ROSSINI Otello • Antonino Fogliani, cond; Michael Spyres ( Otello ); Jessica Pratt ( Desdemona ); Giorgio Trucco ( Iago ); Filippo Adami ( Rodrigo ); Geraldine Chauvet ( Emilia ); Ugo Guagliardo ( Elmiro ); Transylvania St Phil Ch, Cluj; Virtuoso Brunensis • NAXOS 8.660275-76 (2 CDs: 148:30) Live: Bad Wildbad 7/12–19/2008


Rossini’s Otello was premiered on December 4, 1816, and remained one of his most frequently performed operas until the general eclipse of most of his works in the late 19th century. Changes in aesthetic style (the replacement of bel canto first by Verdian romantic drama and then verismo ) had practical performance implications. Like Armida, Otello also has six tenor roles—three leads and three comprimario parts. The title role is written for a baritenore , a tenor with a lower tessitura but still requiring the top notes, while Rodrigo is cast for a high coloratura tenor, and Iago halfway in between. As voice types and vocal technique changed with compositional styles, finding singers with the requisite differentiated types of tenor voices probably became increasingly difficult, and without those contrasts the concentration of so many voices in one register sounds monotonous. Also, in accordance with the practices of the era that later fell into disfavor, the libretto departs significantly from Shakespeare. It replaces the famous handkerchief with the standard plot device of intercepted letters, and portrays Desdemona as torn between love for Otello (whom she has married in secret) and filial obedience to her father’s wish that she marry Rodrigo, who as Otello’s open rival is a far more prominent character here than Iago. It is only with the great Rossini revival in recent decades that truly vital performances of such works have again become possible.


The present performance emanates from a Rossini festival in southwestern Germany, near Karlsruhe. While not ideal, this newly issued live performance immediately leaps to the fore as one of two preferred recordings of this Rossini rarity; its only real competition is the Opera Rara set with Bruce Ford, Juan José Lopera, William Matteuzzi, and Elizabeth Futral, reviewed in Fanfare 23:5 by Joel Kasow. Its greatest strength is tenor Michael Spyres in the title role, the finest rendition yet committed to disc. His voice is simply spectacular; technically more secure even than Ford, he fearlessly encompasses a two-octave-plus range with the requisite virile heft, fluency in coloratura, and interpretive commitment. Less than ideal, though not bad, are the other two principal tenors. Giorgio Trucco as Iago has a light voice, somewhat lacking in sheen and a bit on the nasal side; he takes most of act I to warm up, but is effective in act II, and I find him preferable to Lopera. The Rodrigo of Filippo Adami is more problematic. Very light and bright in timbre, it is excessively nasal and has a wobble in the sustained top notes; it is difficult to hear him as a formidable rival to Otello for the hand of Desdemona, one that would have won her father’s favor. However, his coloratura and vocal production are superior to those of Matteuzzi, and again he seems a slightly preferable choice.


The strengths extend to the rest of the cast as well. While not flawless, Jessica Pratt as Desdemona is as good as or better than Futral or any of the alternatives. Initially her voice is slightly harsh and has a few slightly squally notes at the top, but once she gets warmed up for the act I finale it is pleasing in timbre and technically assured, and she brings an interpretive commitment notably lacking in some rivals. Ugo Guagliardo as her father, Elmiro, and Geraldine Chauvet as Emilia both sing their smaller but crucial supporting roles with security and authority, and the comprimario parts are all ably filled. The chorus has a name redolent of satirical spoofs of provincial opera companies and pseudonymous recordings issued on obscure labels from the 1950s, but in fact it sings quite well. The orchestra is on the smallish side—the Philharmonia on Opera Rara has more punch—but it plays with spirit and fine ensemble. Conductor Antonino Fogliani has the full measure of the music, with brisk, energetic allegros, lyrical, flowing andantes, and just the right hint of rubato at appropriate junctures. The recorded acoustic is warm, with a touch of reverberance. In keeping with current Naxos practice, the libretto is available online rather than printed and included with the set.


