What opera have you been watching lately?

[Clayton]

Pergolesi: Adriano in Siria
Marina Comparato (Adriano), Lucia Cirillo (Emirena), Annamaria Dell’Oste (Farnaspe), Nicole Heaston (Sabina), Stefano Ferrari (Osroa) & Francesca Lombardi (Aquilio Tribuno)
[Intermezzo, Livietta e Tracollo
Monica Bacelli (Livietta) & Carlo Lepore (Tracollo)]
Accademia Bizantina, Ottavio Dantone (conductor) & Ignacio García (director)
Pergolesi Spring Festival, Jesi, Ancona 2010



This is a good opera, with a good cast in a good performance with good stage and costumes. The sound and camera work is good too. Yes, all good.

The first performance for Adriano in siria was in October 1734 but the demanding Neapolitans did not give it such a good reception. Though Pergolesi was already busy with his next commission with another Metastasio libretto, L'Olimpiade but this time in Rome which was due to open less than three months later.

Whether it was this time constraint or because he thought the music was good or a combination and just because he could, we do not know but he did reuse much of the music from Adriano in L'Olimpiade. Though as he did not use music from any other works (except from the intermezzo for Adriano, Livietto e Tracollo, for humour), perhaps it was that he liked what he had produced here.

On top of the opening sinfonia which was borrowed in part, there are three other arias that were used as a base for those in L'Olimpiade. Further, Emirena's aria Prigioniera abbandonata is only reworded to become Alcandro's L'infelice in questo stato; it is the same emotion of pity though where Emirena's is directed towards herself, Alcandro is directed to Licida. Also Farnaspe's Torbido in volto e nero (turmoil) is used completely and sung by Megacle.

So maybe this opera is not just good. It is interesting as well.

[Soave_Fanciulla]

Beautiful and charming, with a young energetic cast that make the best of this youthful opera.

[JohnGerald]

I just surfaced from an immersion in Rossini, followed by an immersion in Verdi, then, last night, it was back to Rossini. I think that I am past any way out of my addiction!

I started with Rossini's first work, Demitrio e Polibio . It features Maria jose Mareno, Yijie Shi and Victoria Zaytseva. and is an ROF production. I was quite pleasantly surprised by the music and the singing was up to ROF standards. In Blu ray, the disc quality (Art Haus) was first rate.

Then it was the ROF's Le Comte Ory with Shi, Moreno and Laurs Polverelli. While not as well staged as the Met version (my fave), it is a very good production, with some fiendish coloratura singing from all performers.

Then we watched the Tutto Verdi Giovanna D'Arco

Then the Met's 2011 Ernani.

Then a new acquisition, Rossini's Il Turco in Italia (Art Haus) with Simone Alaimo as Selim, a great cast, excellent work from the pit and super quality video and audio.

This was not all done in one day, kids. Even my appetite for opera requires some rest to recharge my innards. And a trip to Costco to refresh the wine supply. But it was huge fun to experience some new productions that will get viewed again.

One trouble with a large opera collection, from which to select is ... selecting. But I'm not complaining!

Now, if I might be excused, I have some selecting to do.

[Adrian]

Not a complete opera , this time this Met production.
Stunning Otello act with Freni and Domingo.
But the icing on the cake is the Fledermaus gala......what a joy

[Amfortas]

I remember enjoying the original broadcast; I only wish the DVD were complete. Still, a memorable occasion.

[Ann Lander (sospiro)]

Kurt Moll - what a guy!!

[Soave_Fanciulla]

Kurt Moll - what a guy!!

That's the one I saw in person in the 80s. I fell in love with the opera tout'suite. Moll is absolutely the best Osmin known to man. I remember being so surprised that Oliver Tobias could speak German (Wiki now tells me he is Swiss-German). Personally If I had been Constanze I'd have stayed with him.

[Ann Lander (sospiro)]

That's the one I saw in person in the 80s. I fell in love with the opera tout'suite. Moll is absolutely the best Osmin known to man. I remember being so surprised that Oliver Tobias could speak German (Wiki now tells me he is Swiss-German). Personally If I had been Constanze I'd have stayed with him.

