Claude DEBUSSY (1862-1918)
Pelléas et Mélisande (1902)
Mélisande (soprano) - Vannina Santoni
Pelléas (tenor) - Julien Behr
Golaud (baritone) - Alexandre Duhamel
Geneviève (mezzo-soprano) - Marie-Ange Todorovitch
Arkel (bass) - Jean Teitgen
Le Médecin (baritone-bass) - Damien Pass
Yniold (boy soprano) - Hadrien Joubert de la Maîtrise de Caen
Un berger (bass) - Mathieu Gourlet
Chorus of Opéra de Lille,
Les Siècles/François-Xavier Roth
rec. March 2021, Opéra de Lille, France & Auditorium Patrick Devedjian, La Seine Musicale, Boulogne-Billancourt, France
French libretto and English translation included
HARMONIA MUNDI HMM905352.54 [3 CDs: 157:55]
François-Xavier Roth and Les Siècles have already given us some Debussy orchestral music on disc. Dan Morgan felt able only to give a qualified welcome to the disc that included Jeux and the Nocturnes (review). I’d liked an earlier release which included La Mer (review). Now Roth and his HIP ensemble take on a much more substantial challenge in the form of Debussy’s only opera, Pelléas et Mélisande.
I believe I’m correct in saying that the original intention was to record the opera during live performances at the Opéra de Lille. However, Covid restrictions put paid to those plans. Instead, judging by photographs in the sumptuous booklet, a virtue was made out of necessity. The orchestra was placed – suitably distanced from each other – where the orchestra stall seats would have been, while the singers, all in costume, performed on stage. Thus, I suppose we might describe this recording as ‘as live’.
Roth has assembled a cast which is largely Francophone – I think Vannina Santoni may be Italian-born - and that’s very important in a work such as this where the libretto is, in essence, conversational – and, at times, confrontational. Here, the text flows freely and naturally from all the performers. I was intrigued to learn from an interview with the conductor in the booklet that all the singers were making their role debuts with the exception of Alexandre Duhamel and Jean Teitgen. One would not know that from listening: all the singers seem fully at ease in their characters.
It seems to me that there isn’t a weak link in the cast. At her first entry – ‘Ne me touchez pas’ – I wondered if Vannina Santoni sounded a bit too mature for the role of a young woman. However, that feeling soon passed and I admired her performance very much. She is excellent in her scenes with Pelléas, initially scared to give full vent to her feelings but then, in Act IV, surrendering to her instincts. Her tragic portrayal of the dying Mélisande in Act V is moving. Opposite her, Julien Behr makes a fine Pelléas. Some conductors opt for a high baritone in this role – for example Christian Gerhaher on the 2016 Simon Rattle set (review) – but Behr completely vindicates Roth’s choice of a tenor. His light, ringing voice suggests an impulsive young man and I very much like the ardour he brings to his exchanges with Mélisande in Act III, scene 1. He’s even more passionate – as is Santoni - in what turns out to be their final encounter in Act IV. Elsewhere, though, Behr is capable of great tenderness in his singing.
I must admit that Alexandre Duhamel’s portrayal of Golaud is one which grew on me; in the forest scene of Act I, I wasn’t sure I was going to like him. His voice is somewhat drier than that of Gerald Finley who is so excellent for Rattle. Duhamel seemed at first to be somewhat stiff and formal but it soon became clear that this is the whole point. This Golaud simply doesn’t know how to deal with a young girl and through his vocal acting Duhamel makes clear the gulf that exists on so many fronts between him and a wife who is so many years his junior. Duhamel conveys Golaud’s mounting jealousy very effectively and the way in which he interrogates and manipulates Yniold in Act III, scene 4 is chilling. Duhamel gives a compelling portrayal of Golaud.
