Classical Music

Berg: Wozzeck, Op. 7 (Sung in Italian) & Violin Concerto

Classical Music

Classical Music

In the beginning of the 1950s, Hans Werner Henze wrote two radio operas for the former North West German Radio. The genre was developed around the 1930s and means a form of opera without any visual elements and hence without a stage. Under such circumstances the plot has to reach the listeners' ears by other means - by making the text exceptionally easy to follow, and by means of acoustic special effects like echo or sound collages. With this CD, WERGO publishes the premi�re of the revised versions on Sept. 27, 1996, in the Philharmonie in Cologne: Franz Kafka's oppressive surrealism in "Ein Landarzt" (A Country Doctor) and Wolfgang Hildesheimer's scathing satire in "Das Ende einer Welt" (The End of a World). In "Das Ende einer Welt", Henze himself took the role of the narrator, which underlines how topical the subject matter of this work remains for him. On the occasion of the premi�re of the revised versions of these two operas the composer wrote of the "inner connection" between the works: "There is, first, the state of a man who has taken leave of his senses, of being exposed, of the most terrible isolation, as if 'ordered' by invisible powers acting on a 'higher level.' There is talk of deception, of self-deception, of deceiving and being deceived, of the volatility and unreliability of life matters, beginning with the most simple (or most banal) and ending with the metaphysical and the grotesque." It is also conceivable that the increasing disquiet that took hold of Henze in the early fifties with regard to an evolving society that nonetheless remained the same at it's core ("Everywhere the old was not yet old enough, while the new pointed to a future that did not look very promising, " wrote the composer in his essay "Nach dem Krieg" [After the war]) took musical form in his two radio operas: on the one hand, a nightmare vision of horror; on the other, a cynical farce.

"Very grand... Price is a highly dramatic Carmen, Mirella Freni contributes a most sensitively sung Micaëla, and Corelli sounds glorious..." -- BBC Music Magazine [reviewing the complete version, RCA 39495

"Karajan's RCA version, made in Vienna in 1964, owes much to Leontyne Price's seductive, smoky-toned Carmen... Robert Merrill sings with gloriously firm tone, while Mirella Freni is enchanting as Micaëla." -- The Penguin Guide to Compact Discs & DVDs [2003/4 edition, reviewing RCA 39495]

Remastered 1997.

There is no better way to celebrate romance then with the passion of great arias from grand operas. Of course there are no better practitioners of the lyric drama then the Three Tenors: José Carreras, Placido Domingo and Luciano Pavarotti. This romantic celebration in music offers the most beautiful arias and duets from operas by Puccini, Donizetti, Verdi, Leoncavallo, Giordano and Bizet.
The crowd-pleasing repertoire and enormous artistry of the singers make this a special collection. It's always a thrill to hear Domingo sing Puccini, but it's particularly delightful to hear an aria from the lesser-known 'Gianni Schicchi.' Bel canto repertoire is also served by Domingo in his graceful rendition of "Una furtiva lagrima" from Donizetti's 'L'Elisir d'amore.' Luciano Pavarotti is a stellar Verdian and the sublime "Quando le sere al placido" from 'Luisa Miller' allows the great tenor to glow in Verdi's unmatched lyricism. Carreras is stirring in two arias from Puccini's 'Tosca' and dazzles in excerpts from Bizet's 'Carmen.'
An added bonus is the addition of sopranos Eva Marton, Renata Scotto and Agnes Baltsa in duets with Domingo and Carreras.

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Puccini: Tosca

Among the opera performances that deserve to be labeled “historic” is the opening night of the new production of Beethoven’s Fidelio unveiled at the Vienna State Opera on 5 November 1955. The accolade is deserved not least because this was the first time that the curtain had gone up in the rebuilt house since wartime bombing raids had reduced it to rubble at the end of the Second World War.

Of course, this says nothing about the musical quality of the occasion, but the present live recording, released to coincide with the start of the new regime under Dominique Meyer and Franz Welser-Möst, allows today’s listeners to judge this quality for themselves. Then, as now, the chorus and orchestra of the Vienna State Opera enjoy the highest reputation and have no equal anywhere else in the world, and under their then director, Karl Böhm, they amply demonstrated their credentials on this gala first night in 1955.

