The Gala Concerts
Celebratory Gala Concerts from Vienna State Opera, Berlin and Dresden
Picture format DVD: NTSC 16:9 and PAL 16:9
Sounds formats DVD: PCM Stereo, DD 5.0, DTS 5.0
Region code: 0
Booklet notes: English, German, French
Dresden: English, German, French
EUROARTS 2058219 [4 DVDs: 94:00 + 74:00 + 114:00 + 103:00]
Gala Concerts of operatic music are often associated with a variety of sources.
Commemoration of an event often plays a part, as on this occasion from the
Vienna State Opera. Sometimes an anniversary offers an opportunity to pay
homage to a great singer, composer or event as is the case with the Berlin
concert conducted by Abbado. The latter was scheduled for the New Year’s Eve
of the centenary of Verdi’s death. With the former musical director of Milan’s
La Scala on the rostrum and some of the best singers of the day in the cast,
very serious music-making was likely to be the name of the game. At the other
end of the spectrum lie the selections from the annual Dresden Opera Nights
for the years 1998, 1999 and 2000. These are distinctly less formal as occasions
and more populist in the excerpts chosen. But the word ‘excerpt’ has many
connotations. A popular aria is an excerpt, but so is a whole act of an opera.
Both are to be found in this diverse collection from three different venues
and five events, two in their entirety.
Some opera-lovers wouldn’t attend a gala concert even if you paid them. They
are in it for opera-house performances; that’s their choice. I have attended
multitudes of fully-staged operas over the last sixty or so years and have
also attended gala events put on for a variety of reasons. The latter have
provided me with opportunity to see artists singing arias from works I had
not seen them perform on stage and have enjoyed the occasions and the opportunity;
each to their own. All the genres of gala concert are present in this set
and I hope my comments will help guide you through the virtues, or otherwise,
of each.
DVD1: A Verdi Gala from Berlin
As I noted in my review
of the Verdi concert when first issued Claudio Abbado is a conducting polymath.
I questioned why we had come to perceive him as a great conductor of Verdi.
The question arose because during Abbado’s near twenty-year stewardship as
Musical Director at La Scala there was no production of Verdi’s great middle
period trio: Rigoletto, La Traviata and Il Trovatore.
Indeed, to the present day, Abbado has never conducted those works complete.
It seemed that he had only ever conducted seven of Verdi’s twenty-eight operas,
these in performances at Salzburg, Vienna, Berlin and Milan. Unlike his successor
at La Scala, Riccardo Muti, he has not ventured into what are often referred
to as the composer’s early works. Abbado’s reputation in Verdi owes much to
the La Scala productions of the revised Macbeth and Simon Boccanegra
that were presented at that theatre in productions by Giorgio Strehler. Although
not captured on disc these memorable performances and casts provided the basis
for the DG audio recordings of January 1976 and 1977 respectively. Abbado
went on to record Aida, Un Ballo in Maschera and the original
French version of Don Carlos for DG before leaving La Scala to take
the helm with the Berlin Philharmonic. Not until the mid-1990s did he tackle
Otello and Falstaff. He recorded the latter with Bryn Terfel
in the title role and the Berlin Philharmonic in the April following this
gala (DG 471 194-2).
Given on the evening before the hundredth anniversary year of Verdi’s death
the concert followed a similar pattern - but with different content - to that
given four years earlier. In view of Abbado’s conducting history in Verdi,
it is hardly surprising that the most substantial extracts from this concert
are taken from Ballo (Chs. 2-5) and Falstaff (Chs. 11-13) with
several of the singers in the latter also appearing in the audio recording.
The Il Ballo extracts have Abbado’s characteristic rhythmic verve allied
to his consideration and support for his singers. Ramon Vargas as Riccardo
sings with good tone and phrasing. In the strict sense Andrea Rost has too
full a voice to portray the vocal pertness of Oscar in Saper vorreste
(Ch. 5). That caveat apart these scenes provide an excellent introduction
to some of the singers and to Verdi’s most melodic music. Vargas is a vocally
appealing Duke of Mantua, singing with verve in Questa o quella (Ch.7)
and with élan in La donna e mobile (Ch.8). In the act one scene from
La Traviata, he sings Alfredo with good tone whilst Andrea Rost essays
her true fach with coloratura flexibility in Sempre libera (Chs.9-10).
