent stereo sound. A reference recording.

[Tsaraslondon]

I only have the one recording of Les Contes d'Hoffmann, but I've never found it completely satisfactory. First of all there is the vexed question of the edition used. I don't much like the placing of the Venice act in the middle. Nor do I much like the spoken dialogue. I know Offenbach never got round to writing the recitatives but there can be little doubt that he wanted the opera to be through composed.

Domingo is in splendid voice and this is, I think, both one of his best roles and one of his best recordings. Aside from her usual problems with diction, Sutherland betrays the problems of casting the same singer in the three roles, which really require three different voices, even if Offenbach originally wanted them to be sung by the same singer. She makes a superb Olympie, not only vocally stunning but also very funny, but she is a not a natural seductress and her Antonia is a bit moony. Excellent performances from Gabriel Bacquier and Hugues Cuénod. I am less happy with Huguette Tourangeau.

The performance has a lot to commend it, but doesn't satisfy me as a single represenative of the opera in my collection. I'm just not sure what would be the best alternative. There is a very fine live Salzburg performance under Levine, with Catherine Malfitano less vocally resplendent than Sutherland, but a much better vocal actress. Van Dam is superb as the villains and Ann Murray preferable to Huguette Tourangeau as Niklausse/The Muse. On the other hand, the sound can't match the studio sound for this Decca release. Any other suggestions?

[Tsaraslondon]

I have a big soft spot for Plasson's complete recordings of Offenbach operettas and this one is no exception. My father was an amateur conductor and Offenbach was his passion. He conducted La belle Hélène, Orphée aux enfers, La vie parisienne and was preparing La grande duchesse de Gérolstein when cancer brought about his untimely death, so these wonderful performances always bring back a host of memories.

Mady Mesplé might have been born to sing Offenbach, but there isn't a weak link in the whole cast, who capture the Offenbach style perfectly.

[Roasted Swan]

I have a big soft spot for Plasson's complete recordings of Offenbach operettas and this one is no exception. My father was an amateur conductor and Offenbach was his passion. He conducted La belle Hélène, Orphée aux enfers, La vie parisienne and was preparing La grande duchesse de Gérolstein when cancer brought about his untimely death, so these wonderful performances always bring back a host of memories.

Mady Mesplé might have been born to sing Offenbach, but there isn't a weak link in the whole cast, who capture the Offenbach style perfectly.

+1 for Plasson's Offenbach.  For me most operas benefit from having singers singing in their 1st language but somehow these operettas benefit even more than usual.  The only thing I 'miss' here is not understanding/ appreciating just how satirical/subversive they were at the time.  So not just great tunes but really barbed with too - Spitting Image does Operetta I suppose!

[Tsaraslondon]

+1 for Plasson's Offenbach.  For me most operas benefit from having singers singing in their 1st language but somehow these operettas benefit even more than usual.  The only thing I 'miss' here is not understanding/ appreciating just how satirical/subversive they were at the time.  So not just great tunes but really barbed with too - Spitting Image does Operetta I suppose!

I think it would be very easy to turn Offenbach's political satire into a comment on our own society today.

[André]

Very nice ! Mesplé is indeed a natural in this repertoire, but so is another favourite singer of mine in this recording, Jane Rhodes. I should place an order  .

[JBS]

Very nice ! Mesplé is indeed a natural in this repertoire, but so is another favourite singer of mine in this recording, Jane Rhodes. I should place an order  .

Before you do...
[Asin]B07NB9BK5M[/asin]

[André]

Before you do...
[Asin]B07NB9BK5M[/asin]

I see (said the blind man  ) ... Thanks for the heads up, I wasn't aware of that set. I gather you recommend it ?

[JBS]

I see (said the blind man  ) ... Thanks for the heads up, I wasn't aware of that set. I gather you recommend it ?

No, I'm thinking of getting it myself. But it does have that exact Plasson recording.  I have good memories of the Perichole--I had it on LP.

The odd thing about it is having 4 operas in German and French. But (per an Amazon review) in three of them, different versions (original vs revised) are presented.