For Böhm, this was the start of a conducting marathon, for the house reopened with no fewer than seven new productions within a matter of only a few days. His Fidelio is notable for its taut and even breathtakingly impulsive tempos, clearly intensifying the impression of a suicide mission on the part of the “angelic Leonore” that Martha Mödl characterized so magnificently throughout this period. Unfortunately listeners can form only a limited impression of her acting, which was every bit as intense as her singing. This was the first time that she had rescued Anton Dermota as her husband, Florestan, his refined singing giving the lie to the widespread belief that the part requires a youthful heldentenor to do it justice. The rest of the cast is likewise made up of legendary names: with her distinctive lyric soprano voice, Irmgard Seefried is almost under-parted as Marzelline, while her father, Rocco, is played by the great bass Ludwig Weber, who only a few days later took on the heroic baritone role of Barak in Die Frau ohne Schatten. The villainous Don Pizarro is sung by Paul Schöffler, who that same week shone as Hans Sachs alongside Seefried’s Eva in Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg. All these singers represent the sort of ensemble spirit that characterizes every great artist and ensures that performances like this one at the Vienna State Opera are always great occasions. - Orfeo

Although Knappertsbusch conducted “Lohengrin” many times, until now no recording by him has been issued, so the welcome discovery of this live performance from Munich fills a gap in the discography... We first hear Knappertsbusch pushing the Prelude on, refusing to linger but instead urging the singing strings to create what is almost a sense of tension and expectation, culminating in the great chordal climax by the brass. The Act II Prelude, too, is wonderfully played, the orchestra producing a dark, brooding sound proleptic of Ortrud’s calling upon the “Entweihte Götter!” --MusicWeb

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As virtually the only serious opera of Donizetti to survive the advent of Verdi and the later Verismo school of Puccini et al, 'Lucia di Lammermoor' was also the most adapted to fit the prevailing notions of style. The late Maria Callas led the rediscovery of Donizetti's skill as a dramatic composer, and her performances of the opera under Serafin and Karajan are very special.
Since Callas, there have been attempts to restore the opera to something like its original form. Charles Mackerras follows Donizetti's original autograph score and offers a reading of the opera in keeping with what is known of performance practice in Donizetti's time. The most apparent results are high notes being taken in head voice rather than chest, most obvious in the male principals; the lower option at the end of arias; and a drastically shortened cadenza at the end of the mad scene.
Andrea Rost gives a strong performance of the title role as does Bruce Ford as Edgardo. The lower voices, Anthony Michaels-Moore and Alastair Miles, are particularly fine. An interesting and successful example of scholarship applied to the basic repertoire.

Mozart: Exsuiltate, jubilate, K. 165 - Alessandro Scarlatti:

Henryk Szeryng, once regarded a supreme master, has faded from memory, his fame not comparable to that of Heifetz or Oistrakh, Milstein or Menuhin, although often mentioned along with them. His performances set standards; the major record companies vied for his favor. In 1955 Szeryng played with the Sinfonie Orchester des S�dwestfunks under Hans Rosbaud. These live recordings of a Romantically-edited Nardini Concerto in E minor and Vieuxtemps' popular fourth concerto were followed in March 1957 by studio recordings of Ravel's "Tzigane" and Schumann's neglected Violin Concerto.

Boult was very closely associated with Elgar's music throughout his career and recorded the Second Symphony five times. This live Proms performance recorded in stereo from 1977 'shows Boult in his late 80s working with the passion and energy of a much younger man' (Martin Cotton). His relatively fast tempi are closer to his first recording made in 1944 with the BBCSO. The Overture and Venusberg music from Wagner's Tannhauser are a new addition to the Boult discography and come from a live studio performance in stereo from the Maida Vale Studios in 1968. These are world premier recordings.