The Don Carlos extract (Ch.6) is the least convincing, mainly due to
Stella Doufexis being somewhat over-parted as Eboli. She is far better as
Meg Page in the Falstaff extracts, the role she sings on the recording.
The Falstaff excerpts are acted out to the full, with the help of a
couple of stage props in the form of a laundry basket and screen for Fenton
and Nannetta, both roles superbly sung. It would have been great to have had
Terfel present as Falstaff, but in the joy and exhilaration of these scintillatingly
performed extracts, particularly of the last scene and its fugue, he was not
missed unduly.
The picture quality has clarity and depth throughout. The video director lets
us share the enjoyment of the orchestral players from time to time as well
as that of the conductor and singers. The playing of the Berlin Philharmonic
is of the highest standard and their luxuriant sound is well caught. An excellent
balance is maintained between them and the singers.
DVDs 2 and 3. Gala Concert from the Vienna State Opera
Austria was annexed by Hitler’s Germany 12 March 1938. On the night of 12
March 1945 the Austrian capital, Vienna, paid a very heavy price for its country’s
involvement with Germany’s Fascist regime. The annexation - Anschluss - to
make a Greater Germany was expressly forbidden by the Treaty of Versailles
after the end of World War I. It followed a plebiscite with Austrians welcoming
the German invasion. Vienna had been the home of some of the world’s greatest
composers and was immensely proud of its musical heritage. The Allies sought
to shorten the War by the blanket-bombing of cities much as Hitler bombers
had done systematically to Britain in the 1940s. Among the great cultural
centres to go was Dresden known for its pottery as well as its museums and
other cultural institutions in February 1945. Given the feelings in Britain’s
High Command after so many brave airmen had died in repulsing Hitler, as well
as those, like me, who had seen their cities burn in 1940, the choice of date
for the bombing of Vienna was not coincidental. That March night Vienna’s
wonderful opera house went up in flames. The stage and auditorium were destroyed
and only a few areas were left intact. Those still intact included the façade,
the main entrance, great staircase and magnificent foyer with its frescoes.
Despite being faced with massive devastation at the end of the war, it was
quickly announced that the State Opera would be rebuilt. No less than ten
per cent of the budget for restoration of all Vienna’s public buildings would
be allocated to the rebuilding. What was destroyed on that March night took
ten years to replace with the rebuilt State Opera re-opening on 5 November
1955. The concert preserved on the present DVD was given fifty years later.
In the period after its reopening the Vienna State Opera rapidly built a reputation
for importing the best singers in the world in traditional repertoire. There
have only been five world premieres since the reopening among three hundred
and seven new productions in the fifty year period. The policy was a different
opera nearly every night in the week. Singers flew in, performed, and flew
out again. I remember one British soprano recounting how she met her tenor
on the stage as he introduced himself in the wings as the conductor’s baton
started the overture. Such minimal rehearsal did not lead to great histrionic
nights, but on the evidence of the vociferous applause the audience appreciation
was phenomenal. In the leaflet to this double DVD, Domingo notes that he sang
three different roles in ten days with the company early in his career. Matters
have changed a little since those days. There is now a nucleus of artists
based at the State Opera with stars now flying in, staying a little longer
and benefiting from rehearsal time.
This Gala Night presents a mixture of company artists and international stars
who have trod the boards over many of the fifty years since reopening. Seiji
Ozawa opens proceedings with Beethoven’s Leonore No. 3 (Disc 1 CH.2),
often used to introduce the second act of Fidelio. He does so without
a score, a practice I first saw adopted by Josef Krips (1912-70) at Covent
Garden many years ago. The Vienna-born Krips was banned from conducting by
the Nazis from 1939 to 1945. He did much to restore Vienna’s operatic reputation
after the War. He re-opened the Salzburg Festival in 1946 conducting Don
Giovanni but gets no mention in the leaflet. Ozawa’s interpretation is
lacking in the dramatic impulse. That’s a pity because that tautness is needed
if the overture is to introduce that vital last act of the composer’s revision
of Leonore as Fidelio. Thankfully Ozawa’s conducting of the
finale from act 2 (Disc 2 CHs. 16-18) is more appropriately dramatic and flowing.