While this version is now the best sung, the Opera Rara set is the preferred edition for completists, as it includes alternative arias and both endings written for the opera (due to resistance from both censors and audiences, a happy dénouement also was penned to replace the original tragic one recorded here). Kasow’s review of its virtues and flaws is dead on target, and I need add nothing to that. In 25:1 Henry Fogel reviewed the Dynamic set of the “Malibran” edition of the opera, in which the role of Otello is transposed to a mezzo-soprano trouser part. It is also on three discs and offers both endings, though cuts are made in the original tragic one. I similarly agree with his overall negative assessment; if anything, he is too kind to certain singers. The pioneering Philips recording is available in a reissue edition with libretto from ArkivMusic; despite a starry vocal line-up (Frederica von Stade, José Carreras, Salvatore Fisichelli, and Samuel Ramey), I agree with the critical consensus that it is a staid affair, stylistically inadequate in its singing (significantly excepting Fisichelli’s Rodrigo) and hobbled by the soporific conducting of Jesús López-Cobos. Naxos has a winner here; this issue is strongly recommended.


FANFARE: James A. Altena


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Otello was the second opera seria which Rossini wrote for Naples. As such, it was written for the star team of Isabella Colbran, Andrea Nozzari, Giovanni David and Giuseppe Ciccimara. It was designed to take advantage of these voices, providing spectacular music in the context of an early 19 ^th century opera seria. The plot owes little to Shakespeare and the immediate source of Berio's libretto was a more recent adaptation of the story.


For its first two acts, Otello explores themes common to Italian opera of the time; forbidden love, the conflict of duty and desire, an innocent woman being forced to choose between her lover and her father. Elements of the familiar plot are thrown together and re-cast into something entirely different; if the characters had been given other names then we'd hardly associate the opera with Shakespeare's play. But in act 3, Rossini and his librettist return to something like Shakespeare to create a magical and daring conclusion.


The opera has done rather well on disc. Jésus López-Cobos directed a 1978 recording with Jose Carreras and Frederica von Stade. Then in 2000 came Opera Rara's recording with Bruce Ford and Elizabeth Futral conducted by David Parry. Now we have this live recording in Naxos's continuing series from the Rossini in Wildbad festival.


But before we consider the recording, we need to pause and look at what Rossini was doing with his vocal writing. His use of the team of tenors in Naples has caused problems during revivals in the 20 ^th century. Colbran was a soprano, though her voice was starting to fade and Rossini's roles for her veer towards mezzo-soprano territory. The three principal tenors had contrasting voices. Giovanni David, who sang Rodrigo, had a high (very high) lyric voice with a great facility for passage-work, a real coloratura voice. Nozzari sang Otello and he had a lower, darker voice; but not that dark, as Rossini's writing shows. Nozzari still possessed some facility with high passage-work, Then finally Ciccimara, who sang Jago and whose voice did have a distinctly baritonal quality.


It is this difference in voice types which is important as Rossini uses it for contrast. The problem is that in a modern day performance, we are lucky if we can find anyone at all to sing these tricky parts and we cannot always get too fussy about fine differentiations of voice-type.


This is a live recording of a staged performance. Those people actually present would have had the immense good fortune to be able to see as well as hear the performers. For those listening to the disc at home, there are problems: the three leading tenors are not that dissimilar in voice-type and in the absence of a libretto, the listener sometimes has to work hard to tell who is whom.


Michael Spyres, who sings Otello, is entirely admirable in the role. His tone has the requisite darkness which the role requires. On the Opera Rara disc Bruce Ford is rather light of voice and it is Jose Carreras on the 1978 recording who comes over as ideal. Spyres does not quite have the flexibility demanded by the role, but he does a pretty damn good job. Unfortunately the role of Otello is rather under-written and it is Rodrigo who is the more important tenor. Here, we find Filippo Adami singing the role with the sort of attack and swagger that you would have expected for the title role. His approach is a bit rough and ready at times, but was probably bravura enough to have worked live. Unfortunately his tone is not noticeably lighter than Spyres’. This means that in their act 2 duet, particularly in the anything you can do I can do better section, the two voices lack the thrilling contrast. On the 1978 disc, Carreras and his Rodrigo are admirably contrasted and Carreras uses his heavier voice to thrilling effect.


Jessica Pratt, who has been singing Rossini's Armida at Garsington this summer (2010), makes an entirely admirable Desdemona. No-one can quite touch Montserrat Caballé in her recording of the Willow Song from Act 3, but I think I could live with Pratt. Her voice turns a bit wayward under pressure at times, but then this is a live recording. More worrying is her quite substantial vibrato, something which I had to get used to.


Giorgio Trucco makes a solid Jago, balancing Spyres well in their act 2 duet, but rather lacking in any feeling for the sly, insinuating character that we know from the play. Ugo Guagliardo is the principal bass voice in the piece, playing Elmiro, Desdemona's father. He has a nice focused voice, one that could have been made more fully exploited.


