Before setting off
on this review I should perhaps declare
an interest. I grew up in a household
where there were 78s of Chaliapin and
Christoff as well as Björling,
Schipa and Gigli. My father had heard
Chaliapin at Manchester’s Free Trade
Hall in the 1930s. A working man, he
could only afford a cheap seat. Seeing
vacant seats at the front of the stalls
the great basso drew those from the
back to the vacant front seats, my father
included. Impressed as I might be by
those bass voices on the 78s, it was
the emergence of this Boris, Faust and
Don Carlo on LP, all from HMV, that
really gripped me. Above all it was
Christoff’s voice and interpretations
on those recordings that impressed and
I determined that one day I would see
and hear him in the theatre. I had to
wait twenty years but it was worth it.
His Tsar Boris was vocally magnificent,
his voice sonorous, superbly coloured
and controlled and wholly musical. The
death scene was overwhelming in its
pathos and drama. Christoff’s identification
with, and characterisation of Boris
were total. He knew when to move, stop,
gesture or roll his eyes to achieve
maximum histrionic effect with minimum
movement. His vocal qualities and histrionic
involvement are clearly to be heard
on this 1952 recording and on the stereo
remake of 1962. They have not been bettered
on any of the versions that have emerged
since although I greatly admire Ghiaurov
on Decca under Karajan. Although I find
greater depth in Christoff’s 1962 interpretation
than here it is only marginal and is
more than compensated for by Dobrowen’s
conducting.
Issay Dobrowen more
than any other kept this opera alive
outside Russia. He accompanied Christoff
in the latter’s early visits to the
studio and which are to be heard on
EMI Références 7 64252
2. Dobrowen’s taut command of the episodic
scenes that constitute this work is
total and contributes significantly
to the performance. Appreciation of
Dobrowen’s interpretation is greatly
aided by Mark Obert-Thorn’s re-mastering.
Of course it does not have the sonic
impact of the stereo remake, particularly
in the Coronation Scene, but it is a
considerable achievement nonetheless.
There are several doublings
up in the casting. But what has always
been contentious for the purist is Christoff’s
taking of the three major roles, Boris
himself, Pimen and Varlaam. He did the
same in the stereo remake. At the start
of Pimen’s Monologue (CD 1 tr. 9) Christoff
shades his voice superbly in portraying
the old monk. A listener new to the
recording would not relate the singer
to Tsar Boris’s calling for God’s blessing
on his reign in the previous scene (tr.
7). But as the Monologue progresses
and Pimen becomes more agitated that
differentiation is less. Most importantly
there is no difficulty of differentiation
when Pimen visits Boris to recount his
story (CD 3 tr. 10). Likewise there
is similarity of vocal timbre between
Christoff’s Tsar and his portrayal of
the rollicking Varlaam in the Inn scene
(CD 1 trs. 14-20). Besotted by Christoff
I may be, but I cannot but recognise
one of the century’s greatest singing
actors portraying each character with
full resonant involved interpretation.
In my view this triplication of roles
was fully justified by the results.
Elsewhere in this consummate
performance the singing of the young
Kim Borg as the slimy Rangoni and Schelkelov
is impressive both vocally and in characterisation.
The same can be said of Nicolai Gedda
as Grigory, the false Dmitry (CD 2 tr.
18). These parts were less well sung
and portrayed on the stereo remake.
The singing of Borg and the characterful
idiomatically sung Marina of Eugenia
Zareska give more zest to the Polish
scene than is often the case in the
theatre as well as on record (CD 2 trs.
13-17). Here again the pace of Dobrowen’s
conducting is vital, which is not to
decry Eugenia Zareska’s creamy, steady
tones in her aria (trs. 14-15). Needless
to say the chorus are vibrant and idiomatic
although those in more recent versions
are significantly more sonorous and
full-bodied in tone.
The appendix of six
studio recorded tracks of Chaliapin
as Boris, recorded in 1926 and 1931,
are welcome. The 1926 Entry of Boris
(CD 3 tr.14), his 1931 Monologue (tr.
15) and Clock Scene (tr. 16) appeared
on EMI Références CDH
7610092. The studio recordings of Chaliapin’s
portrayal of Boris’s Farewell and Prayer
(tr. 17) and his Death are new to me.
They make an interesting comparison
with his live Covent Garden interpretation
of 1928 on the Guild Label ( review).
More relevantly they allow immediate
comparison with Christoff. Listening
to the two greatest interpreters of
Tsar Boris on disc, particularly in
these scenes, makes for interesting
hour or so.
The Naxos booklet is
of the usual high standard with a detailed
background to the work’s composition
and Rimsky’s derivation of a performing
edition. There are welcome biographies
of the leading cast members and an excellent
track-related synopsis. Given the quality
of sound obtained by Mark Obert-Thorn
and the additional appendices, I have
no hesitation in recommending this restoration
of a seminal performance.
Robert J Farr
French National Radio Orchestra, Russian Chorus
of Paris/Issay Dobrowen 