This allows his singing cast and chorus to do the music full justice with
Deborah Polaski and Johan Botha giving excellent performances as Leonore and
Florestan.
The music on the first DVD is wholly Germanic in origin, albeit the excerpts
from Don Giovanni are sung, as composed by Mozart, in Italian. These
start with solos involving Ferruccio Furlanetto singing The Catalogue
Aria (CH.3) and Edita Gruberova Non mi dir (CH.4). It goes on to
the scene involving Masetto, Zerlina and Giovanni to become the finale to
Act One (CHs.5-11). These excerpts illustrate perfectly the strengths and
weaknesses of the singing wrought by the occasion. It must be many years since
Furlanetto and Gruberova sang these roles anywhere and neither brings vocal
distinction to their interpretation. Thomas Hampson as Giovanni has the suave
figure and vocal equipment for the role of the lecherous roué (CH.5) whilst
the others, like Zubin Mehta on the rostrum, are adequate company members
with only Soile Isokoski bringing distinction. It is the latter, as the Marschallin,
together with Angelika Kirschlager as Octavian, who bring real vocal distinction
to the proceedings for the final trio and duet from Act Three of Rosenkavalier
(CHs.12-13).
The second half of the concert featured some Italian opera from Verdi with
the whole of Act Three of Aida (CHs.3-6). That rare thing these days,
genuine Verdi singing, is in evidence from Ferruccio Furlanetto as a sonorous
Ramfis. Johan Botha and Violeta Urmana really fill the roles vocally as Radames
and Aida. The duet from Act Four is sung by Placido Domingo as Radames and
Agnes Baltsa as Amneris (CHs.7-8). It is nearly thirty years since Baltsa
sang the role at the Salzburg Festival under Karajan, but looking imperious
she can still muster vocal distinction as can the everlasting Domingo who
made his first recording of Radames way back in 1969. Daniele Gatti provided
some of the best conducting of the evening for the Verdi.
Christian Thielemann brought more drama and involvement to his contribution
to the second half than was present in the first part with his accompaniment
of orchestra, chorus and particularly Bryn Terfel in the excepts from
Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg (CHs. 9-11). The bass-baritone,
at the peak of his powers, evinces real vocal distinction as did the chorus
and orchestra even if it is somewhat lacking in young faces. If Gatti impressed
me, so did Franz Welser-Möst in his handling of Richard Strauss’s often-neglected
Die frau ohne schatten (CHS.12-15) alongside Deborah Polaski’s notable
singing. The evening concluded with the finale of Act Two of Fidelio.
Seiji Ozawa had really found form by this time and that most human yet dramatic
scene really came alive driven by conductor, Botha and Polaski. The two singers
rise to heights of excellence as husband and wife re-united after great adversity.
It was a fitting end to something of a mixed blessing. Good in parts, less
so in others.
The applause and credits at the end amount to nearly ten minutes of Disc 2.
For those who like a little puzzle, some famous faces were on the seats on-stage
when the singers enter and leave. Who is the grey-haired lady that many recognised
and acknowledged as they left? A hint, she was an international artist on
both stage and record. She was greatly admired by the likes of Karajan, Solti
and others as well as by record producers.
DVD 4 Great Stars of Opera. Dresden Opera Nights - 1998, 1999, 2000
To quote the leaflet blurb: “Dresden Opera Nights take place every year on
a mild summer evening in front of as spectacular a backdrop as anyone could
wish for. The grandiose architecture of the opera house Gottfried Semper designed
for Dresden … stars of the world’s opera houses vie with one another to delight
audiences of 4,000 people.” No mention of the Semperoper having to
be rebuilt after the 1945 conflagration. Nor do any of the three orchestras
featured appear to have any connection with the Sächsische Staatskapelle,
the house band. And, just to put fact into the matter, in 2000 it was not
a warm summer night. The audiences were dressed for autumn and the breath
of the singers can be clearly seen.