Under Antonino Fogliani's direction, the piece goes off with quite some zing especially in the set-pieces. There were however moments when I felt that the recitatives plodded somewhat. The orchestra, the Virtuosi Brunensis, is a chamber orchestra from Brno and they deliver a crisp and lively account with some really lovely solo playing. The choir, as is often the case in recordings of staged works, suffer from moments of instability of ensemble.


Naxos include a detailed summary in the CD booklet but no libretto.


Both the Opera Rara and the 1978 recordings use the Fondazione Edition of the work. This recording uses a new edition by Florian Bauer, but I can't see edition being a decider.


Opera Rara include various extra pieces in an appendix, including an entrance aria for Desdemona and the happy ending written for Rome. Both of these re-use pre-existing material. All very fascinating but you have to pay for three discs. Opera Rara seen to have taken a light, small-scale view of the work, and David Parry's direction is adequate rather than thrilling.


It is the 1978 Philips recording which remains my ideal. López-Cobos paces the work admirably and his cast are both stylish Rossinians and admirably contrasted. If you possibly can, acquire this recording.


But if you are curious about Rossini's version of Otello then you will not go far wrong with this new Naxos version.


-- Robert Hugill, MusicWeb International

Also available on Blu-ray

For the first time the opera “Mosè” by Gioachino Rossini is on stage inside a Cathedral in a semi-scenic performance at the Duomo di Milano. The Veneranda Fabbrica del Duomo di Milano, in the wake of a centuries-old tradition of dialogue with the contemporary, chooses the most advanced technology to open up to the world and the public with an immediacy never achieved until now, including lights and colors effects that characterize the scenes of the show, with an evocative video mapping technique.

No. of Discs: 1
Run time: 102 minutes
Disc Format: DVD 9
Picture: NTSC, 16:9
Audio: PCM Stereo, PCM 5.1
Bonus Material: A documentary revealing the secrets of Milan Cathedral
Subtitles Bonus: Italian, English
Region Code: 0 (worldwide)

This release presents a rarely performed masterpiece: Gioachino Rossini's Mos� in Egitto at the Bregenz Festival staged by Lotte de Beer, who retrieves this hidden gem of opera literature for a spectacular staging. de Beer, one of the most sought-after stage directors of her generation (International Opera Newcomer Award 2015) teams up with the Dutch theatre collective Hotel Modern to tell the story of the Biblical Exodus. Their unique production concept for Mos� in Egitto revolves around the ingenuity of Hotel Modern. The theatre group conjures up it's own reality by using live animations to portray the mass scenes and the parallel narratives of the people and the slaves. Miniature cameras, thousands of puppets, models of villages and cities and a spectacular aquarium installation present the biblical tale of plagues and the parting of the Red Sea on the Bregenz stage - "a stroke of genius" (Der Standard).

ROSSINI Mosè in Egitto • Antonino Fogliani, cond; Lorenzo Regazzo ( Mosè ); Akie Amou ( Elcìa ); Wojtek Gierlach ( Faraone ); Filippo Adami ( Osiride ); Rossella Bevacqua ( Amaltea ); Giogio Trucco ( Aronne ); Karen Bandelow ( Amenofi ); Giuseppe Fedeli ( Mambre ); San Pietro a Majella Ch; Wildbad Wind Band; Württemberg PO • NAXOS 8.660220 (2 CDs: 136:38) Live: Bad Wildbad 7/2006


Naxos provides a bit of operatic history on the back liner of this latest addition in their Rossini in Wildbad festival recordings. Mosè in Egitto (1819 Naples version) was “reworked in 1822 for Paris with new arias, but is given here in the slightly revised Italian version of 1819 which includes the famous act III Preghiera of Moses.” If I may elaborate: first there was Mosè in Egitto , an “Azione tragico-sacra in tre atti” that premiered in 1818 (Naples). It was not a success. Rossini dropped Amaltea’s second-act aria and rewrote the third act, expanding it and inserting the Preghiera “Dal tuo stellato soglio.” The Preghiera became a hit, and the opera became a modest success. The original third act is lost, so a reconstruction of the 1818 original is not possible.


