What opera have you been listening to, lately?

[Soave_Fanciulla]

This is fabulous in all possible ways. Franco Fagioli will knock your socks off with his aria di bravura, getting reserves of breath from somewhere mysterious to sustain some seriously insane coloratura. But really an amazing ensemble effort.

[Hoffmann]

It's a very elegant recording with excellent sound, lovely orchestra and beautiful cast.

**Clayton blah, blah warning

It is the first time I have heard this recording complete, I have only heard the abridged (more like highlights as it is less than 100 minutes) 1933 Robert Heger version a couple of times before. This painted a completely different picture in my mind of the opera; I much preferred this interpretation. Lehmann's Die Feldmarschallin, Olszewska's Octavian, Heger's direction etcetera make it a much prettier and saucy story which is what I now hold in my mind. I need to come back to to this opera with my head and my heart completely cleared so I can see it better.
I am also missing a libretto which also means I am perhaps missing a significant part of the picture, probably not so significant with some opera fans who are looking to add to a collection but a pointer for someone looking for a first recording. The EMI mid range (or obviously the original higher price initial re-release) would come with a English/German libretto but the Brilliant Opera collection comes only with access (open to all) to an online German only libretto. Another difference is that the Brilliant Opera is a 1987 remaster but I understand the EMI did another remaster later in 2001 (re-re master?). I don't know how much of a difference there will be between the two (Pristine fans know how much a different engineer can make the music sound).
So, the short of the long, I am not sure just because of my lack of familiarity with the opera but I do wish they had made the 1933 Heger a full length version (and with modern recording equipment!)

Attachment 4406 Attachment 4407

The EMI (re)remastered in 2001
Naxos Historical 1933 abridged (less than 100 mins) recording

[Sorry, beware: Hoffmann's blah, blah, blah]

Thanks, I appreciate your take on this. Having recently seen Rosenkavalier in a semi-staged, very strongly cast (Renee Fleming, Stephanie Houtzeel, Franz Hawlata and Marisol Montalvo) production, I think it is one of those operas that seeing may be necessary to appreciating it. The opera is so sweetly and delicately written, revolving around issues of age and relationships, that one almost has to see the interaction on stage to understand how extraordinarily nuanced it is. I had seen the opera once before, maybe 30 years ago, and now realize I probably was too young to understand anything beyond its beautiful score.

I don't know - it's operas like this that whisper it may be time for me to reconsider a DVD machine... Well, that and having read in MAuer's "Das Opernglas" translation about the Artaserse production on DVD (the same Soave talks about, above) with all those feathers ..

[Clayton]

Rossini: La Cenerentola
Teresa Berganza (Cenerentola), Luigi Alva (Ramiro), Renato Capecchi (Dandini), Paolo Montarsolo (Don Magnifico)
Scottish Opera Chorus & London Symphony Orchestra,
Claudio Abbado
Recorded George Watson College, Edinburgh September 1971



I need to find some more Teresa Berganza and Rossini

[Soave_Fanciulla]

Happy incidental discovery: Owen Willetts has a beautiful alto countertenor voice.

[Hoffmann]

From the Opera Baroque box set, I found this a bit windy:



but, I vastly prefer this version over my recording with Janet Baker:

[Clayton]

I just discovered that opera and driving don't mix. For all the concentration that is lost I might as well drive with my eyes closed. Yes, I think I'm going to keep opera in the house (it was a no for gardening as well).

Trying to drive while listening to opera is especially difficult when listening to something as beautiful as this:

Claudio Monteverdi, Francesco Cavalli, Benedetto Ferrari, Francesco Sacrati and Anon
L'incoronazione di Poppea
Naples manuscript version
Emanuela Galli (Poppea), Roberta Mameli (Nerone), Josè Maria Lo Monaco (Ottone), Xenia Meijer (Ottavia), Ian Honeyman (Arnalta) & Raffaele Costantini (Seneca)
La Venexiana,
Claudio Cavina (direction)
Recorded in the Church of San Carlo, Modena, Italy September 2009



(Yes Hoffmann, SNAP! )

[Clayton]

Happy incidental discovery: Owen Willetts has a beautiful alto countertenor voice.

I need to go back to this one. I loved Karina Gauvin (of course) and Allyson McHardy, Amanda Forsythe and Nathan Berg are great too. I stopped making notes on the arias I wanted to listen to again halfway through act 3 as basically I was just making a track list (again). I struggled a bit with Owen Willets as the fearless indestructable warrior gone nuts. Very pretty voice though.

[Soave_Fanciulla]

I need to go back to this one. I loved Karina Gauvin (of course) and Allyson McHardy, Amanda Forsythe and Nathan Berg are great too. I stopped making notes on the arias I wanted to listen to again halfway through act 3 as basically I was just making a track list (again). I struggled a bit with Owen Willets as the fearless indestructible warrior gone nuts. Very pretty voice though.

I was thinking about what I wrote - and I agree. He never struck me as suitably bonkers, so yes, needs to work on emotion, voice colouring and so on. But he's young and hopefully that will come with more experience.

