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Giuseppe
VERDI(1813-1901) Un ballo in maschera - Opera in
Three Acts (1871)
Libretto by Antonio Somma after Eugène Scribe's libretto Gustave III, ou Le
bal masqué
Riccardo – Jon Vickers (tenor)
Renato – Ettore Bastianini (baritone)
Amelia – Amy Shuard (soprano)
Ulrica – Regina Resnik (mezzo)
Oscar – Joan Carlyle (soprano)
Silvano – Victor Godfrey (baritone)
Horn- Michael Langdon (bass)
Ribbing – David Kelly (bass)
Covent Garden Opera Chorus
Covent Garden Orchestra/Edward Downes
rec. live, Royal Opera House, 23 February 1962 ROYAL OPERA HOUSE
ROHS009[48:07 + 73:32]
This live recording, made in February
1962 in the Royal Opera House, preserves a performance that might
otherwise
have been lost to posterity had it not been for the forethought
of Lord Harewood. After negotiations for a BBC broadcast
fell through, Harewood arranged for a private recording to
be made for his own archive. It’s that recording which appears
on this CD.
Featuring a characteristic “Garden” cast of the 1960s,
with its mix of international and home-grown talent, this
set allows us to hear some performances that have not otherwise
been enshrined for posterity, and will stir some happy memories
in Covent Garden regulars of the day.
At the time of this particular revival, Jon Vickers
had been a stalwart of this production for some years. He
sings a rich-toned Gustavo, phrasing his music with an elegance
and subtlety which may come as a surprise to some listeners,
given his later rough-hewn interpretations of Tristan, Otello
and Peter Grimes. He sings throughout with a combination
of fine legato line and impassioned involvement, and presents
a far more positive figure than the rather effete character
that some performances have suggested. His full-blooded duet
with Amelia is thoroughly believable, but he can also fine
down his voice for some of his more delicate or introspective
solos.
Bastianini’s house debut as Renato created a very favourable
impression at the time. By all accounts his was a commanding
stage presence allied to acute psychological understanding
of the character. Thus he moves convincingly from being the
ally of Gustavo in the early part of the opera to his implacable
foe towards the end. He sings throughout with beautiful tone
and due regard to musical rather than histrionic values.
His scenes with Amelia which open Act 3 operate at the highest
level; his implacable fury at Amelia’s supposed infidelity
contrasts effectively with Amy Shuard’s impassioned pleading. “Eri
tu” creates a memorable effect in its judicious use of dynamics,
legato and word painting. A classic performance.
Amy Shuard is a name that is, sadly, virtually forgotten
nowadays; as older opera-goers will know, she was Covent
Garden’s leading dramatic soprano of the period. Having progressed
through the Italian repertoire via the likes of Aida and
Amelia to Turandot, of which she became a famous interpreter,
she moved on to the heavier German roles such as Elektra
and Brunnhilde. Shuard made relatively few recordings so
it’s valuable to have this memento of her performance on
CD. As recorded her voice has rather a hard edge, but she
negotiates Verdi’s soaring phrases with aplomb and her dramatic
involvement is never in doubt. Her account of Amelia’s big
Act 2 scena is exciting and vocally secure, and she follows
this with impassioned singing in her duet with Gustavo. That
she is also capable of considerable subtlety is evidenced
by the quiet intensity of her singing in Morro, ma prima
in grazia.
Regina Resnik makes the most of the role of Ulrica,
giving the kind of no-holds barred dramatic performance we
have come to associate with her. Joan Carlyle, another familiar
at Covent Garden at the time, sings Oscar with charm and
aplomb. Smaller roles are taken by Covent Garden stalwarts
of the day. Last but not least, it is good to hear that great
Verdian Edward Downes shaping the work with characteristic
fire and passion.
The recording is acceptable rather than outstanding,
but engineers have worked miracles on what sounds like rather
intractable source material. The placement of the microphone
allows us to hear someone’s intermittent coughs (the prompter
perhaps?) in glorious close-up, but this is rarely distracting.
There is a brief passage missing from the original tapes
at the end of Act 3 Scene 1, at which point the music fades
out before resuming at the start of Scene 3.
With a lavish booklet containing full texts, translations
and production photos this is a fine memento of a historic
performance.
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