Since Naxos mentions the Paris version, so will I. When Rossini moved his compositional base to Paris, he reworked some of his earlier operas. He turned the three-act Mosè in Egitto into the four-act Moïse et Pharaon, ou Le Passage de la Mer Rouge , complete with a new first act, some new characters (and good-bye to a few old ones), some new arias, and (reluctantly) a ballet. Presto, the “Azione tragico-sacra in tre atti” was now a four-act Grand Opera. When the text of this new version was translated into Italian, it was titled Mosè e Faraone (Sacred melodrama in four acts). So it wouldn’t be confused with the original three-act version, it was sometimes called Mosè Nuovo , and then shortened to Mosè. As you may surmise from its various titles, it is loosely, very loosely, based on the Biblical account of Moses parting the Red Sea. Characters and story lines appear in Mosè that have no Biblical basis.


Aside from the famous Preghiera, the most striking musical feature of Mosè in Egitto is the atmospheric lament that opens the first act (no overture precedes it). It is unlike the opening of any of Rossini’s other works, and makes an immediate impact. In the Paris version, this becomes the opening of the second act, and loses much of its novelty. Recordings of either Italian version or the French grand opera have unfortunately been rare events. Philips recorded Mosè in Egitto in 1981 with a luminous cast: Ruggero Raimondi, Siegmund Nimsgern, June Anderson, and Ernesto Palacio. Hungaroton gave us the four-act Mosè (with a few cuts and minus the ballet) under Lamberto Gardelli, also in 1981. Both are studio recordings. Philips briefly released on CD a 1956 monophonic Mosè under Serafin with Rossi-Lemeni, which is subject to a number of cuts and a cast not totally at home in the bel canto idiom. The only French Moïse I am familiar with is a two-CD set on Myto with Samuel Ramey, Cecilia Gasdia, and Shirley Verrett. Recorded live in 1975, it is also somewhat abbreviated and minus the ballet. The French version in all its glory is available on DVD. Another recording of this interesting Rossini score is always welcome, and although the Rossini in Wildbad cast does not boast a collection of well-known notables, such as the 1981 Philips recording, it is a worthy entry into the Rossini discography all the same.


Naxos has recorded a number of performances from the Rossini in Wildbad festivals, many of them Rossini’s lesser-known and recorded operas. Casts vary from acceptable to quite good. One of the goals of the festival is to engage singers early in their careers (they’re probably more affordable, too!) helping them to gain both experience and exposure in a notable venue. This Mosè in Egitto is one of the better recordings in the series; it offers serious competition to the 1981 on Philips and is better than the mono Philips under Serafin. Many of the Wildbad soloists are prize-winning, bel canto specialists, gaining experience and earning enthusiastic reviews, mostly in European venues. Many of the singers appear in other Rossini in Wildbad recordings. Conductor Antonino Fogliani is in his early thirties. He studied under Rossini specialists Gianluigi Gelmetti and Alberto Zedda and has garnered much praise for his work in the bel canto repertoire.


I found this to be an exciting and energetic performance. Stage noises are kept to a minimum, enthusiastic applause rewards the cast throughout the performance but is not intrusive to the listener, and balances are generally good. The Wildbad performance has more spontaneity than the studio-based Philips, but not as much sonic immediacy. A new Rossini recording is always a welcome event, especially when it is a good one of his lesser-known operas. Naxos does not provide a libretto, although the text in Italian can be accessed at www.naxos.com/libretti/660220.htm. The booklet includes a fairly detailed synopsis—tied to track numbers—that offers the plot but spares the reader some rather hokey lyrics. It can be argued that Rossini’s comedies have fared better than the dramas because the librettos are better. Don’t let a fatuous love story grafted onto the Biblical tale of Moses deter you from enjoying this opera. The music saves the day.


FANFARE: David L. Kirk

Garsington Opera, celebrating its 25th anniversary season in June-July 2014, releases its first commercially available recording, the rare Rossini opera Maometto secondo. Recorded live at Garsington Opera’s universally acclaimed 2013 performances – the first-ever fully staged production of Maometto secondo in the UK – the 3-CD set is stylishly packaged in a 100-page hardbound book, complete with synopsis, essay and libretto in Italian with English translations.

Set in the 15th century, Rossini’s hugely ambitious undertaking depicts the Turkish Sultan Maometto’s siege of the Venetian outpost of Negroponte and his ultimate defeat. The superb international cast is led by the suitably menacing bass-baritone Darren Jeffery in the title role, with American soprano Siân Davies in her European debut as his anguished daughter Anna, Australian mezzo Caitlin Hulcup as the general Calbo, and tenor Paul Nilon as the Venetian Governor. The assured baton of David Parry conducting the Garsington Opera Orchestra and Chorus highlights the brilliant and dramatic score.

