{"id":5318,"date":"2019-07-09T14:26:13","date_gmt":"2019-07-09T13:26:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.larkreviews.co.uk\/?p=5318"},"modified":"2019-07-09T14:26:13","modified_gmt":"2019-07-09T13:26:13","slug":"cdsdvds-july-2019","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.larkreviews.wickedlemon.co.uk\/?p=5318","title":{"rendered":"CDs\/DVDs July 2019"},"content":{"rendered":"
Puccini: Madama Butterfly<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n
Glyndebourne Festival Opera<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n
OPUS ARTE OA 1167 D<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n

This is a captivating and very moving account which avoids gimmicks and yet brings us a fresh and disturbing vision of the world American Imperialism. In the opening scene we are in Goro\u2019s office where sailors are passing through to buy local girls. Pinkerton is marrying Cio-Cio-San but the transaction is hardly any different, and there is nothing romantic about the event except for the music which brilliantly reflects the inner-lives of those involved. Behind everything is the film of life for Japanese brides in the promised land of the USA.<\/p>\n

Joshua Guerrero \u2018s Pinkerton is na\u00efve rather than brash, but comes to take his position more seriously as the work progresses. Olga Busuioc is a touching Butterfly who matures and becomes heroic by the final scenes. Michael Sumuel is a fine Sharpless, aware of the pitfalls but unable to prevent the tragedy.<\/p>\n

Omer Meir Wellber\u2019s conducting is whole-hearted, extrovert and totally engaging. I didn\u2019t see this live in the house and now wish very much that I had done so!<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Mascagni: Cavalleria Rusticana<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n
Maggio Musicale Fiorentino<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n
DYNAMIC 37843<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n

This is musically a very sound performance, full-blooded and tightly controlled by Valerio Galli but for once I feel it might have been better as an audio release rather than DVD. The production by Luigi Di Gangi and Ugo Giacomazzi is conventional to the point of dullness, and allows the singers to ignore each other and sing straight to the audience. The chorus, who you might expect to know the work well, stand in serried ranks and can be seen keeping a close eye on the conductor. Much of the performance is given in semi-darkness and the \u2018ideas\u2019 \u2013 a strangely phallic pole, a bath of ash-laden dye for a vast sheet hauled above the singers \u2013 seem to have no relationship to what is actually happening.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Lehar: Die Lustige Wiwe<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n
Frankfurt Opera, Joana Mallwitz<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n
OEHMS OC 983<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n

Having just said I could have done without the visual impact of the Cavalleria Rusticana<\/em> reviewed above, I really wish I had had the full DVD version of this new Merry Widow. <\/em>It sparkles with life and vitality, the dialogue it clipped without making it too brief and the characterisation throughout is magnificent.<\/p>\n

Iurii Samoilov and Marlis Petersen are ideally paired as Danilo and Hanna, while there is smouldering intensity from Kateryna Kasper and Martin Mitterrutzner as Valencienne and Camille. Smaller parts are all cast from strength and there is a constant sense of a live performance without it ever hindering the quality of the music. A gem!<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Mercadante: Didone Abbandonata<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n
Academia Montis Regalis, Alessandro De Marchi<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n
NAXOS 2.110630<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n

Mercadante is almost forgotten today but was an important opera composer alongside Donizetti\u00a0 and an influence on Verdi. The work as here presented is a meticulous reconstruction of early music styles which allows us to get a feel for the way it may have sounded to its original audience. A highly enjoyable recording of a rare work and worth seeking out.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Mozart: Die Zauberflote<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n
Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra and State Opera Chorus, Constantinos Carydis<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n
UNITEL 749708<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n

The approach here starts from the point of view of a grandfather reading a bedtime story to his three grand-sons, who, of course, become the three boys of the narrative. It all takes place within the family home with members of the family becoming characters as the story unfolds. At the start this works quite well but as it progresses it becomes ever more fanciful and further removed from either the original text or the new concept of the family feud. There are some effective site gaps along the way and much of it is well sung but too often the producer\u2019s ideas get in the way of the potential emotional impact of the music. Die Zauberflote<\/em> is never an easy work to stage today but this does not really bring us much closer to a satisfactory resolution.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Mendelssohn: String Symphonies Vol3<\/strong><\/span><\/h6>\n
L\u2019Orfeo Barockorchester, Michi Gaigg<\/strong><\/span><\/h6>\n
CPO 555 202-2<\/strong><\/span><\/h6>\n

These are very early works but none the less very engaging. The cd opens with the Sinfonia VIII in D major from 1822 when the composer was thirteen. This and the two subsequent works were written for the Sunday afternoon gatherings in the Mendelssohn household, where the young composer was able not only to demonstrate his creative talents but also to conduct a good sized ensemble by himself.\u00a0 Before the Sinfonia IX in C major we have the scene for alto and strings Che vuoi, mio cor?<\/em> which follows well established lines as recitative \/ cavatina \/ cabaletta but is distinctly the voice of the composer. A lovely recording and a welcome addition to the series.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Sousa: Music for Wind Band 19<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n
Royal College of Music Wind Orchestra, Keith Brion<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n
NAXOS 8.559839<\/span><\/strong><\/h6>\n

I wonder just how many cds we are going to get in this series? Actually, I hope it goes on and on for they are all equally and thoroughly enjoyable. The two Humoresques <\/em>are particularly captivating. On the 5.15<\/em> is a lament for late trains and The Band Came Back<\/em> riffs on popular songs of the period. Alongside these are arrangements of Turkey in the Straw<\/em> and the more substantial Second Fantasia from El Capitan. <\/em>Totally engaging and a joy to listen to.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Puccini: Madama Butterfly Glyndebourne Festival Opera OPUS ARTE OA 1167 D This is a captivating and very moving account which avoids gimmicks and yet brings us a fresh and disturbing vision of the world American Imperialism. In the opening scene … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.larkreviews.wickedlemon.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5318"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.larkreviews.wickedlemon.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.larkreviews.wickedlemon.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.larkreviews.wickedlemon.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.larkreviews.wickedlemon.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5318"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.larkreviews.wickedlemon.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5318\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5319,"href":"https:\/\/www.larkreviews.wickedlemon.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5318\/revisions\/5319"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.larkreviews.wickedlemon.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5318"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.larkreviews.wickedlemon.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5318"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.larkreviews.wickedlemon.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5318"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}