As to the singers vying with one another, that is nearer the mark. The American
Neil Schicoff dominates the tenor roles in 1998 and 1999. Soft singing and
elegant phrasing are not his metier. He is more of the school of can belto
than bel canto. Strong singing might be appropriate in C'est
toi! C'est moi! (CH.6) from Carmen but Cavaradossi’s E lucevan
le stele (CH. 14) deserves more gentility of phrasing and expression
than he can find. Likewise I am sure Mimi would have preferred not being shouted
at, preferring to be impressed by Rodolfo’s potted biography in Che gelida
manina (CH. 15). A little more of fellow American Jerry Hadley in 1998
would have been welcome. He certainly knows and practises a honeyed mezza
voce from time to time. Schicoff’s partner in the confrontation from Carmen
is Agnes Baltsa. She can do drama, even now well past fifty, without resort
to excessive chest notes and can also convey Carmen’s seductive capacity in
the Habanera (CH. 5). Earlier in that 1998 programme she lacked the resonant
depths for Rossini’s Italiana (CH. 2). What I wonder happened to Eva
Marton in 1998. She appears only in a party rending of The Brindisi
from La Traviata (CH.10) with each voice-part being doubled so that
both Schicoff and Hadley sing Alfredo whilst she and Sandra Schwarzhaupt do
the same for Violetta. If she sang any of Turandot, the omission from
this selection is questionable.
On the more popular front, from the 1998 concert, Sandra Schwarzhaupt and
Deborah Sasson were infinitely more successful in Die Fledermaus (CH.7)
and Die lustige Witwe (CH.16) than Kurt Rydl in the
song from Fiddler on the Roof that the British know as If I were
a rich man (CH.9). The best singing in those first two years of this sequence
is that from Anna Tomowa-Sintow in the aria from Adriana Lecouvreur (CH.
12) and Pace, pace, mio Dio! from Verdi’s La Forza
del Destino (CH.13). In the Cilea she exhibits a slight vibrato but is
vocally up to it for Verdi’s final act aria.
The colder night of 2000 might have been warmed for the audience by some distinctly
better singing than in the two previous years. Daniella Barcellona might not
try Carmen on stage, but her rich mezzo and attention to words and phrases
is heard to good effect in Près des remparts de Séville (CH.18). Similarly
her aria from Rossini’s Barber of Seville is sung with richness of
timbre, appropriate coloratura and welcome expressiveness (CH. 21). The Italian
tenor Vincenzo La Scola is idiomatic in the inevitable tenor virility symbol,
Nessun dorma (CH. 19). His tone is less open than that of Schicoff
and he does reach the high notes if only to remind us of how Pavarotti did
it so much better. With a hairstyle that defies description, Lucia Aliberti
sings an excellent O mio babbino caro (CH. `22) finishing with a ravishing
final note.
If the Vienna concert was good in parts, this Dresden collection is dominated
by the mediocre.