[Hoffmann]

I just discovered that opera and driving don't mix. For all the concentration that is lost I might as well drive with my eyes closed. Yes, I think I'm going to keep opera in the house (it was a no for gardening as well).

Trying to drive while listening to opera is especially difficult when listening to something as beautiful as this:

Claudio Monteverdi, Francesco Cavalli, Benedetto Ferrari, Francesco Sacrati and Anon
L'incoronazione di Poppea
Naples manuscript version
Emanuela Galli (Poppea), Roberta Mameli (Nerone), Josè Maria Lo Monaco (Ottone), Xenia Meijer (Ottavia), Ian Honeyman (Arnalta) & Raffaele Costantini (Seneca)
La Venexiana,
Claudio Cavina (direction)
Recorded in the Church of San Carlo, Modena, Italy September 2009



(Yes Hoffmann, SNAP! )

No opera in the car?

Wouldn't Margaret Juntwait (Met Live/Sirius XM) worry about me?

Of course, if I did stop listening, I wouldn't have to worry about those situations like when I was listening to Die Walküre on Sirius last winter and had to stop for gas during the vital 3rd Act. I put all the windows down and cranked the volume while I re-fueled, and was stared at like I was a crazy person by everyone else re-fueling at the station (well, what else could I do?)

[Clayton]

...I put all the windows down and cranked the volume while I re-fueled, and was stared at like I was a crazy person by everyone else re-fueling at the station (well, what else could I do?)

Hoffmann = nuts

[Revenant]

I can't drive while listening to Bach. The insistent, interweaving musical impulse always threatens to drive me off the road. I suspect Monteverdi and Cavalli (and whoever else had a hand in the Incoronazione di Poppea) would do the same.

BTW, Clayton, are you in a position to compare the Gravina version with other Poppea cds? I have several versions but not that one.

[Clayton]

I can't drive while listening to Bach. The insistent, interweaving musical impulse always threatens to drive me off the road. I suspect Monteverdi and Cavalli (and whoever else had a hand in the Incoronazione di Poppea) would do the same.

Cavina suggests Ferrari, Sacrati and Anon. Anon must be very famous. I hear of him a lot. I know he lives in Berkhamsted because I always see letters from him in the local papers.

BTW, Clayton, are you in a position to compare the Gravina version with other Poppea cds? I have several versions but not that one.

I would say no. Though I have the Jacobs, I have only listened to it once after which my over riding memory was that I thought it a bit sterile compared to Cavina (but my first impression with Cavina wasn't much more than Oh that is pretty the first time I heard it).
Coming to think about it, I'm going to have to go back to the Jacobs soon to check (I make it sound like an obligation but I'm sure it's going to be a very enjoyable experience).

However, the Cavina is probably one of my favourite opera recordings at the moment. This is very colourful; the funny is grin funny and beauty is forget where the %&$$ you are driving to beautiful.
Handstand, cartwheel and backflip good. I love all the cast. The best (or worst) part is finishing with Galli and Mameli's Pur ti miro makes you go straight back to CD 1. I also went on a Galli and Mameli hunt yesterday after cycle 2.

If you do decide to go down this route I am confident enough to stake my usual pint on it...

[Revenant]

Cavina suggests Ferrari, Sacrati and Anon. Anon must be very famous. I hear of him a lot. I know he lives in Berkhamsted because I always see letters from him in the local papers.



I would say no. Though I have the Jacobs, I have only listened to it once after which my over riding memory was that I thought it a bit sterile compared to Cavina (but my first impression with Cavina wasn't much more than Oh that is pretty the first time I heard it).
Coming to think about it, I'm going to have to go back to the Jacobs soon to check (I make it sound like an obligation but I'm sure it's going to be a very enjoyable experience).

However, the Cavina is probably one of my favourite opera recordings at the moment. This is very colourful; the funny is grin funny and beauty is forget where the %&$$ you are driving to beautiful.
Handstand, cartwheel and backflip good. I love all the cast. The best (or worst) part is finishing with Galli and Mameli's Pur ti miro makes you go straight back to CD 1. I also went on a Galli and Mameli hunt yesterday after cycle 2.

If you do decide to go down this route I am confident enough to stake my usual pint on it...

Then I take it that you liked it somewhat.

When it comes to the convoluted and ever-expanding authorship question, I say damn those theories! Poppea sounds like Monteverdi and to no one but him, except for a ritornello here and a phrase there, perhaps. With the incestuous relationships among used and re-used scores in the early (and even late) Baroque, it is surprising that so many aspects that are undeniably Monti are pristinely clear in that opera. I don't know what everyone is talking about regarding that tiresome shared authorship question. Being influenced by him would not have been enough to confuse someone who realizes that none of them could sound just like him. Eventually they'll find something like an autograph manuscript, Venice or Naples or whatever, that will put this thing to rest. In fact, I think they have already, in the 90s iirc.

[Hoffmann]

Yesterday morning:



and, during my walk:

[Ann Lander (sospiro)]

I didn't like this opera at all when I first heard it. Was traumatised by all the talking.

But it's growing on me ... slowly!