Elisir d'amore

Here my friends we step into the beautiful, at times delicate, but certainly with a good concentration of humor, period of Bel Canto. And the recording I'd like to propose to you creates a very good image of what this period and style should be all about. A lot of people feel atracted to it for very understandable reasons. The music is very melodic and requires nothing more but a beautiful voice capable of nice trills. The overall feeling is of light, laid-back, fun-indulgent music that is extremely likable.

Although, not the best and not the most famous of Bel Canto era production, Elisir d'Amore has lots of fans. The reasons are obvious when you start listening: beautiful music, some delightful areas and very funny moments. When done right one sees no reasons to call this a difficult work. Yet many dull recordings tell a different story. Many conductors have difficulties getting it right and the cast has to be in very good vocal shape and interpretative mood to pull it out in a convincing manner.

This recording has most if not all the qualities in place. It all starts, as it should, with Bonynge who gets a very good and consistent performance from the English enssemble in a very nice bel canto style (he proves his abilities with this music in his wonderful Lucia also) , managing to highlight the great moments of the opera and a detailed characterization of his characters. Then, come the two protagonists. Pavarotti is in the best shape I have ever heard him. The music and the character suit him nicely and he displays a gorgeous voice very well molded on the psychological profile of the music. Probably one of his best recordings alongside his remarkable Requiem. You won't hear a more beautiful and full of clean voice "Una furtiva lagrima". His feminine counterpart is equally good if not better. Joan Sutherland is also at a vocal peak and she's a treat throughout the opera. Their duets sound from a different world.

The supporting cast is less impressive yet does a good job "supporting" the two lovers. My favourite character in this opera, the hilarious huckster Dr. Dulcamara, is not served in the best way I've heard. For me, his voice is a little to heavy and not elastic enough especially for his introductory aria but he does a fine job nonetheless. Belcore, the other important character is better sang and acted (at least compared with Nucci, in the other Pavarotti recording with this opera) and even though plays a very imoprtant role in the opera I'm not very fond with him and I won't say more.

So, if you never listened to a bel canto opera this is a recommended first and if you like Elisir is also a mandatory addition to your collection.

Scheherazade - Pas de deux

For this review we rest our thoughts on one of the most popular symphonic poem: Rimsky- Korsakoff's Scheherazade. Describing in music the adventures of Simbad the Sailor it is a work of beautiful melodies and endless emotional power. Korsakoff reaches very distant shores of psychological detail and asks from members of an orchestra the same level of performance as from the enssemble itself. Everything he describes is carefully shaped and carved in some of the most beautiful and memorable melodies composed. It is almost like a democratic gathering of the instruments, a medley of concertos for instrument and orchestra. A lot of recordings let you guess how rich and beautiful this work is yet few mange to show it completely.

Listening to about a dozen recordings and couple of live concerts convinced me that if you want to live the full experience of this work you have two options: Sir Thomas Beecham and his Royal Philharmonic Orchestra or Fritz Reiner and Chicago Symphony. They deliver the same complete performance but they do it in such a different way. However you cannot go wrong at all with any of them.

Beecham unleashes the poetry inside like no other, the strings are heavenlish and the solo parts are gorgeous. The musical drama is all there yet he allows time to dream and to taste the delight of another world so beatifully described in the music. Everything bears the mark of his innate elegance but in the same time the characters and their adventures develop with power and conviction. The RPO plays in a different league and the result is an interpretation that completely transforms everything in the listening room. Beecham and his orchestra create a living phantasy world with a lot of misteries and things difficult to understand and yet so more beautiful.


Reiner on the other hand comes to tell with precision and power the drama within this music. The Chicagoans are in perfect shape and play marvelously for him and Reiner uses their capabilities to shape a very articulate music, played right from beginning to end. The dreamery moments are all there in full splendor yet they are just short breaks from the unfolding of the drama. His control over the music is exquisite and he has at hand an orchestra that manages to go all the way effortlessly (at least it seems so) to bring forward with crystal clear logic and conception a very powerfull musical experience.


They are all great moments in recorded music and definitive redintions of this much beloved composition. They differ in character yet they are very similar in effect. If you like Scheherazade you owe to yourself to listen to both of them.