Robert J Farr
Contents
1. A Verdi Gala from Berlin
Giuseppe VERDI (1813-1901)
Un ballo in Maschera
Volta la terrea frontei [2.54]
Signori: oggi d'Ulrica [3.06]
Ve' se di notte [5.19]
Saper vorreste [2.25]
Don Carlos
Que de fleurs et que d'étoiles [8.32]
Rigoletto
Questa o quella [2.12]
La donna è mobile [2.14]
La Traviata
Libiamo ne' lieti calici [4.29]
Sempre libera [4.41]
Falstaff
Alice…Meg…Nannetta [14.54]
Quand'ero paggio [11.18]
Alto là! ….. Chi va là? [17.25]
Andrea Rost, Ramón Vargas, Alan Titus, Elizabeth Futral, Stella Doufexis,
Lucio Gallo
Johann STRAUSS (1825-1899)
Maskenfest-Quadrille [3.17]
Claudio Abbado conducts a New Year's Eve tribute to Verdi in Berlin on the
eve of the centenary anniversary of the composer’s death
Subtitles: English, German, French, Italian, Spanish;
Prague Radio Choir; Berliner Philharmoniker/Claudio Abbado
DVD 2
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Fidelio
Overture Leonore III, Op.72 / Seiji Ozawa [14.59]
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Don Giovanni / Zubin Mehta
Questo non piccioì libro ... Madamina, il catalogo è questo [6.44]
Crudele? ... Non mi dir, bell'idoi mio [7.13]
Arias of Don Giovanni and Zerlina & Finale from Act I
Bravo! Arcibravo! ... Fin ch'han dal vino [2:21]
Masetto, senti un po'! [1:19[
Batti, batti, o bei Masetto [3:55]
Guarda un po' come seppe [0.39]
Presto, presto, pria ch'ei venga [4.01]
Bisogna aver coraggio [3 59]
Riposate, vezzose ragazze! [11.34]
Ferruccio Furlanetto (Leporello); Edita Gruberova (Donna Anna); Thomas Hampson
(Don Giovanni); Ildikó Raimondi (Zerlina); Boaz Daniel (Masetto); Soile Isokoski
(Donna Elvira); Michael Schade (Don Ottavio)
Richard Strauss (1864-1949)
Der Rosenkavalier / Christian Thielemann
Final Trio and Duet from Act III
Marie Theres! [6.09]
Ist ein Traum, kann nicht wirkich sein [10:33]
Angelika Kirchschlager (Octavian); Soile Isokoski (Marschallin); Genia Kuhmeier
(Sophie); Georg Tichy (Faninal)
DVD 3
Giuseppe Verdi (1813-1901)
Aida / Daniele Gatti
Act III
O tu che sei d'Osiride [5.05]
Qui Radamès verrà! [5 .53]
Ciel! Mio padre! [7.49]
Pur ti riveggo, mia dolce Aida [2.49]
Fuggiam gli ardori inospiti [6.28]
Tu! Amonasro! Tu! Il Rè? [4.50]
Ferruccio Furlanetto (Ramfis); Nadia Krasteva (Amneris); Violeta Urmana (Aida);
Franz Grundheber (Amonasro); Johan Botha (Radamès)
Duet from Act IV, Scene 1
L'aborrita rivale a me sfoggia [3 03]
Già i sacerdoti adunansi [8.40]
Agnes Baltsa (Amneris); Plàcido Domingo (Radamès)
Richard Wagner (1813-1883)
Die Meistersinger von Nùrnberg / Christian Thielemann
I Vorspiel zum 1. Aufzug [10.39]
Was duftet doch der Flieder [7.57]
Bryn Terfel (Hans Sachs)
Wach auf, es nahet gen den Tag [5.06]
Richard Strauss (1864-1949)
Die frau ohne schatten / Franz Welser-Möst
Excerpts and Finale from Act III
M'ir anvertraut [4.53]
Trifft mich sein Lieben nicht [2:23]
Nun will ich jubein [4.12]
Valer, dir drohet nichts [4.59]
Falk Struckmann (Barak); Deborah Polaski (Farberin); Johan Botha (Kaiser);
Ricarda Merbeth (Kaiserin)
Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
Fidelio / Seiji Ozawa
Finale from Act II
Heil sei dem Tag [1.57]
Des besten Kònigs Wink und Wille [7.39]
Wer ein holdes Weib errungen [8.42]