[Tsaraslondon]

Before you do...
[Asin]B07NB9BK5M[/asin]

This is very tempting. I assume it also has this recording in it, which I'm listening to today.



What a joy this set is and what pleasure it is to hear an all French cast sing the language with so much sparkle and wit. I think it's also my favourite Offenbach operetta.

[Wendell_E]

Anyone have opinions on this one?

I just listened to that one last weekend. Here's what I wrote elsewhere:

In anticipation of the Met production of Don Carlos, using the original language for the first time, I bought an item that's been on my wish list for a while: Ricordi's edizione integrale of the piano-vocal score, including all of the music from all seven (!) versions of the opera:

1. The so-called Ur-Don Carlos of the first 1886 rehearsals, before any changes were made.
2. The version of the 24 Feb. 1867 general rehearsal
3. The version of the premiere, 13 Mar. 1867
4. The version of the second performance, two days later, which made more cuts
5. The Naples version of 1872, including revisions to the Phillipe-Rogrigue scene, the only time Verdi actually set an Italian text to music for the opera.
6. The four-act La Scala version of 1882-83
7. And the five-act Modena version of 1886

I've got 7 different versions in my collection, most stick to the two final versions (though Levine adds the original opening from version 1). Bertrand de Billy in Vienna (2004) uses 1. The real cut-and-paste, Frankenstein's monster version is Pappano's 1996 live performance, from the Théâtre du Châtelet, which uses at least four different versions, so that's the one I listened to on Saturday when the score arrived.  I love this version, but textually, it's really messy. Parts of three different versions for the Carlos-Rodgrigue scene in Act II, same for the Phillipe-Rogrigue scene, even including part of that Naples Italian-language version, translated into French. Even when there are only two versions to choose from, as in the scene in Philippe's room or Carlos and Élisabeth's final duet, Pappano goes back and forth between the two, sometimes with additional cuts of his own. Fun!

My go-to for the opera in French is Abbado, though I share reservations about some of the casting. I do use the appendix to play it with the original opening scene.

[JBS]

I just listened to that one last weekend. Here's what I wrote elsewhere:

In anticipation of the Met production of Don Carlos, using the original language for the first time, I bought an item that's been on my wish list for a while: Ricordi's edizione integrale of the piano-vocal score, including all of the music from all seven (!) versions of the opera:

1. The so-called Ur-Don Carlos of the first 1886 rehearsals, before any changes were made.
2. The version of the 24 Feb. 1867 general rehearsal
3. The version of the premiere, 13 Mar. 1867
4. The version of the second performance, two days later, which made more cuts
5. The Naples version of 1872, including revisions to the Phillipe-Rogrigue scene, the only time Verdi actually set an Italian text to music for the opera.
6. The four-act La Scala version of 1882-83
7. And the five-act Modena version of 1886

I've got 7 different versions in my collection, most stick to the two final versions (though Levine adds the original opening from version 1). Bertrand de Billy in Vienna (2004) uses 1. The real cut-and-paste, Frankenstein's monster version is Pappano's 1996 live performance, from the Théâtre du Châtelet, which uses at least four different versions, so that's the one I listened to on Saturday when the score arrived.  I love this version, but textually, it's really messy. Parts of three different versions for the Carlos-Rodgrigue scene in Act II, same for the Phillipe-Rogrigue scene, even including part of that Naples Italian-language version, translated into French. Even when there are only two versions to choose from, as in the scene in Philippe's room or Carlos and Élisabeth's final duet, Pappano goes back and forth between the two, sometimes with additional cuts of his own. Fun!

My go-to for the opera in French is Abbado, though I share reservations about some of the casting. I do use the appendix to play it with the original opening scene.

Thanks. That information cuts my interest by quite a bit. What's the Italian for mishmash?
How is the singing?

[Wendell_E]

Thanks. That information cuts my interest by quite a bit. What's the Italian for mishmash?
How is the singing?

Generally quite good. Some people really don't like Meier as Eboli, and while she's no Verrett, I actually like her a lot more than I'd have thought. Of course, my standards aren't the highest.