I have been fortunate to have heard German baritone Christian Gerhaher in
concert performance a handful of times. The last occasion was in June 2015
with the Staatskapelle Dresden under Christian Thielemann at the Semperoper,
Dresden. Gerhaher sang Schubert and Wagner opera arias giving a gloriously
polished and expressive performance assisted by peerless orchestral support
from the Staatskapelle Dresden.
On this new album Gerhaher performs with the Freiburger Barockorchester on
period instruments directed from the violin by Gottfried von der Goltz. They
know their Mozart extremely well. They released a recording of the
Linz in 2010 as part of the orchestra’s survey of Mozart’s late
symphonies. This followed recordings of Mozart operas all directed by René
Jacobs on Harmonia Mundi.
Gerhaher has selected arias from four of Mozart’s last five operas; all
works he has performed on stage. There are four arias from
Don
Giovanni, five from
Le nozze di Figaro and three from
Così
fan tutte. In addition there are three in German from
Die
Zauberflöte. A formidable artist, Gerhaher dramatically illuminates
each of the arias with musical sensitivity and total immersion in the text.
Without excessive vibrato and no annoying mannerisms Gerhaher’s glorious
singing also sounds fresh and spontaneous. There is not a dud track on the
whole album.
My particular highlights are headed by
Madamina, il catalogo è
questo ‘Catalogue Aria’ from act 1 of
Don Giovanni, the
servant Leporello’s account of his master’s abundance of lovers, delivered
by Gerhaher with urgency and exquisite lyricism. From the same opera
Fin
ch’han dal vino Don Giovanni’s ‘Champagne Aria’ also from act 1displays
Gerhaher’s splendidly resilient yet fluid tone. He plays the role of
Papageno from
Die Zauberflöte wonderfully. The German baritone’s
aptitude for the part can be seen to great effect in Pierre Audi’s 2006
Salzburg Festival production with the Wiener Philharmoniker under Riccardo
Muti that I have on Decca Blu-ray. Gerhaher sings all three arias from
Papageno the lovelorn bird-catcher
Der Vogelfänger bin ich ja from
act 1 and
Ein Mädchen oder Weibchen and
Papagena! Papagena!
Papagena! from act 2 and does so with a robust expressive power so
pleasing to the ear. With unswerving vitality the performance of the
Freiburger Barockorchester reflects its relish for these scores.
For Mozart symphonies I tend to prefer what might be described today as
‘big band’ Mozart. I recall reporting from a stunning concert of the final
three symphonies given by the Wiener Philharmoniker under Daniel Barenboim
in May 2012 at Semper Oper, Dresden. Nevertheless it is refreshing to hear
the lighter more transparent sound of the thirty-five or so strong
Freiburger Barockorchester using period-instruments and the pleasing amount
of fine detail revealed. I especially enjoyed the stately yet energetic
third movement
Menuetto and the sheer vibrancy and commitment given
to the
Finale:
Presto.
Gerhaher employs a highly subjective approach to the running order of the
arias. It doesn’t bother me too much that they are not in chronological
order and are spread about but it's puzzling that the four movements
of the
Symphony are interspersed amongst the arias. Equally
bewildering is the jarring decision to change the order of the movements.
The works on this release were recorded at live concerts held in January
2015 at Konzerthaus, Freiburg and the
Linz was played complete and
not in the manner presented here.
Recorded live the engineering team has provided excellent sound quality
that is clear and satisfyingly balanced. In the booklet is an informative
essay by Mozart specialist Professor Dieter Borchmeyer titled ‘The
Transformations of Eros in Mozart’s Final Operas’. A minor grumble concerns
the minute size of the font used for the numbering of the annotation.
Thankfully there are full Italian and German texts with English translations
given.
With Christian Gerhaher in quite stunning form this is a beautifully
played and recorded release in spite of the oddly assembled running
order.
Michael Cookson
Track ListingDon Giovanni, K527 (1787)
1) Act 1, Madamina, il catalogo è questo [5.58]
2) Act 2, Deh vieni alla finestra [1.54]
3) Act 1, Fin ch'han dal vino [1.23]
Symphony No. 36 in C major, K425 ‘Linz’ (1783)
4) IV
Presto [7.28]
Le nozze di Figaro, K492 (1786)
5. Act 1, Bravo, signor padrone!... Se vuol ballare, signor contino
[3.25]
Don Giovanni, K527 (1787)
6. Act 2, Metà di voi qua vadano [2.43]
Così fan tutte, K588 (1790)
7. Act 1, Non siate ritrosi [1.41]
Don Giovanni, K527 (1787)
8. Act 2, A pietà, signori miei [1.42]
Symphony No. 36 in C major, K425 ‘Linz’ (1783)
9. II Andante [6.04]
Die Zauberflöte, K620 (1791)
10. Act 1, Der Vogelfänger bin ich ja
11. Act 2, Ein Mädchen oder Weibchen
12. Act 2, Papagena! Papagena! Papagena!
Symphony No. 36 in C major, K425 ‘Linz’ (1783)
13.
III. Menuetto – Trio [2.53]
Le nozze di Figaro, K492 (1786)
14. Act 4, Tutto è disposito… Aprite un po' quegli occhi [3.56]
15. Act 1, Non più andrai, farfallone amoroso [3.46]
16. Act 3, Hai già vinta la causa!… Vedrò mentr'io sospiro
[4.46]
Così fan tutte, K588 (1790)
17. Act 2, Donne mie, la fate a tanti [3.06]
Symphony No. 36 in C major, K425 ‘Linz’ (1783)
18. I. Adagio - Allegro spiritoso [9.42]
Così fan tutte, K588 (1790)
19. Act 1, Rivolgete a lui lo sguardo [5.23]