Thomas Hampson (Don Fernando); Walter Fink (Rocco); Falk Struckmann (Pizarro);
Deborah Polaski (Leonore); lldikó Raimondi (Marzelline); Johan Botha (Florestan);
Herwig Pecoraro (Jaquino)
Vienna celebrates the 50th anniversary of the State Opera House's reopening,
Chorus and orchestra of the Vienna State Opera/conductors as listed below
rec. 5 November 2005 - celebrating the 50th anniversary of the State Opera
House's reopening after its rebuilding following the destruction by Allied
bombing on 12 March 1945
Subtitles: English, German, French, Spanish
Originally released as 2054929 [74:00 + 114:00]
4. DRESDEN OPERA NIGHT 1998
Johann Strauss II (1825-1899)
Die Fledermaus
Overture [8:19]
Mein Herr Marquis [3:33]
Sandra Schwarzhaupt (soprano)
Gioacchino Rossini (1792-1868)
L'italiana in Algeri
Cruda sorte! Amor tiranno! [4:09]
Agnes Baltsa (mezzo)
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791)
Die Entführung aus dem Serail
O, wie will ich triumphieren [3:43]
Gunther Emmerlich (bass)
Ich gehe, doch rate ich dir [ 4:02]
Gunther Emmerlich (bass); Deborah Sasson (soprano)
Georges Bizet (1838-1375)
Carmen:
L'amour est un oiseau rebelle (Habanera) [4:20]
C'est toi!" - "C'est moi! [10:14]
Agnes Baltsa (mezzo); Neil Shicoff (tenor)
Guido Maria Ferilli
Un amore così grande [3:17]
Sandra Schwarzhaupt (soprano); Kurt Rydl (bass)
Jerry Bock (1928)
Anatevka (Fiddler on the Roof):
Wenn ich einmal reich wàr [3:57]
Kurt Rydl (bass)
Giuseppe Verdi (1813-1901)
La Traviata
Libiamo ne' lieti calici" (Brindisi) [3:38]
Neil Shicoff (tenor); Jerry Hadley (tenor); Agnes Baltsa (mezzo); Deborah
Sasson (soprano);
Èva Marton (soprano); Sandra Schwarzhaupt (soprano); Kurt Rydl (bass); Gunther
Emmerlich (bass)
DRESDEN OPERA NIGHT 1999
Giacomo Puccini (1858-1924)
Tosca
Recondita armonia [3:25]
E lucevan le stelle [3:25]
La Bohème:
Che gelida manina [5:28]
Neil Shicoff (tenor)
Francesco Cilea (1866-1950)
Adriana Lecouvreur
Ecco ... Io son l'umile ancella [3:47]
Anna Tomowa-Sintow (soprano)
Giuseppe Verdi (1813-1901)
La forza del destino
Pace, pace, mio Dio! [5:59]
Anna Tomowa-Sintow (soprano)
Franz Lehár (1870-1948)
Die lustige Witwe
Es lebt' eine Vilja [4:47]
Deborah Sasson (soprano)
Georges Bizet (1838-1375)
Carmen:
La fleur que tu m'avais jetée [5:24]
Neil Shicoff (tenor)
DRESDEN OPERA NIGHT 2000
Georges Bizet (1838-1875)
Carmen
Près des remparts de Séville [2:44]
Daniela Barcellona (mezzo)
Giacomo Puccini (1858-1924)
Turandot
Nessun dorma [3:32]
Vincenzo La Scola (tenor)
Alfredo Catalani (1854-1893)
La Wally
Ebben? N'andrò lontana [3:45]
Lucia Aliberti (soprano)
Gioacchino Rossini (1792-1868)
Il barbiere di Siviglia
Una voce poco fa [6:14]
Daniela Barcellona (mezzo)
Giacomo Puccini (1858-1924)
Gianni Schicchi: O mio babbino caro [2:45]
Lucia Aliberti (soprano)
Johann Schrammel (1850-1893)
Wien bleibt Wien [2:27]
1998. Prague Symphony Orchestra/Roland Sieffarth
1999. Deutsches Filmorchester Babelsberg/Roland Seiffarth
2000. Penderecki Festival Orchestra/Oleg Caetani
rec. Theaterplatz, Dresden, 1998-2000
Booklet notes: English, German and French
Prague Symphony Orchestra; Deutsches Filmorchester Babelsberg; Penderecki
Festival Orchestra/Roland Seiffarth, Oleg Caetani
Originally released as 2054028