MOZART: OPERA ARIAS CAROL VAN

One of the century's legendary achievements on record confirms its reputation on this wellmanaged reissue. Here Toscanini's blazing intensity, his full comprehension of every facet of the score are evident throughout. In the very first scene the crackling of the fire in "Fuoco di gioia", the bubbling strings as illustration of Cassio getting drunk, the complete fidelity to the score of Valdengo's Iago tell of long preparation and immediately excite the ear. They are but harbingers of the legendary maestro's total command and of his wholehearted empathy with the opera's faultless structure and deep-felt emotions, all achieved within correct tempos and with an overview of the acts, each of which courses tautly to its inevitable conclusion. Just one little detail—the stab of pain in the orchestra at Otello's first thought of jealousy, before "Perche fai tale inchiesti"—shows just how intimately Toscanini knows his music; that and so much else left uncovered by other conductors sets him far above all, except his disciple Panizza on the equally satisfying Metropolitan performance on Music and Arts, 9/91.

The attack and dedication of chorus and orchestra are apparent throughout; so is the discipline and textual clarity on all sides. Nothing escapes Toscanini, yet at the same time nothing obtrudes in a manner that calls attention to itself—unless it be the conductor's groans and encouragement now more audible in the digital transfer. The sound remains dry but somehow this very close, confined quality accords with the work's own claustrophobic quality—if only Otello had gone out into the open air and thought about the reality of the evidence before him, he might not have been so easily caught up in Iago's web of deceit.

Valdengo's Iago continues to put all but Gobbi's (for Serafin on RCA-11/88; and Tibbett's, for Panizza) in the shade. His light, almost elegant and seemingly cheerful tone, his mordant, sinister delivery of the Credo, his insinuating and perfectly accurate delivery of the imagined Dream (Nucci ought to listen to its subtlety—Decca, 11/91) all tell of his willingness to follow Toscaninfs guidance, for he never sang so well for anyone else. This is a faultless performance. So, in terms of interpretation, is Vinay's Otello—the tormented, fearsomely commanding Moor to the life. It's only when you compare his too baritonal tone with Martinelli's (Music and Arts) or Pavarotti's incisive, Italianate delivery (Decca) or Domingo's absolute security (RCA, 3/87) that Vinay's thicker tone and the throb in it seem a shade below an ideal; but no one conveys better the sense of Otello's world falling about him. Nelli always turns out to be more satisfying than one expects, because her sincerity of purpose, her accuracy and her true tone compensate for a slightly pallid reading of Desdemona's thoughts and feelings. Certainly she makes more of the text than Dame Kin i Te Kanawa (Decca) and often sings with a finer line, while missing Rethberg's warmth on the Music and Arts version—and indeed the sense of suffering heard from Scotto (RCA/Levine). The smaller roles are all worthily taken.

Any incidental drawback should not prevent anyone hearing this overwhelming interpretation. Once the vivid storm is launched it is impossible to leave the performance until the tragic, stricken figure of Otello falls lifeless by his wronged wife's side: Toscanini identifies so sympathetically with the human condition, as did Verdi himself—and it is from Verdi, at whose feet he sat, that Toscanini learnt his trade.

-- Gramophone [3/1992]

Adriana H�lszky�s music has a unique sculptural quality. "Where does the sound come from, and where does it go?" This question is central to her entire creative output and essential for the development of musical content in her works. H�lszky's third music theater piece, "Trag�dia (Der unsichtbare Raum)" [Tragedy: The Invisible Room] marks an extreme within her compositions: The changing constellations of the music bring the �Tragedy� to life - plot and language are radically excluded. The 18 instrumentalists, together with live electronic effects and pre-recorded material, produce a tremendous variety of sound recollections, shock gestures, and colors. �One is permanently aware of the absence of characters, constantly expecting someone to appear, but this state of anticipation is sustained until the end of the piece - and left unresolved.� (H�lszky) Import Hybrid-SACD pressing.