Boy soprano Hadrien Joubert does very well as Yniold. In his aforementioned exchange with Golaud he’s nervous, innocent and keen to please. Later he brings his Act IV solo off very well (‘Oh! Cette pierre est lourde’) Hs voice is quite small – which is fitting for the role – and I do wonder whether he’d be audible in a live theatrical performance; but on disc he comes over perfectly well. Jean Teitgen portrays the elderly sadness of Arkel very successfully. Marie-Ange Todorovitch and Damien Pass make good contributions as Geneviève and Le Médecin respectively.
Obviously, the vocal contributions are crucial to the success of any performance of Pelléas et Mélisande and Roth has assembled an excellent, persuasive cast. That said, I mean no disrespect to these fine singers in saying that the USP of this release is likely to be the fact that it’s played – possibly for the first time on disc – by a period instrument orchestra. My colleague, David McDade, has made the important and valid point that there is, in a sense, a divergence of styles here in that we have the orchestra playing on instruments of the period – or copies thereof – and in HIP style but that the singers are singing in modern style. As he rightly says, it’s much more difficult for a singer to revert to historical styles of singing. Actually, this discrepancy can be found in many recordings of earlier music, too. Just to select one example at random. Trevor Pinnock’s excellent recording of Messiah – long a personal favourite - has period instruments but soloists, including John Tomlinson, whose vocal technique and sound is very much of our time (review). I was unworried by the fact that this account of Pelléas mixes period instruments and modern singing techniques.
The sounds that François-Xavier Roth is able to conjure up from Les Siècles are wonderfully subtle. The woodwind have a refreshing tang while the horns and brass make their mark without ever swamping either the singers or the rest of the orchestra. The supple strings are a delight from start to finish and there’s a diaphanous quality to their playing. I don’t think I’ve ever heard Debussy’s miraculous orchestral score rendered in such a beguiling and ear-teasing fashion. The orchestral Interludes are a key element of the opera, setting the scene and the atmosphere. Each one of these episodes ravish the ear and draw one deeper into the unfolding drama.
Roth’s pacing of the score strikes me as well-nigh ideal. The music never drags yet he unfailingly allows both singers and players the time they need to unfold their phrases in an ideal fashion. I mentioned earlier on the conversational nature of much of the libretto. In this performance the words are clearly and naturally enunciated; everything flows and when the emotional temperature rises the sense of drama is palpable. I really felt engaged with the story as it unfolded and while a lot of this has to do with the credibility of the singers, Roth’s pacing of the music is just as important. He keeps all elements of the score in perfect balance. I’ve long felt that François-Xavier Roth is one of the most interesting conductors currently before the public; this Pelléas is, I think, one of his finest achievements to date.
This is an utterly absorbing account of Pelléas et Mélisande. Listening to it, especially through headphones, I was conscious of the oppressive nature of the
mis-en-scène. Golaud’s castle is a dark and unsettling place and you feel that. All the character portrayals are plausible and the singing is very fine. The orchestral contribution is magnificent and reveals afresh the fascinating colours and innumerable nuances of Debussy’s amazingly inventive score. Right from the opening forest murmurs through to the subdued, tragic end of the opera this is a compelling experience that won’t let you go.
Harmonia Mundi has presented this superb performance in the best possible way. The discs come in a hardback book-style package which contains over 240 pages. The comprehensive documentation, which is in French, English and German, includes the full libretto, a synopsis, an excellent essay about the opera by Denis Herlin, a short interview with the conductor and a generous selection of session photographs. The opera is contained on three CDs with Acts I and II on disc 1, Act II on the second disc, and Acts IV and V on the final CD.
I’ve left it to last to mention the recorded sound. In a word it’s exemplary. Jiri Heger who, I think, doubles as producer and engineer has done a wonderful job. The sound is beautifully balanced and lets the listener hear everything that is going on – all in perfect proportion – and with just the right amount of resonant ambience. In short, the recording is fully worthy of the performance.
This is an inspired recording of Pelléas et Mélisande.
John Quinn
Previous review: David McDade