Mozart's Last Symphonies

Karl Bohm is one conductor I met first in reviews and talks but I listened to his work pretty late, in my listening 'carier'. The very first thing I've listened to was Beethoven's 9th he recorded for Deutsche Grammophon. Very impressive work, yet I kept hearing that he is the Mozartian of the century and so on that finally I've gotten the 2 cd box with the last six symphonies of Mozart recorded with Berliner Philharmoniker for the same german recording house. And I am telling you only this: as much appraisal they get it is still not enough.

I will start with the Berliners. At the time of the recording they were already in Karajan era and they were already at the peak of their form in terms of tone, execution and overall enssemble performance. These recordings surprise them in their full splendor. The strong teutonic tone, the extraordinary discipline and precision in execution, the wonderfull blending of all orchestral compartments, the perfection of every detail, and the incisive crystal clear sound are all there captured beautifully by DG's engineers with enough room tho let this big, powerful body to breathe. It is not the first orchestra you'd think when it comes to Mozart (unlike Vienna Philharmonic for example) yet they form the ideal instrument in the masterful hands of Karl Bohm.

To him we owe what is probably the single greatest Mozart recording there is. It is hard to find words to describe perfection, because this is what Bohm and the Berliners achieve. The conception in the first place is flawless, both in the understanding of the musical structure, the human content that it sustains and last but not least the style of Vienna's wunderkind. The execution just makes absolute justice to so fully understood works. Everything makes sense. Everything is beautifully played, there is no error in execution or expression, an entire world just opens in front of your eyes and the whole universe of Mozart's inner-life just steps into the light with every detail clearly and beautifully shaped. The strings recite poems, the winds make declarations of all sorts, the timpani just make sure that at the right time the right point gets enough attention. It puts you in a state of wonder and immerses you in something that is more than a life experience.

These recordings received a lot of prises yet none could tell you what a musical treasure this is. Meeting Mozart so close and so real with such a superb company is just something you can't miss.

Beethoven's Quartets by Alban Berg Quartett

The quartets, like any other composition of the Titan of Bonn, are blessed with numerous recordings. Integrals or individual recordings they are the measure of artistic maturity and competence for all enssembles that thrive for greatness. There are, as always, some names that one usually meets when looking for above average interpretations: Emerson Quartett, Quartetto Italiano, Julliard Quartett, or Amadeus Quartett. All of them are important names and their interpretations have more qualities than weak points. Yet, my favorite is by far Alban Berg Quartett.

Some say that Quartetto Italiano plays a more involved Beethoven chamber music and makes justice to the richness of emotions that lie within this music too (as for anything Ludvig composed). Yet, for me, the chamber music is always about sound as much as it is about interpretation. And while others have masterful interpretations too the sound is a particular strength of Alban Berg. You could say is because of the wonderful instruments they play on, all of them Stradivarius made, but I really think is more than that.

Their set was the first one that gave me full satisfaction in all quartets no matter what their period is. The first quartets show the young Beethoven that still draws his strength from the strong roots of classicism yet Alban manages to express beautifully the birth of what will be the landmark of Beethoven. The manifestation of emotions and thoughts in a musical drama. At this time they are quite shy and well-behaved yet plays develop with characters and wonderful music. In the last quartets, however, you see the Beethoven that composed the 5th symphony. Nature erupts, human struggle is manifest with devastating power, the most profound of human emotions get expressed without a shadow of restraint. Yet again, Alban Berg is on top of the music, and manage to recreate it all but with extreme clarity. A key role plays, as one expects, Günter Pichler, their first violin, that reigns supreme over every score and plays the solo parts with insight, intellectual tension and wonderful tone. The rest are of course as good and manage to lay at your feet the complete experience of this most intimate contact with the inner world of Beethoven.

You might find joy and reward in many other recordings. I personally do when I listen to Amadeus Quartet, another master viennese enssemble. Yet, everytime I need to get in touch with this part of Beethoven's music I keep returning to Alban Berg and I really encourage everybody to give them a chance to prove why they are one of the most prominent groups in chamber music.

PS: they also have a highly acclaimed Mozart set. I've listened to it partially but what I've heard is trully in class of its own.

