We live in a time of Tristan & Isolde ó recordings of the great Wagner opera, that is.
Category: Reviews
ROSSINI: Moise et Pharaon
Rossini’s original Italian opera, Mose In Egitto, was re-adapted as Moise et Pharaon for Paris. A new libretto, the renaming of certain characters, some new music, a ballet and reordering of the original music make up the newer version.
Billy Budd at ENO ó Two Reviews
ENGLISH NATIONAL OPERA: ëUnder no circumstances to be missedí (The Guardian), Neil Armfieldís illuminating reading of Billy Budd receives its long-awaited London premiere. In the season in which Benjamin Britten becomes ENOís House Composer, this engrossing WNO/Opera Australia production is the perfect salute to a great British masterpiece.
An American Tragedy ó Three Reviews
THE METROPOLITAN OPERA: The American author Theodore Dreiser published An American Tragedy in 1925 and it quickly became a classic. Based on a true story of a man who was found guilty of murdering the woman who was carrying his baby, while he was simultaneously pursuing another woman of a higher social class, Dreiserís novel tells the story of a mid-western preacherís son who tasted a little sophistication on his way to death in the electric chair.
DONIZETTI: Lucia di Lammermoor
A superstar in Europe, Edita Gruberova can rest assured that future generations have the opportunity to appreciate her artistry: the record label Nightingale Classics exists primarily, it seems, to record her in her greatest roles.
FAUR…: The Complete Songs, Vol. 2
As the second of four of the thematically organized recording of the Complete Songs of Gabriel FaurÈ (1845-1924), Un paysage choisi is an excellent offering of chansons that concern selected natural places, that is to say, the ìchosen landscapeî indicated in the title of this volume.
PROKOFIEV: Ivan the Terrible
Sergei Prokofievís Ivan the Terrible? Which one? Prokofiev composed music for Sergei Eisensteinís film (part 1, 1942-44; part 2, 1945) about the sixteenth-century ruler, and the score is catalogued as op. 116. After the composerís death, music for the film was arranged first into an oratorio (with speaker, soloists, chorus, and orchestra) by Alexander Stasevich (1961) and later into a concert scenario by Christopher Palmer (1990).
Songs of Vaughan Williams and Ives
Ralph Vaughan Williams and Charles Ives; both known more for their symphonic music than anything else, receive superb tributes in these recordings of some of their early songs. Only two years separate the birth dates of these composers; but the musical language each speaks seems to put far more distance than that between them.
BIZET: Carmen
Two recent releases document performances of Georges Bizetís Carmen that took place within just a few months of each other. The casts share many of the same performers, most notably the conductor and the interpreter of the operaís title role.
Michele Pertusi – Recital
Bass-baritone Michele Pertusiís voice is captured in this recital disc after only two years of formal studies. Taking this into account one can forgive what he calls ìimperfections: a few, slight musical errors, some invented or switched words, a Neapolitan pronunciation that is not quite perfect, an English one which could be improved on, a few marred notes.î