The shadow of another
soprano hangs over this recording; how
could it not, with Richard Bonynge conducting.
But Edita Gruberova can hold her own
in this repertoire as anyone can testify
who listens to some of the stunning
vocalism on this disc. That said, there
is something about Gruberova’s phrasing
which reminded me of Joan Sutherland,
this might be Bonynge’s influence, or
just a commonality of purpose.
But Gruberova’s voice
is silver compared to Sutherland’s gold.
Gruberova’s strengths are clarity, purity,
strength of line and a fabulous ability
to sing pianissimo in alt, spinning
a wonderful line. But there is something
of the coolness of a Northern wind blowing
across the recording. Sutherland brought
to Lucia a wonderful warmth, warmth
of personality as well as voice. This
makes us care for Lucia from the outset
in a way that we don’t really on this
recording. Both Sutherland and Callas,
in their vastly different ways, made
us understand that neuroticism that
underlies Lucia’s personality, implicit
in her opening solo and duet. Gruberova
fails to mine this vein of neuroticism,
replacing it with a fragility emphasised
by her incredible way with the vocal
line, at times singing in a haunting
pianissimo. For me though, this Lucia
sounds a little too rational.
When Edgardo enters,
we cannot but admire the Italianate
qualities in Neil Shicoff’s voice. His
Edgardo is passionate, but Shicoff has
the ability to spin a good vocal line.
Unfortunately, stylistically, his performance
is closer to Puccini than Donizetti;
his singing has too much of that generalised
Italian style which can be made suitable
for much later 19th and early
20th century opera. Unfortunately,
this shows up in Donizetti, particularly
when Shicoff is partnered with a stylist
like Gruberova. It is especially notable
as on Gruberova’s previous recording
of ‘Lucia di Lamermoor’ (conducted by
Nicola Resigno, dating from 1983), she
was partnered by that incomparable stylist,
Alfedo Kraus. This recording dates from
1991 and was originally issued on Teldec.
And Gruberova’s earlier
recording of the opera is one of this
recording’s main competitors. When reviewing,
in the Gramophone, the re-release of
the 1983 recording in 1993 Alan Blyth
commented how much more immediate the
earlier recording was, that Gruberova’s
performance has a freshness and spontaneity
which was missing in this recording.
He comments that her performance seems
a little contrived and the mad scene
self-conscious.
I must confess that
I too was a little disappointed with
the mad scene. I felt that I was too
conscious of the Gruberova’s stunning
vocalism and less aware of the fate
of Lucia.
But of course, I was
listening to a disc of excerpts rather
than the whole opera. This disc contains
70 minutes of so from a complete recording
that lasts 143 minutes. The editors
have compressed it by concentrating
on the role of Lucia and removing virtually
all of the dialogue. This leaves some
of the arias sounding a little bereft
and makes for some awkward joins. The
minor roles are not heavily featured,
but we do get to hear a reasonable amount
of Alexandru Agache’s suave Enrico.
The excerpts feature the overture and
opening chorus, Lucia’s opening solo,
her duet with Edgardo, her duet with
Enrico, the sextet, mad-scene and Edgardo’s
final aria (there is nothing from the
big scene between Edgardo and Enrico).
This would never be
my first choice for ‘Lucia di Lammermoor’
but I shall return to the disc for Gruberova’s
purity of tone and outstanding technical
accomplishment. I am not entirely certain,
though, who these excerpts are aimed
at. Gruberova fans will probably already
possess her recording in full, perhaps
this disc is intended for people like
me who would be unlikely to buy another
full Lucia. For those coming to the
opera new, I would add a note of caution.
The notes that accompany the disc are
rather rudimentary and, without a good
prior knowledge of the opera, it is
tricky to match up the recorded excerpts
with the plot summary (there is no libretto).
Robert Hugill
Ambrosian Singers 