The Meeting with Vienna Philharmonic

If you started listening to the kind of music we are talking about on this blog and you are trying to build an informed collection of its recordings it doesn't take long till you find out about some great orchestras among those you meet on cds and among them a special flavor has the Vienna Philharmonic. They have an aura of super-orchestra and a lot of the great recordings of the century have them as protagonists. So, any occasion to meet and listen to them live is an one-of-a-kind experience.

That's what happened to me and some of my friends just couple of days ago. Vienna Philharmonic visited Houston and we were there for receiving the unexpected gift. And the first thing I have to say is that it was much more then I have expected. They came with Riccardo Muti as their conductor and played in order Schubert's Rosamunde Ouverture, Mozart's 35th symphony, "Haffner", Schubert's 4th symphony, "Tragic", and Richard Strauss' Tod und Verklaerung. Beautiful program, perfect for a Sunday afternoon but the wonder was all in their playing.

Everything I have ever heard or read about this orchestra proved to be beautifully true yet being face to face with them revealed a lot of other things that are difficult to put into words yet they are so real and true of an experience. The incredible quality of playing of every musician in that orchestra, the remarkable technique of each of them individually but above all of the orchestra as a whole, the precision and the accuracy in execution, the incredible unitary and beautiful sound they are able to produce, the logic and the artistic intelligence they put into their execution, all of them were happening in front of us leaving less room for anything than wonder and pure delight. And everything was produced with the strong flavor of the most genuine viennese style. There was a sense of effortlesness that you can only have in the presence of great masters.

Muti on the other hand was in great shape. Consuming a lot of energy and maintaining an extremely tight connection with his orchestra he made a compelling demonstration of his extremely acute musical sense, exceptional conducting technique, and, what I liked most, the passion he puts in music making and the dedication to the "true" sound of a certain score, to its living soul. Everything was balanced, with the right tone and with the right amount of accent with the single goal of revealing the truth inside. The level of detail which he manages to create in his interpretations and the overall clarity of his conception where made real by the extraordinary instrument he had in front of him. And it was a top-noch quality instrument virtuosic from inside out. They like to play for him (I know it sounds a little weird yet it's not rare that orchestras don't 'listen' to their conductors) and delivered with abandon their master artistry.

I could go on and on about how incredible this concert was but I will just say that as an encore they played for us the ouverture to "La Forza del Destino" by Verdi and that pulled everybody out of their seats. The speed at which they managed to play this beautiful ouverture was amazing, but their sheer virtuosity and their infallible musical sense pulled everythig off with a clarity and enthusiasm that vibed even the walls of the Jones Hall. I just hope that occasions like this will cross our lives more often.

Where should we draw a line - The Bocelli "phenomenon"

I accept to kinds of opera singers: those who have a beautiful voice, even if their interpretation skills are poor (Pavarotti is the most famous example) or those that posses a special skill of making the musical message transparent for everybody. Still the voice should have a good quality but it's not mandatory to be beautiful (Callas or Gobbi are good examples). Anything else in unsatisfactory.

However, nowadays I am more and more annoyed by a false phenomenon and my problem is that he is considered based on some recordings a great opera singer. And he is not. I have been in touch with Andrea Bocelli ever since his entrance in the public arena couple of good years ago. He was promoted by a show at one of Italian TV's dedicated to the descovery and promotion of young, unknown yet great talents. In that context the story of the guy that can't see but has his voice and his songs to feed his brain was touching and gave birth to compasion. After a while though the same singer appeared more and more poignant in the musical life of the world, culminating with his "one of kind" redemption of some operatic repertoire. And that's where I thought that commercialism was going to far.

Although for light salon canzonettas he is probably an above average singer he is by no means an opera singer. Anything that requires a little effort from a voice and interpretation is over his head. He has a limited voice, full of problems, a timber that is nice to hear just for a very short part of his register and technical problems are always the matter of the day. On the other hand the ways he sings shows clearly that he has no intellectual power to express the drama of the character he is trying to sing. That's why I think that just because of his success in a certain target population, traditionally the target group for romances and canzonettas, and the very "publicity generating" personal story his agents and himself shouldn't go so far as to the claim to be an opera singer. Because he is not and he can't be.

So in case that you think of spending on his recordings with opera music, spare the effort and the money and go with the "real things" that are more than enough out there to satisfy any taste. Andrea Bocelli is no opera singer and that's that.

