I found this recording
needs to be played as loudly as you
dare. The orchestral sound is very clear
but a bit pallid and lacking in body,
and López-Cobos has a way – immediately
evident in the Overture – of being both
extremely fast and extremely
laid-back, but with that extra bit of
volume there does seem to be more spirit
to the proceedings.
The next thing to notice
is that Raúl Giménez’s
voice enters very sweetly (in "Ecco
ridente") then practically disappears
as he goes up to his high notes. This
is because he is using a degree of falsetto
(a very large degree at times) to give
his high notes a honeyed tone. This
was a technique of which Giacomo Lauri-Volpi
was a master, but it’s important that
it should not be overdone. Since Giménez’s
high notes when sung "normally"
are free and easy it might be argued
that it need not be done at all (Lauri-Volpi
had a very large and powerful voice,
so less inclined to disappear in falsetto).
Still, it’s an attractive voice and
he certainly has agility of a notes-per-second
kind – just as well with López-Cobos
on the rostrum (hear the last part of
"Cessa di più resistere").
Håkan Hagegård
sometimes does a disappearing trick
with his voice, too, so it begins to
look like a general thing imposed by
the conductor, whose tempi are sometimes
just too fast to allow the voices to
speak. Hagegård produces
a likeable Barber but without quite
dominating the show, maybe for this
reason.
Compare Silvio Varviso’s
conducting of "La calunnia"
for Nicolai Ghiaurov – the slower tempo
allows the Bulgarian bass to really
get the music and words across. Nevertheless,
Samuel Ramey manages a good job and
his is a Basilio worth hearing, as is
Alessandro Corbelli’s Bartolo.
The feminine side rather
saves matters. Barbara Frittoli makes
a good showing in her aria and Jennifer
Larmore seems sublimely unfazed by the
conductor’s fast tempi (though was it
her idea or his to make so little of
the famous "ma" in "Una
voce poco fa"? Callas was unforgettable
here). The voice is always full and
warm, the coloratura flawless and the
characterization vivid.
The booklet contains
an introduction to the opera and a synopsis
which makes no particular reference
to the items actually included on the
record. On the whole I’d say this is
a disc not so much for someone who wants
highlights from this ever-popular opera,
but for fans of Jennifer Larmore who
are reluctant to spend out on a complete
set which is overall not very competitive,
but would be glad to collect the principal
moments of her performance at a modest
price.
Christopher Howell
Lausanne Chamber Orchestra/Jesús López-Cobos