Timely (or perhaps
unfortunate) that this review appears
on the heels of news that Muti has pulled
out of his much-anticipated Covent Garden
return due to disagreements involved
in the transference of production from
Milan to London (see http://www.andante.com/article/article.cfm?id=24453
). Here he is very much on home turf
in Mozart’s magnificent Così.
His orchestra is on form, his singers
responsive. Be warned this is not particularly
historically-informed Mozart, being
more of the old school. Phrasing can
be very smooth (almost comforting!),
so that some of the edge comes off the
surface.
Nevertheless there
is much to admire. Staging will ruffle
no feathers. Dress is appropriately
of the era (the setting is Naples, late
1700s), and Mediterranean blues cast
a spell over the daylight. Several times
numbers are sung in front of a lowered
curtain. The attention is thrown firmly
onto the rather misogynistic plot and
away from any clever allusions.
The stars of this production
are, interestingly, (and in this order)
Despina and Don Alfonso. Adelina Scarabelli
is a cheeky Despina who in tandem with
Claudio Desderi’s experienced Alfonso
creates the dynamic for the tests of
fidelity. The combination of Despina’s
youth and Alfonso’s experience is a
powerful one (literally so, probably:
Desderi recorded Alfonso for Haitink’s
EMI Così). Try Act 1 Scene
3 for examples of this – pure theatre.
Disguised as the ‘Doctor’, Despina is
a riot. Of course it is traditional
to use ‘silly voices’ at this point,
but Scarabelli succeeds in raising more
than a smile without being over the
top about it all. As an example of her
excellence as Despina proper, just try
the Act 2 aria, ‘Una donna a quindici
anni’. We see quite
a lot of Muti, not only in the overture,
but when severally he is superimposed
on stage goings-on. This is (perhaps)
effective the first time one sees it,
but it palls after a while. Still, he
conducts in a flowing, confident style
and the overture encapsulates his take
on the score – detailed and busy.
Daniela Dessì
is a superb Fiordiligi, tackling ‘Come
scoglio’ with aplomb, and superb in
‘Per pietà’, where she maintains
the linear continuity over rests well.
More, she proves on more than one occasion
that she can ‘turn’ a phrase in a millisecond
Josef Kindlak’s ‘Un aura amoroso’ (Ferrando)
is more than acceptable without being
overly memorable (and is partially ruined
by Muti’s syrupy strings). Alessandro
Corbelli’s Guglielmo can be decidedly
cheeky. Delores Ziegler is a lovely
Dorabella, simply superb in ‘E amore
un ladroncello’.
Importantly, though,
all voices seem to blend well in ensemble
and in exchanges. Not all the acting
is of a high order, though. The drawing
of swords in the first scene is stagey
in the extreme, for example (although
at this point Alfonso’s contribution
almost makes up for it). Choral work
is exemplary throughout.
If only documentation
was better. There is a plot synopsis,
and libretto is included (but in Italian
only). Of course, translations are available
on-screen. There is no introductory/accompanying
essay, and tracks do not equate to Mozart’s
ordering (eg No. 14 in the booklet is
No. 17 on the DVD itself).
Amazing that just listening
(as opposed to seeing and listening)
to Busch’s classic Così
on Naxos
brings me closer to Mozart than this
miracle of modern technology, though.
Colin Clarke
Chorus and Orchestra of Teatro alla Scala, Milan/Riccardo
Muti. 
OPUS ARTE LA SCALA COLLECTION OA LS3006D [187’00]