Anything but 'Unfinished' - Schubert by Carlo Maria Giulini

As probably some of you know, finding a recording of Schubert's 8th, 'Unfinished' symphony is not easy. Although of short length it is so full of musical and human drama and so round an expression of destiny as an unexcapable given, that is a real challenge to make it live to its real potential.

And yet, if only for Schubert's symphony and there are not enough stars for this CD. I looked a long time for a version of this symphony that will sound different every time I listen to it (the way Bruno Walter said) because I really felt that this symphony is one of those rare compositions that mix with your state of mind and spirit to accompany your thoughts. Listening to this CD was a revelation. A wonderfull orchestra in the hands of a master. An ever fresh sound, beatifully blended and right at the heart of Schubert. Arrau said that Schubert's latest works suggest the composer's feeling of fatality. You can understand this if you listen to Arrau's recordings of the latest Schubert Sonatas (especially no. 21) and Giulini's version of the "Unfinished" symphony. The breathing is vast and tensed, the strings carry the message to a powerfull climax, everything in a flow of unshakable inner logic. The depth of the conception and the sheer beauty of a most refined orchestra make this recording one apart.

Dvorak's 9th is also a very fine version even though I consider Celibidache's version with Munchner Philharmoniker the last word "From New World". But make time to listen to Giulini. His orchestra has always something to say that you never heard. Everything you expect to hear is there and probably the only thing that I find a little inappropriate is to much refinemet here and there, less of a teluric feeling that I think this symphony is all about.

A surprising Requiem

I like Verdi's Requiem and I really believe that Giulini's version is the ultimate version. But of course there are others full of merit, Serafin's vintage recording is a landmark, and so is this recording of Solti. Although very different from Giulini's it is a very satisfying experience and most of all because of Pavarotti. I don't think much of him as an interpreter. He had a phenomenal gift in his voice but it was never backed up by an equally impressive artistic intelligence. However, in this recording he sounds so right. The voice is in its best days (so all those who are huge fans of Pavarotti's voice will have a great reward) but also he is so on top of everything the text and the music is intended to transmit. His Ingemisco if it's not the best, it is one of the best for sure. Everywhere he has a part he makes it shine.

Another great highlight of this recording is Martti Talvela. Probably one of the most impressive basses of the modern era, this tragically short lived star, forms the backbone of the recording. He is in touch with all the human suffering and dispair, his voice cries with dignity. Among others, the Lacrimosa owes him the cathedralesque beauty it has.

Another top notch performer, also in excellent voice at the time, is the unmistakable mezzo colour of Marilyn Horne. She makes you shiver and I couldn't help but thinking that there is a reason why the final day will be announced by a woman. Again her Lacrimosa with Talvela is a glorious moment of this recording and of this Requiem recordings in general.

Solti does a very good job. I started listening with circumspection as I couldn't see his very energetic temperament doing to much good to this work. He manages to hold his horses and pulls off a very convincing operatic conception. I still don't feel it has the unity and the flow of Giulini yet it is still a very good version, also in very good sound.

I left for last the only major dissapointment of this recording: Joan Sutherland. Although reading the cover I thought she would be the star she turns out to be the weakest spot. She is in voice but she doesn't understand anything. She is underpowered by all means and it really looks like she just couldn't find her recording room and stayed with this one. Such a big pitty.

Anyways, this recording has a lot to offer and there are a lot of reasons to listen to it. Dies irae, Ingemisco, Lacrimosa just to name a few of the bijous you'll find on this cd.

Brilliant bon humeur - Ormandy and the fantastic philadelphians

George Ormandy is a conductor I descovered late, yet he makes me so happy of my descovery. This is the last cd I got in a series and it's like a delicious cake at the end of a most satisfactory meal. All the small pieces on this cd are famous, some of them had a great career in Disney classics (like Dukas' "The Sorcerer's Apprentice" and Ponchielli's "Dance Of The Hours" in Fantasia and Brahms's Hungarian Dance No.5 in Three little pigs) the others are as famous. They are a treat even for those not so fond of classical music.