This outstanding release mirrors Garsington Opera’s exceptional artistic standards presented in the spectacular, award-winning Pavilion, set in the extraordinarily beautiful Buckinghamshire countryside. - Avie

Composed by the young Gioachino Rossini in eleven days to comply with a contractual commitment, L’occasione fa il ladro (Opportunity Makes A Thief) is a comedy of multiple confusions. Count Alberto, travelling to be wed to a fiancée he has yet to meet, leaves an inn with the wrong suitcase. Don Parmenione audaciously adopts the Count’s identity, determined to take the bride for himself. This single-act burletta is a swift and deftly plotted moral drama, Rossini’s exuberant inspiration poured into interactions both tender and hilariously bewildering.

There is no want for recordings of this opera, and several are terrific: Jennifer Larmore/Raul Gimenez (Teldec); Horne/Alva (Opera d'Oro); Horne/Ramey (Erato); Baltsa/Raimondi (DG). But there's always room for another if it's good, and this new release, recorded at the 2008 Wildbad Rossini Festival, is excellent--and the least expensive of them all.

The star here is Lawrence Brownlee, the superb coloratura-lyric tenor who is giving Juan Diego Florez a run for his money. Warm of tone, stylish, accurate, rhythmically impeccable, fearless of high notes, involved with the text, and capable of marvelous patter (his first-act duet with Mustafa is a gem), Brownlee is the best Lindoro on disc. He is given both of his arias, which he dispatches nimbly and naturally.

Almost as fine (behind only Samuel Ramey) is Lorenzo Regazzo's Mustafa, here portrayed not as a buffoon but as a man smitten and naive to the wiles of women. The voice is appealing, dark, and round-toned, and he sings the coloratura and patter handily. I like that he doesn't growl and yelp like most basses do in this role; he may be a tyrannical character but he's in a position of power and distinction. The other two low men's voices are equally good: Giulio Mastrototaro's Haly is colorful and self-assured, and Bruno De Simone's is the best Taddeo on disc. He has the Rossini style down pat and sings with impeccable diction. He doesn't sound young, but that's hardly an issue. Both men are fine in ensembles.

Marianna Pizzolato is a far lighter mezzo than we normally hear in this role. I guess in keeping with underplaying Mustafa's foolishness, we avoid having an Isabella who sounds as if she could conquer Algiers singlehandedly--as, say, Baltsa and Horne could. Pizzolato is more in the Teresa Berganza class (although the voice is not as lovely); there are no booming low notes, but she commands the role on her own terms. There's little to argue with vocally--she has the technique down pat--and she has a good sense of fun as well. Ruth Gonzales as Mustafa's poor, fed-up wife, Elvira, can be slightly shrill but is mostly an excellent part of the ensemble, and mezzo Elsa Giannoulidou holds up her end as Zulma.

Alberto Zedda, an old hand who can occasionally be more scholarly than entertaining, is at his best: zippy tempos prevail (in fact, the finale to Act 1 is faster than I've ever heard it--a remarkable example of how well rehearsed the performance is); vocal lines are ornamented wisely (not the old fashioned way, with big high notes at the end of arias and scenes, but rather within the numbers themselves); and the opera comes across as charming.

This work can seem like hectoring and can be somewhat cruel; the choice of singers, tempos, and overall outlook makes it concentrate on the love story and the peculiarities of East meeting West. The Transylvania State Philharmonic Choir, Cluj is superb, singing at times at a whisper very accurately and offering real personality, and the Virtuosi Brunensis plays with vigor. The recording is fine, with voices always audible and well-balanced. If you're in need of a L'Italiana, this one will please you, particularly at half the price of the others; otherwise the Larmore/Teldec release is the best cast, overall.

--Robert Levine, ClassicsToday.com

It took me only a few seconds of listening to realise that there was likely to be something special about this recording. The Overture is so well known and often played, but here it comes up with the kind of invigorating freshness and brightness that brings an immediate grin to your face. Partly this is due to the use of the recent critical edition by Azio Corghi, whose changes of flute to piccolo in the allegro section, and detailed changes of phrasing throughout are entirely for the better, but it is due even more to the sheer rhythmic grace and suppleness of the playing. Alberto Zedda may have been nearly 80 when this recording was made but you would never guess it from the results. The orchestra sounds to be of an appropriate size for the work – not on historic instruments, I understand, but certainly historically informed - and it has been recorded in an acoustic which appropriately feels like the kind of medium-sized opera-house that Rossini would have expected.