"Since Helmuth Rilling has undoubtedly recorded more of Bach's music than anyone else, one may wonder why it's taken him so long to get around to these most popular of the master's scores, and why he did so in Oregon, rather than in his hometown and with his Bach-Collegium Stuttgart, which he founded thirty years ago and has conducted ever since. But Rilling has been associated with the Oregon Bach Festival for nearly as many years, and he made a fine recording of Bach's overtures (orchestral suites) with the Festival Orchestral in 1992 (see Fanfare 16:6). While Rilling has never apologized for using of modern instruments in Bach's music and continues that practice here, he does retain the recorders in Concertos 2 and 4 and a viola da gamba in No. 6. For the present recording, Rilling has assembled a distinguished group of soloists, headed by violinist Kathleen Lenski and including Jeffrey Kahane, harpsichord, Elizabeth Baker, violin (in Concerto No. 2), Judith Lisenberg, recorder, Allan Vogel, oboe, Carol Wincenc, flute, Cynthia Phelps, viola, and far from least, Stephen Burns, trumpet. Contending that Bach would not have inserted a whole piece between the first and last movements of the third concerto, Rilling simply decorates the two chords that make up the second movement with a brief harpsichord flourish. (The timings for the second and third movements are transposed in the booklet.)

As with his overtures, Rilling's Brandenburgs are comfortably familiar in their broad outline and offer a minimum of controversial details. The playing is always accomplished and sometimes much better than that. The Second Concerto—the best of the lot—is an unqualified success."
Review of original release of this recording, Hänssler 98927

This collection presents the under-rated tenor Siegfried Jerusalem in a program of favorite arias: Wagner, Weber, Mozart and Weinberger as well as selections by Smetana, Meyerbeer and Tchaikovsky, all sung in German. Jerusalem, the tenor of choice in Wagnerian repertoire in the late 70s and 80s, is always an intense performer on stage, but under-recorded in some of his key roles. There is steel in his voice and, of course, this is necessary in much of Wagner, but there is also a need for lyricism and Jerusalem sings with an almost italianate elegance. The arias from 'Lohengrin' achieve this elegance, while the "Prize Song" from 'Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg' is suitably ecstatic.
Jerusalem shines in non-Wagnerian works, too. His Tamino from Mozart's 'Die Zauberflöte' is just right, and "Dies Bildnis is bezaubernd schön" is full of fresh, youthful vigor. His rendition of Lensky's aria from Tchaikovsky's 'Eugene Onegin' is heartbreaking and well-characterized--a high point of the disc. Duets from Weinberger's 'Schwanda, der Dudelsackpfeifer' with Hermann Prey and the late, magnificent Lucia Popp are a real treat. If you want to discover a great artist in an interesting program, you should grab this one.

Tchaikovsky Bavarian State Opera; Shuraitis The Queen of Spades

Although Luciano Pavarotti only took on a few roles during his career, his performances rewrote history and set a benchmark for vocalists that would follow him. This 2-disc set is a live recording of Pavarotti in his role as Riccardo in Verdi’s Un ballo in maschera. The Vienna State Opera Orchestra accompanies the vocalists in a raw, emotional performance under Claudio Abbado.

Classical Music

On the 1956 set from Bayreuth [the role of Kothner] is taken by no lesser artist than Fischer-Dieskau, who presents to the life the precise, fussy keeper of the seal, none better on any recording of the work. But there is hardly a poor performance from any singer. Windgassen, who rarely undertook Walther, sings the part with untiring freshness and life, phrasing with a long line and an innate musicality that make Walther's music for once a pleasure to hear from start to finish. Brouwenstijn is his lull-throated if not very individual Eva. Stolze's David is predictably vivid, Schmitt-Walther's pedantic, unexaggerated Beckmesser a nice change from the then-customary caricature. Greindl's Pogner is not ideally steady but imbued with eloquent diction and feeling.

The clinching performance is Hotter's Sachs, profoundly satisfying in its depth of feeling, its understanding of every facet of Sachs's complex character, and he gives his two monologues a musing. interior quality that goes to the heart of the matter. Vocally, he starts a shade tired - not surprising when he was also that festivals Wotan - but, crucially, by the start of Act 2 he strikes his best form. This set would be worth hearing for him alone.

Cluytens's conducting is not on the Knappertsbusch level, rather matter-of-fact in the first two acts, much more inspired in Act 3—but in any case nothing can dim the quality here of the handpicked Bayreuth forces. Unfortunately this recording, unlike the other two, has moments of poor sound, but it is never unsatisfactory enough to mar the performance's many assets.

-- Gramophone [10/1998]