I well remember the
imposing Haydn box sets that regularly
confronted collectors in record shops
in the old days. Amidst the shelves
of the Dorati Symphony cycle, the Piano
Sonatas and the Quartets were the Operas
and for most of us these, at least,
remained pretty much terra incognita.
Partly this was a case of bulk – where
to start? - and partly hearsay regarding
the quality of the operas and their
perceived inferiority to Mozart’s, that
old false equation. So it has proved
to be an auspicious event that Phillips
has reissued the operas in two CD boxes
(of 10 each) at a tempting price. Gone
alas are the extensive notes and libretti.
Instead we have a slimline booklet in
English, French and German, with plot
synopses and a brief introduction to
the works.
The first volume opens
with one of the most completely convincing
of all the operas, Armida. As with the
other operas one must draw attention
at the outset to the consistently impressive
playing of the Orchestre de Chambre
de Lausanne with its alert string section
and characterful winds. In drawing attention
to the stellar vocal soloists it’s easy
to give the band less than its due,
which would be a disservice to them.
Still, with Jessye Norman, Norma Burrowes,
Samuel Ramey and Anthony Rolfe Johnson
on board it’s not surprising that emphasis
swings dramatically to them. And also
to one of the stalwarts of these sets,
tenor Claes H Ahnsjö who proves
himself to be a real adornment to this
series of works - because his is a name
that has not received its due
over the years. Armida was the most
performed of the Esterháza operas
and took a stock operatic theme which,
given its essentially static nature,
nevertheless throws up some quite outstanding
music. Ahnsjö copes splendidly
with the big range demanded of him –
his Vado a pugnar contento in
Act I is full of confident swagger and
in the duet with Norma Burrowes’ Zelmira
he shows a splendid trill, fine compass
and lyric ease. When it comes to the
more anguished and dramatic moments
of Act II he proves to be sophisticated
and emotionally convincing in the despair
of Cara, è vero, io son tirano.
As she shows here and elsewhere (try
Se tu seguir mi vuoi)
Burrowes is in excellent voice, sweetly
generous and with no forcing of tone.
Anthony Rolfe Johnson shows a honeyed
tenor – easeful and liquid – in Ah
si plachi il fiero nume, his Act
I stand-out aria. Ramey impresses as
Idreno and so does Robin Leggate – real
style from him. Which leaves Armida
herself, Jessye Norman, in glorious
voice throughout and if not fired with
quite the authentic chill of a sorcerer’s
art, nevertheless masterful on her own
terms. There are far fewer secco recitatives
here than in other of the operas, where
Dorati’s handling of them could be uneven,
but there is a fine example of a classical
piece of theatre in the wind machine
used for the mountain top scene in the
accompanied recitative in Act I Valorosi
compagni. On balance Armida emerges
as one of the most compact, wide-ranging
and lyrically and psychologically impressive
of all Haydn’s operas – it also proves
a tough act to follow in Volume I.
La fedeltà premiata
is lightly cut though there doesn’t
seem to be a reference to it in the
booklet notes. There are cuts in recitative
and in some of the arias – excisions
include Act II’s Lindoro aria, which
is a pity as Luigi Alva was in fine
form throughout this particular recording.
As in many of these works Haydn appropriated
an existing libretto (from Cimarosa)
and piled on the comic elements that
are so attractive a feature of them.
Here the greatest emotive weight lies
in the ensemble finales that conclude
Acts I and II and not in any particular
aria or series of arias. It’s a longer
way than Armida with a greater preponderance
of secco recitative and the casting
is less stellar across the roles – but
certainly fine for all that as a look
at the head note will reveal. The opening
hunting horn overture was so good –
it’s wonderfully played here – that
Haydn borrowed it from himself as the
finale of Symphony No 73. There are
many highlights and here are some of
them; von Stade’s exquisitely rapt singing
of the accompanied recitative Prendi,
prenda o Diana, Alva’s bustling
and manly First Act aria Gia mi sembra
di sentire, the jealousy aria so
balefully characterised by the underrated
Maurizio Mazzieri, and Ileana Cotrubas’
delightfully crisp and technically adroit
way with È amore di natura.