Apart from Lawrence Brownlee the cast is not as starry as other versions of the work, but what is much more important is that the majority of the soloists are native speakers of Italian and all have clearly been thoroughly rehearsed together as an ensemble. Brownlee sings with grace and manliness - an uncommon quality in this role. Bruno de Simone and Lorenzo Regazzo have voices which are clearly distinguishable from each other and both are masters of Rossini’s writing for comic basses. The ladies are perhaps less individual, Marianna Pizzolato in particular lacking the kind of vivid characterisation that we find in recordings with, say, Marilyn Horne or Jennifer Larmore. Nonetheless she sings with great beauty where required, and at all times communicates the dramatic situation to the audience. It is indeed this quality of communication which makes the recording special. There is no sense of a routine run-through; instead there is the freshness of apparent new discovery.

This is wholly appropriate as L’Italiana in Algeri was written when the composer was only twenty-one. He had written nine operas before it but here reveals himself for the first time as a complete master of writing for the stage and one determined to make this clear to the audience. The special merit of this performance is that the performers are clearly working as an ensemble. It was recorded at live performances but the only significant adverse effects are very occasional moments of ragged ensemble and the brief applause at the end of some, but not all, numbers. On the other hand the very positive effect is the palpable sense of involvement in the performance from everyone involved.

Naxos have recorded a number of Rossini operas at the Wildbad Festival already, but this is by some way the best I have heard so far. No libretto is included with the set and that on their website is in Italian only. There is however a detailed and helpfully cued synopsis which is some consolation - although in a comic opera you really do need to be able to understand all the words to appreciate it as the composer intended.

-- John Sheppard, MusicWeb International

GIOACCHINO ROSSINI: Marianna Pizzolato; Marco Vinco; Maxim Mironov; Bruno De Simone;Barbara Bargnesi; Jose Maria Lo Monaco; Alex Esposito; Prague Chamber Choir/Lubomir Malt; Orchestra del Teatro Comunale di Bologna/Donato Renzetti; David Fo, director, set and costume designer; L GIOACCHINO ROSSINI: Italiana in Algeri, Dramma giocoso in two acts.NTSC All Region; LPCM 2.0; Dolby Digital 5.1; Color; 16/9; 150 mins; Subtitled in Italian, English, German & French.

Also available on Blu-ray

Gioachino Rossini
L’ITALIANA IN ALGERI

Isabella - Anna Goryachova
Mustafà - Alex Esposito
Lindoro - Yijie Shi
Taddeo - Mario Cass

Teatro Comunale di Bologna Chorus and Orchestra
José Ramón Encinar, conductor

Davide Livermore, stage director

Recorded live at the Pesaro Festival, August 2013

Bonus:
- The making of L’Italiana in Algeri
- Cast gallery

Picture format: NTSC 16:9
Sound format: LPCM 2.0 / DTS 5.1
Region code: 0 (worldwide)
Subtitles: English, French, German, Korean
Running time: 153 mins
No. of DVDs: 1

Pesaro’s new offering in 2013 was an off-the-wall production of Rossini’s popular comedy, ‘The Italian Girl in Algiers’, presented as a Swinging Sixties, James Bond adventure, set in the desert oil fields of the North African coast. Davide Livermore’s gag-a-minute, helter-skelter romp followed an alarmingly life-like air-crash, which delivered the ‘Italian girl’ from Rome into the clutches of the local oil baron, Mustafa. All three lead singers (Alex Esposito as Mustafa, the high tenor Yijie Shi as the young lover Lindoro, and Anna Goryachova as the agile-voiced mezzo-soprano of the title role) thoroughly distinguished themselves – and the audience roared its approval of the evening’s entertainment.

Recorded live at the Pesaro Festival, August 2013

"Italian bass Alex Esposito commanded our full attention as Mustafà with strong, firm fioratura that raged magnificently when necessary. Mr Esposito in the prime of vocal estate, a spirited, charismatic actor of inextinguishable theatrical energy." Opera Today
"Anyone lucky enough to have seen last year’s ROF Ciro in Babilonia or the 2012 Demetrio e Polibio, will already know the wisdom and wit of Davide Livermore’s Rossini stagings. Here again, he is sure handed. Rossini would have adored it." Seen and Heard International

