What opera have you been listening to, lately?

[Florestan]

Same here, but love 'em both!

And then you have the 1805 and 1806 Leonores. Soustrot is the best 1806 that I have heard. Then you have the Gardiner version which I understand is an amalgamation of parts from both 1805 and 1806, and perhaps some of Fidelio mixed in. A curiosity only to me.

[Soave_Fanciulla]

Still haven't listened to mine. How did you like it?

I did enjoy it. Super dramatic, interesting textures! Relatively light voices which I prefer any way (big wobbly Donna Anna are anathema to me). Kenneth Tarver sang Don Ottovio particularly beautifully.

[Florestan]

[Clayton]

well, I'm not going to Munich in the summer, so instead I went to 1961 Bayreuth.



Wagner: Tannhäuser
Wolfgang Windgassen (Tannhäuser), Victoria de los Angeles (Elisabeth), Grace Bumbry (Venus), Josef Greindl (Landgraf), Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau (Wolfram), Gerhard Stolze (Walther), Franz Crass (Biterolf), Gerhard Paskuda (Heinrich), Theo Adam (Reinmar)
Orchesta of the Bayreuth Festival, Wolfgang Sawallisch
Bayreuth 1961

[Dichteurehalle]

The (impossibly ancient) lady I sat next to at Idomeneo told me that this is one of her favorite operas, not just because the music is beautiful but also because she finds the story holds great meaning. Unfortunately, the lights dimmed before she could elaborate.

[Soave_Fanciulla]

The (impossibly ancient) lady I sat next to at Idomeneo told me that this is one of her favorite operas, not just because the music is beautiful but also because she finds the story holds great meaning. Unfortunately, the lights dimmed before she could elaborate.

It is lovely, but I prefer the version with Fleming. One of her best roles.

[Hoffmann]

Yesterday's walk:




I hadn't heard this opera before - it really didn't make much of an impression on me other than some lovely singing of some not very interesting music.


Today's walk:




I spent a wonderful couple of hours with the cast of this opera this afternoon.

[Clayton]

Catel: Sémiramis
Tragédie lyrique. Paris, 1802
Maria Riccarda Wesseling (mezzo-soprano), Gabrielle Philiponet (soprano), Mathias Vidal (tenor), Nicolas Courjal (bass), Andrew Foster-Williams (bass) & Nicolas Maire (tenor)
Le Concert Spirituel, Hervé Niquet



The ending with the matricide...

[Clayton]

Dargomïzhsky: Rusalka
Alexander Vedernikov (Miller), Natalia Mikhailova (Natasha, His Daughter), Konstantin Pluzhnikov (Prince), Galina Pisarenko (Princess), Nina Terentieva (Olga)
Grand Choir of the USSR Radio and TV Tchaikovsky Symphony Orchestra of Moscow Radio, Vladimir Fedoseyev



as stated on Presto site:

Recorded in 1983 with full Russian forces...

[Clayton]

but the Clayton recording of the week goes to my latest charity shop find. If I score the superlative Villaume 9.296 out of 10, this one gets a 9.308



Tchaikovsky: Iolanta
Galina Gorchakova (Iolanta), Sergei Alexashkin (René), Gegam Grigorian (Vaudemont), Nikolai Putilin (Ibn-Hakia), Dmitri Hvorostovsky (Robert), Nikolai Gassiev (Almeric), Gennadi Bezzubenkov (Bertrand), Larissa Diadkova (Martha), Tatiana Kravtsova (Brigitta), Olga Korzhenskaya (Laura)
Orchestra of the Kirov Opera, St. Petersburg, Valery Gergiev

Galaant, charismatic, pure and sweet, romantic, it's all round a very well balanced cast and Gergiev's tempi extracts every ounce of Tchaikovsky's beautiful and thrilling score. Wonderful.

[Florestan]

Just finished these two. Definitely prefer the second one by a wide margin.

[Dichteurehalle]

Just finished these two. Definitely prefer the second one by a wide margin.

Why?

- - - Updated - - -

Just finished these two. Definitely prefer the second one by a wide margin.

Why?

[Florestan]

Why?

- - - Updated - - -



Why?

First one seemed rather an uninspired performance, and not sure all the singers are that good. But I was distracted while listening so maybe should give it another try. Meanwhile, this one is even better performance wise (sound not as good):


and now I am onto this one, also very good:

[Clayton]

...I was distracted while listening...

I'm imagining a Florestan busy building a new storage unit with a fifty thousand square foot foot print for growing CD collection whilst listening to opera...

[MAuer]

According to an interview in the March issue of Opera News, the Met's incoming Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin has a collection with around 10,000 CDs!