On this cd though you find them in some of the best shapes ever. Even though they come from so different backgound they are treated equally. The Philadelphians are indeed in fantastic form, Ormandy loves these pieces and manages to recreate them with the seriousness and wit they deserve. I found here a very old favourite of mine (Brahms' Dance No. 5) in one of the best versions I've heard. Furtwangler has another delicious version. The Dance of the hours is funny and pulls you off your chair, Saint-Saens' Dance Macabre has just the right amount of darkness and spookyness; everything is played so right and you just live a continous happy and very enjoyable audition. Last but not least the sound is exceptional, especially for the time of the recording and everything is done so you feel really well, due especially to Ormandy who approaches this small pieces without a shadow of selfishness and with very much care.

Enjoy!

What should've been greatness

I would guess that what I'm about to say happened to some of you also. I was watching Shine, the movie about the life and music of David Helfgott and I was descovering as the movie rolled a great musician. A great merit goes to the creators of the movie and to an extremely powerfull soundtrack however it was obvious that it's the story of a musical phenomenon. The single piece that impressed me most in the movie was the Rachmaninov interpretation he gave at the graduation (i think it was the Royal College of Music in London). To that point it was hair-raising interpretation like I haven't heard till then and finding the cd became instantaneously a very urgent goal. It wasn't difficult to find a copy and off to listening we go.

This is the point where this review has its roots in. It was the most dissapointing musical experience I have ever had. Not a single thing from all that I have expected was there. I just sat and listened to a crippled musician, playing a concerto way to big for him. The technical errors are so many that make the recording almost impossible to listen to. And even further there is no conception whatsoever to it. Of course, it is very difficult to make a clear point when every 2 bars you start over on the wrong note. There is no point in discussing the orchestra because no matter what they do they can't make up for what's going on at the piano. And this is a live concert. The other pieces on the cd are studio recordings. The mistakes are less yet there is no soul nor thought to it. It's just the coffin of what Rachmaninov put into them.

So, a piece of advice, if you hear the story (which is impressive) or you see the movie (also very good) don't make the mistake of buying this cd. You'll be very sorry. Try any of Horowitz' recordings, the fiery version of Martha Argerich or any other you can find.

Bach for everyone

Even for those who enjoy Bach's music his compositions for organ form a group not that easily accessible. The particular sonority of this 'orchestral' instrument and the richness of his acoustic output can be a pain as well as a treat. The music that those pieces contain though, is some of the most inspired and profound Bach let us. Fortunately for all who happen to think this way there is this cd that puts that great music in a more accessible form: the symphonic orchestra. And what a result this is. We owe it of course to the great musician Leopold Stokowsky, who was one of the most distinguished and interesting musical figures of the last century. He did the transcriptions and he conducted them in what would become one of the most true Bach recordings. The religious delf is all there (the orchestra is carefully responssive and plays with wonderful seriousness) but the orchestral sound makes the music so more human-like and so much easier approachable and understandable. It is a jewel and you can even say unique, as it's the only recording with this work.

Try to get especially that now comes packed with a bonus DVD which shows Stokowsky conducting Debussy. And if you are watching the DVD try to focus for a while on the man's hands. It's a show in itself.

Norma

Callas made this role her own during her career. She sang this part on numerous occasions and she recorded it more than once. I've listened to one more recording except this but in the end I return to this one as my favorite Norma. And the reason is not Callas (as she is in a very good shape in both), but Christa Ludwig. In my view any good recording of Norma desperatly needs as good a mezzo as a soprano. Their duet is one of the highligths of this opera and any weakness at all ruins it. As I once read somewhere and I do stand by it, in this recording you have the two best representatives of the German and Italian schools of music working together to create a most impressive vocal and dramatic piece of art.

And there is still more to this recording: Franco Corelli as Pollione and Tulio Serafin conducting. Aside from being my favorite tenor, Pollione is one of Corelli's landmarks roles and in this studio recording you can hear why: his voice is in great shape, the phrasing is superb, the dramatic content of his character is so reach and true, sculptured with beauty and authority. You won't hear a better Pollione. Serafin, on the other hand, the last great representative of the old school of opera conducting puts everything together in the most convincing manner. You won't witness fireworks or earthquakes but you will hear a perfectly glued musical story, wonderfully painted musical landscapes, rock solid logic in the support the orchestra gives to his characters evoutions and conflicts. I'll mention Zaccaria for his name and his professionalism but I have listened to him in better form.

All in all you have five of the greatest opera artists working together to create the full splendor of Bellini's masterpiece.