How fab that you saw this. Oliver Tobias is such a hot dude

[Soave_Fanciulla]

Turandot from La Scala with Nina Stemme, Aleksandrs Antonenko, Maria Agresta and Alexander Tsymbalyuk, conducted by Riccardo Chailly and directed fairly well by Nikolaus Lehnhoff. The most notable thing about this production however is that it uses the darker, more inventive alternative ending by Berio rather than the rather saccharine one by Alfano. Catch it while it is still up.

[Ann Lander (sospiro)]

hm. I don't know why but I did not pick up on that point, maybe it was as I was concentrating too much on Anthony Rolfe-Johnson. (I only have seen it once whilst I was still on the La Verità in cimento hangover).

It's this bit (different production of course). From here

https://youtu.be/DcUjr0nI-pA?t=28m2s

to here (which is sad)

https://youtu.be/DcUjr0nI-pA?t=38m24s

[Adrian]

Cavalleria Rusticana - Pietro Mascagni

Turiddu: Plácido Domingo
Santuzza: Tatiana Troyanos
Lucia: Jean Kraft
Alfio: Vern Shinall
Lola: Isola Jones


Pagliacci - Ruggero Leoncavallo
Tonio: Sherrill Milnes
Canio: Plácido Domingo
Villagers: Arthur Apy / Domenico Simeone
Nedda: Teresa Stratas
Beppe: James Atherton
Silvio: Allan Monk

The Metropolitan Opera Orchestra and Chorus , James Levine 1978
Chorus master: David Stivender
Production: Franco Zeffirelli
Set and Costume: Franco Zeffirelli

Sound: LPCM stereo / DTS 5.1 Surround
Format: NTSC
Region code: All regions
Running Time: 152 mins
Subtitles: EN

Watched with friends last night who never seen it before.
One of my all time favourites, as is Troyanos is

[JohnGerald]

Last night we watched Rossini's Sigismondo, it being a 2010 performance from the ROF on an Opus Arte blu ray disc.

We found much of the music and all of the singers to be of a very high caliber, with special
bravi" to Olga Peretyatko and Daniella Barcellona> They were the real deal, especially in their duets.

Luiz reviewed this opera at length in the section on Rossini operas, and while I disagree with his observations over the performance of Ms Peretyatko and the timbre of her voice, as well as his praise of Mr Siragusa, whom I find too nasal to be enjoyable, we do agree about his reservations on the staging. We both found the depiction of mental illness, even in the context of the 19th century to be both tasteless and disrespectful of folks who are experiencing true mental illness.

That aside, and despite that the original performances were considered failures, we found much to be enjoyed in the music as performed here.

[Soave_Fanciulla]

Last night we watched Rossini's Sigismondo, it being a 2010 performance from the ROF on an Opus Arte blu ray disc.

We found much of the music and all of the singers to be of a very high caliber, with special
bravi" to Olga Peretyatko and Daniella Barcellona> They were the real deal, especially in their duets.

Luiz reviewed this opera at length in the section on Rossini operas, and while I disagree with his observations over the performance of Ms Peretyatko and the timbre of her voice, as well as his praise of Mr Siragusa, whom I find too nasal to be enjoyable, we do agree about his reservations on the staging. We both found the depiction of mental illness, even in the context of the 19th century to be both tasteless and disrespectful of folks who are experiencing true mental illness.

That aside, and despite that the original performances were considered failures, we found much to be enjoyed in the music as performed here.

I really enjoyed Barcellona an Peretyatko in this as well.

[Soave_Fanciulla]

Wow, Nadja Michael is amazing in this!. Some lovely music and an arresting if occasionally puzzling staging.

Mayr: Medea in Corinto
Nadja Michael (Medea), Ramón Vargas (Giasone), Alastair Miles (Creonte), Alek Shrader (Egeo), Elena Tsallagova (Creusa), Kenneth Roberson (Evandro), Laura Nicorescu (Ismene). Bayerisches Staatsorchester, Ivor Bolton (conductor) & Hans Neuenfels (stage director)

[Adrian]

I remember enjoying the original broadcast; I only wish the DVD were complete. Still, a memorable occasion.

I am a bit late Amfortas but I thought this was the complete broadcast?