Rossini’s ‘rescue opera’ L’inganno felice (The Happy Deception) won immediate contemporary popularity after its first performance in 1812. One of the composer’s most inventive and sparkling scores, with soprano, tenor and bass arias of great beauty, it is today by far the least well-known and least often performed of his five farse written for Venice. The drama concerns the attempt of Isabella, wrongly rejected by her husband the Duke, and her protector, the miner Tarabotto, who had rescued her, half dead, from the sea, to bring to justice the Duke’s villainous confidant Ormondo and his henchman Batone, and to reconcile Isabella with her husband, an end happily achieved, the guilty punished and the innocent triumphant. - Naxos

Notwithstanding the fact that the opera was virtually still-born, a series of contemporary manuscript scores can be found today in the music libraries of Europe and America, while the autograph draft of Rossini seems to be lost. The surviving sources provide two versions that are substantially different enough: one, more complete, with the verses and whole sections that the censors wanted either to cut out or to modify, probably represents the original version; the other, characterized by new verses and typical cuts in the interest of brevity but also with instrumental passages simplified with respect to the other version, reflects, very probably, the version actually staged in Bologna in the only three performances in 1811. On the occasion of the revival of the opera at the Rossini in Wildblad Festival in July 2000, the new edition prepared for the Deutsche Rossini Gesellschaft, which follows an earlier attempt at reconstruction of the score in 1965, vitiated by clumsy revisions unacceptable today, is therefore put forward as a reconstruction of the version directly staged by Rossini, with the last minute cuts and changes. One exception is the reinstatement of a short section in the first act Finale (the 'foot scene'), evidently cut by Rossini not for artistic reasons but by the censorship for obvious reasons of good taste; to omit here the pure comedy of such a passage would have seemed a disservice to Rossini, who willingly accepted it and set it to music. Marco Beghelli - Stefano Piana

Composer: Rossini Gioachino
Title: L’EQUIVOCO STRAVAGANTE
Performer: ERNESTINA: MARINA PRUDENSKJA
GAMBEROTTO: BRUNO DE SIMONE
BURALICCHIO: MARCO VINCO
ERMANNO: DMITRY KORCHAK
ROSALIA: AMANDA FORSYTHE
FRONTINO: RICARDO MIRABELLI
CONDUCTOR: UMBERTO BENEDETTI MICHELANGELI
DIRECTION: EMILIO SAGI
Scenes: FRANCESCO CALCAGNINI
Costumes: PEPA OJANGUREN
CORO DA CAMERA DI PRAGA
Maestro del Coro: Pavel Vanek
ORCHESTRA HAYDN of BOLZANO E TRENTO


PROGRAM INFORMATION:
L’Equivoco stravagante stages the classic situation of the young girl who does not intend to be wedded to the traditional rich braggart but prefers a timid young man who is short of money; this time the expedient used to drive off the undesired wooer is to have him believe that in reality the girl is a young boy who has been castrated - or in the euphemistic parlance of the time a musico. Seasoned with fanciful language, made up of bold neologisms and licentious double meanings, with expressions that are in turn silly, absurd, or hyperbolic, Gasbarri’s libretto offers no few aspects of modernity, while Rossini’s music already contains the melodic invention, the frenzied rhythms and musical eccentricities that within just a few months were to propel the composer unstoppably towards worldwide success.

The Rossini Opera Festival in Pesaro, the composer’s birthplace, is internationally renowned for its innovative stagings and musically impeccable productions.

This colourful and exuberant production was staged by Daminano Michieletto, “one of the truly new voices in stage direction today” (L’Unita). Damiano Michieletto made his international debut at the Wexford Opera Festival in 2003 with a highly-acclaimed production of Weinberger’s Svanda Dudák, named Opera Production of the Year by the Irish Times.

Claudio Scimone, a key figure in the international Rossini Renaissance, conducts the Orchestra di Bolzano e Trento and leads a cast of Rossini specialists including Daniele Zanfardino, Olga Peretyatko and Anna Malavasi. Gioachino Rossini LA SCALA DI SETA

Dormont – Daniele Zanfardino
Giulia – Olga Peretyatko
Lucilla – Anna Malavasi
Dorvil – José Manuel Zapata
Blanzac – Carlo Lepore
Germano – Paolo Bordogna

Bolzano-Trento Haydn Orchestra
Claudio Scimone, conductor

Damiano Michieletto, stage director

Recorded live at Rossini Opera Festival, Pesaro, August 2009

bonus
- Cast Gallery
- The making of La scala di seta

Picture format: NTSC 16:9
Sound format: LPCM 2.0 / DTS 5.1
Region code: 0 (worldwide)
Subtitles: English, French, German, Italian
Running time: 105 mins (opera) + 22 mins (bonus)
No. of DVDs: 1 (DVD 9)

