What opera have you been listening to, lately?

**Luiz Gazzola (Almaviva)** · January 9th, 2012, 01:34 PM

A blank post? How did this happen? I though we had a minimum limit of characters (I set it to 3, the 10 limit was annoying).

I just saw yesterday and oldie but goodie:

While Richard Croft as Cassio is sub-par, Domingo and Morris and Fleming do a superb job. One of the best Domingo performances I've seen, and Morris' Iago is one for the ages. This is of course a classic but I hadn't seen it yet. The opening scene could have been more impressive, I've seen better, but from that point on, the performance picks up and works rather well until the end. I'd give it a 4 out of 5.

**Dark_Angel** · January 14th, 2012, 09:13 PM

The 1957 live Callas from Cologne, very good sound and great performance............

The Bartoli version is really the JDF show, great modern sound captures best Elvino available......Bartoli is bit too stretched in the more demanding parts, voice always sounds a bit choppy to me instead of naturally flowing

Schigs what do you think does Callas top her 1955 Bernstein performance, great closing aria!
(the final run keeps expanding till it blows the roof off)

**HarpsichordConcerto** · January 25th, 2012, 01:03 AM

Originally Posted by Soave_Fanciulla

On holiday:

Battle of the Tamerlano. Which one did you prefer?

I look forward to Minotaur. It's part of my UWP.

**Soave_Fanciulla** · January 25th, 2012, 01:37 AM

Originally Posted by HarpsichordConcerto

Battle of the Tamerlano. Which one did you prefer?

Aargh. This is a difficult one. Neither is entirely satifactory.

For conducting/band, definitely Pinnock. He brings out the darkness of this opera better.

Staging: both are very minimal, the Teatro Real version is more visually arresting.

Bacelli is the title role in both, I think she is more bonkers in the Miller version (that's a compliment), but she does the "I'm really a nice guy at heart even though I was just now threatening to throw you to the rabble in front of your father" volte-face at the end much more convincingly in the Teatro Real one.

I prefer to hear Randle as Bajazet (Domingo sings verismo Handel, a new one for me

) but I'm more convinced by Domingo as a deeply suffering dignified father.

I REALLY don't like the timbre of Elizabeth Norberg-Schultz's voice - it's not that she is a bad singer, and she's a good actress, but she's too shrill for me.

Overall though, if I only had to get one, it would be the Miller production.

What do you think HC, have you got them both?

Originally Posted by HarpsichordConcerto

I look forward to Minotaur. It's part of my UWP.

I'm sure you'll like it. Those Harpies are really something else

.

**HarpsichordConcerto** · January 25th, 2012, 02:43 AM

Originally Posted by Soave_Fanciulla

Aargh. This is a difficult one. Neither is entirely satifactory.

For conducting/band, definitely Pinnock. He brings out the darkness of this opera better.

Staging: both are very minimal, the Teatro Real version is more visually arresting.

Bacelli is the title role in both, I think she is more bonkers in the Miller version (that's a compliment), but she does the "I'm really a nice guy at heart even though I was just now threatening to throw you to the rabble in front of your father" volte-face at the end much more convincingly in the Teatro Real one.

I prefer to hear Randle as Bajazet (Domingo sings verismo Handel, a new one for me

) but I'm more convinced by Domingo as a deeply suffering dignified father.

I REALLY don't like the timbre of Elizabeth Norberg-Schultz's voice - it's not that she is a bad singer, and she's a good actress, but she's too shrill for me.

Overall though, if I only had to get one, it would be the Miller production.

What do you think HC, have you got them both?

I'm sure you'll like it. Those Harpies are really something else

.

Re. Tamerlano, yeah I can agree with much you said. I prefer Pinnock's overall direction as I think he understands Handel's music (The English Concert has recorded all of Handel's orchestral music, for example). The singers though, could be better. Randle was no Domingo. I thought Domingo did his Bajazet well enough for a singer who is normally not at all associated with Baroque operas. Without expecting too much "historically informed singing", Domingo brought out Bazajet that I think would have done better with us modern audiences overall. Monica Bacelli was interesting, appearing in both. I also prefer her with Domingo. But I mean, I"m happy with both versions and even if either never existed, Tamerlano would have done OK by either production.

Schigolch · January 25th, 2012, 08:25 AM

Originally Posted by HarpsichordConcerto

Monica Bacelli was interesting, appearing in both. I also prefer her with Domingo. But I mean, I"m happy with both versions and even if either never existed, Tamerlano would have done OK by either production.

You know, Ms. Bacelli is a nice singer, and could do a good job singing Tamerlano in Halle. This is not the case at Teatro Real, a much bigger venue (in terms of size), where her voice is just desperately inadequate to fill this big house.

About Mr. Domingo... well, you were left wondering at the end of the opera if you have just watched Bajazet's death, or Turiddu's.

In fact, the performances at Teatro Real with the second cast (Ann Hallenberg, Bruce Ford, Isabel Rey, Renata Pokupic, Patricia Bardon,...) were more satisfactory.

**Soave_Fanciulla** · January 26th, 2012, 11:00 PM

Originally Posted by Schigolch

You know, Ms. Bacelli is a nice singer, and could do a good job singing Tamerlano in Halle. This is not the case at Teatro Real, a much bigger venue (in terms of size), where her voice is just desperately inadequate to fill this big house.

One of the joys of DVD is that you don't have to worry too much about size of voice vis-à-vis theatre size. She sounded great to me on both recordings. That said I would have liked to see the second cast too.

**Soave_Fanciulla** · January 29th, 2012, 08:05 PM

I watched Le Cid on Youtube with Alagna And Beatrice Uria-Monzon here. This is the only version I've seen as it unfortunately does not exist on DVD (Why not?).

Alagna was fine, I just wallow in his glorious French, but Uria-Monzon steam-rolled her way through the role, big voice with heavy vibrato singing with no finesse whatsoever. So I'm resting my ears with this now that I know the plot:

Schigolch · January 30th, 2012, 09:04 PM

**Soave_Fanciulla** · January 31st, 2012, 01:06 AM

Someone needs to tell Dario Fo that less is more, and filling your stage with people dressed as animals, funny men with false tummies, real rockets and endless lovely women in various stages of undress and contortion, doesn't really help your singers make a big impression.

Despite that this guy stood out for me, battling out against the endless distractions to make a lovely sound:

**Aramis** · January 31st, 2012, 08:39 PM

That wonderful Rigoletto with Demuro, Machaidadiaaizdze and Nucci. It's really great. I surely hope to hear Demuro on some real recording, preferably from studio, such handsome voice and singing manners much above current standards when it comes to tenors. I actually liked his Duke more than one by Kraus (and that's a lot since I'm huge fan of Kraus). Machaiaidziaaiadze is entirely convicing Gilda as well, loved her Caro Nome. Nucci provides insightful interpretation of his character, yet I would complain that he had some problems with high notes here. I think that he even missed one in his final AH, LA MALEDIZIONE cry. But nevertheless he doesn't fall under certain level that I expected him to keep.