Alan Titus has the noble timbre
for Perrucchetto and Tonny Lanny has
a fine, rather open tone in the role
of Fileno. Lucia Valentini-Terrani,
the mezzo heroine, is flexible and full
of character – though maybe just a touch
plummy here and there. Where the First
Act ensemble finale proved touching,
the Second Act grows in confidence and
brio and is splendidly balanced by the
engineers and brings the work to a spirited
conclusion.
Orlando Paladino is
a bit of a pastiche of classical operatic
elements, taking the legend of Roland
and having a high old time with it.
There are moments throughout of the
richest, ripest and most genuinely hilarious
humour, as good as any of its type in
opera. Though he called it a drama
eroicomico, a serio-comic drama,
the comic consistently undercuts and
points up the heroic in a fruitful and
joyful way. Again the cast is a fine
one, the women especially, and the orchestral
playing is on a high level throughout.
It’s impossible to resist the creamy
Elly Ameling in Ah se dire io vi
potessi nor Benjamin Luxon’s
lantern jawed appearance as Rodomonte
in Act I – so full of character. Arleen
Auger’s Angelica has control, style,
simplicity and superbly held notes (breath
control alpha plus) as well as tonal
beauty (see her Cavatina in Act I).
Less well known than these is mezzo
Gwendolyn Killebrew but she proves to
have steel and fire aplenty in her arias
– forceful and impressive. Claes H Ahnsjö
proves to have, once more, a special
place as a Haydn tenor. Maybe his lower
positions aren’t always ideally supported
but he possesses a very pleasing timbre,
a stunning range – he’s truly fearless
– and one can hear the other side of
the coin in his pleading and yearning
aria Parto. Ma, oh dio, non posso
in Act I. There’s a fine buffo,
quasi Leporello-ish, role for Domenico
Trimarchi’s Pasquale. Its apex is the
aria when, struck half dumb by love
he stutters monosyllabically.
Not only is there whistling here as
well (irresistible) but a sort of proto-Rossinian
fizz. The whole of the First Act is
a series of superbly characterful arias
and duets, topped by George Shirley’s
Orlando – a real don’t mess with me
menace exuding from every pore. If the
rest of the opera isn’t quite on this
level it still shows Haydn working at
consistently elevated status as an operatic
lion (the stuttering duet is at the
heart of Act II) and there are certainly
plenty of moments of affecting drama
such as Act III’s beautiful Dell’estreme
sue voci dolenti which Auger
sings with captivating delicacy.
La vera costanza is
the final opera in this first box. First
produced in 1779 it concerns a virtuous
heroine surrounded by some rather stock
buffo characters. The cast is consistently
strong once more, with Jessye Norman
and Helen Donath heading a standout
female side. Some of the secco recitatives
are rather heavily done by Dorati, who
plays harpsichord and this can impede
the natural rhythmic impetus of a work
of this kind. Still, the arias themselves
are well taken and there are plenty
of opportunities for virtuosity and
for expressive control. One such is
for Kari Lövaas’s dramatic soprano
aria in Act I Non s’innalza where
she shows her excellent range and instinct
for theatrical combustibility. Nor should
we forget the band – they are properly
alert and lithe behind Trimarchi’s So
che una bestia sei. Donath is impressive
throughout and the top aria for Norman
is her well articulated and confident
Dove fuggo in the Second Act.
The first box has been
attractively, if relatively sparsely,
designed. Remastering has not notably
improved an already excellently recorded
slew of discs – the instrumental/vocal
perspective had been finely and successfully
judged in the studio. At just over two
CD boxes in width this ten CD box takes
up minimal space and provides maximal
enjoyment.
Jonathan Woolf
Volume
2
PHILIPS 473 476-2 [10 CDs 9 hours 55 minutes;
68.54 + 70.29 + 53.57 + 53.10 + 55.22 + 76.27
+63.05 + 27.43 + 62.57 + 63.21]