R E V I E W:

"the musical aspects are in good hands as Claudio Scimone leads the Haydn Orchestra of Bolzano and Trento, with the piquant Olga Peretyatko’s Giulia miles above the rest of the cast in vocal terms, however involved they all are in the antics imposed by director Damiano Michieletto. Carlo Lepore acquits himself in the interpolated aria, “Alla Gloria,” familiar to those who are obsessive Rossinians in performances by Samuel Ramey and Michele Pertusi. Paolo Bordogna’s Germano is hampered by a vibrato housed in a voice of no particular distinction, though he does execute the fioritura quite well. José Manuel Zapata’s Dorvil requires the audience to suspend its belief in him as a romantic lead, while Anna Malavasi (Lucilla) executes the change from prude to sex-crazy puta in typical comic style."


FANFARE: Joel Kasow

Gioacchino Rossini - La Scala di Seta

Featuring Tullio Pane, Carmen Lavani, Tiziana Tramonti, Ernesto Palacio, Mario Chiappi, Robert Coviello

Orchestra della Svizzera Italiana
Marc Andreae, conductor
Martin Derungs, Harpsichord-master

Basso continuo:
Antonio Mosca (violoncello)
Umberto Ferrari (double-bass)
Filippo Crivelli, stage director

Picture format: NTSC 4:3 (full screen)
Sound format: Stereo
Region code: All Regions
Subtitles: English
Running time: 103 minutes
No. of DVDs: 1

Full review from FANFARE Magazine:
Naxos has brought a sadly neglected Rossini opera back into currency. La pietra del paragone is early Rossini, but all the stylistic elements that characterize his better-known opera buffas are in place: the crescendo, the rhythmic drive, the frenetic act I finale, the abundance of effervescent melodies. There is some borrowing from his earlier works, but later scores owe a debt to La pietra. The overture was used again for Tancredi, the storm was reused for Il barbiere di Siviglia. The tune that was to become Di tanti palpiti is first heard in La pietra, and shortly after act II opens, there is a delightful sextet reminiscent of the sextet from Cenerentola, the one with the rippled Rs. There is an incredible wealth of melody and inspiration in La pietra del paragone, and the story is delightful, too.

Three women want to marry the Count Asdrubale, but he suspects they are fortune hunters interested in his wealth. He receives a message that he is now poor. The message is a trick: he sent it himself. Asdrubale then disguises himself as an African chieftain to see what the ladies think of him now that they believe he is poor. Clarice proves to be the one who really loves him.

The opera was so highly regarded at its premiere it earned Rossini a military exemption. So why have its fortunes dwindled? Most of Rossini’s operas fell into public disfavor for well over a century and are now in the process of being rediscovered. If you like Rossini’s operas, discover this one. It’s a gem.

La pietra has not been recorded as often as Rossini’s major comedies and a few of his serious works have been. In 1972, Vanguard issued a studio-recorded album conducted by Newell Jenkins that featured José Carreras in one of his first recorded roles. It appeared on CD 20 years later and sadly seems to be out of circulation. The other three recordings were made in performance. A Nuova Era album, a co-production of the Teatros Comunale di Modena and Ferrara, is also unavailable at this time (May 2004), and a performance on Bongiovanni is listed as “Special Order.” This new Naxos album is more than likely the only La pietra to be found in the bins.

It was recorded in July 2001 during the Rossini In Wildbad Festival at Kurhaus, Bad Wildbad, Germany. The cast features a number of young singers whose talents range from good to very good. There may not be a young Marilyn Horne or Luigi Alva waiting in the wings, but all deliver performances that do the score justice. There is no one in the cast that will make you wince or reach for the mute button. Conductor Alessandro de Marchi moves the score along nicely. His tempos are somewhat swifter than those of Jenkins on Vanguard, but never sound rushed like Desderi’s occasionally do on Nuova Era.

The recorded sound is acceptable, but not ideal. The singers occasionally seem remote, and the acoustics of the theater lack warmth. Stage noises are minimal and applause following the arias is not intrusive. The libretto gives the Italian text only, but a detailed plot synopsis ties the action to the CD track numbers. A recommendation? If you can find the Jenkins on Vanguard, grab it; otherwise this new Naxos will do very nicely.

David L. Kirk, FANFARE