Strauss composed
Arabella between 1929 and 1932. In it he revisited the milieu
of late nineteenth-century Vienna, which he had explored two
decades earlier in Der Rosenkavalier (1909-10).
He also deals again with faded gentility, this time in the form
of the Waldner family, and the rhythm of the waltz has a part
to play, albeit nowhere near as pervasively as in Rosenkavalier.
It shares with Rosenkavalier luscious orchestration and
some gorgeous vocal lines. In addition it has a couple of roles
that are wonderful vehicles for lyric sopranos. It also contains
one notable male role, though the parts of Baron Ochs (Rosenkavalier)
and Mandryka could scarcely be more different. Like Rosenkavalier
this later opera has a libretto by Hugo von Hofmannsthal.
As is usually the case with Hofmannsthal the libretto is important
and substantial and it is regrettable that Orfeo have not provided
the text and a translation. The synopsis that is offered is
helpful but it’s no substitute for being able to follow the
words.
This is a set of
CDs that will be of great interest to Strauss enthusiasts. However,
before considering the merits of these recordings – which are
many – it’s necessary to issue an important caveat.
Arabella
consists of three separate acts. If you look at the synopsis
and track-listing in the booklet it appears that each act is
contained complete on a single CD, with the Four Last Songs
completing the third disc. However, I’m afraid that this is
very misleading indeed. The last track of CD 2 (track 12) is
advertised as the conclusion of Act 2 but it’s not. As the vocal
score confirms, in the live performance presented here the last
27 bars of Act 2 are cut (from cue 148, just after Mandryka’s
line “Die Herrn und Damen sind einstweiden meine Gäste!”). Keilberth
then goes straight into the prelude to Act 3 without
a pause. So contrary to what Orfeo’s documentation states,
Track 12 contains not the last 5 minutes of Act 2 but in fact
a mere 11 seconds at the end of that Act and the whole
of the Act 3 prelude. Then CD 3 begins not, as stated, at the
start of Act 3 but five bars after cue 21, just where Arabella
begins to sing.
This is an important
point. It’s all the more puzzling since the booklet contains
a detailed and interesting essay about the production, the first
night of which is preserved on these discs, yet there’s no mention
of the fact that Keilberth runs the last two acts together.
One wonders if those responsible for producing the booklet had
actually listened to the recording. The conflation of the two
acts also presents a great difficulty for Orfeo in that a side-break
is inevitable, though it makes for unsatisfactory listening.
It’s hard to know how they could have tackled the break better
though I do wonder if they should have made it immediately before
the orchestra launches into the Prelude to Act Three.
Having got that
point out of the way so that prospective purchasers are aware
of it I must also make readers aware of the many attractions
of this set. This production was a collaboration between the
Vienna State Opera and the Bavarian State Opera. As I mentioned,
this was its first night and it lasted in the repertoire of
both companies for many years. It was cast from strength and
it’s worth noting that the cast contains a number of singers
who were extremely experienced in these roles. Lisa Della Casa,
Otto Edelmann, Ira Malaniuk and Willi Lenninger had all taken
the same parts in the Decca recording conducted by Solti, which
was set down the previous year. In 1963 Della Casa, and Malaniuk
would also take part in a live DG recording, of this selfsame
production, I believe, from the Munich Opera Festival under
Keilberth’s baton. That performance also featured Fischer-Dieskau
and Anneliese Rothenberger, both essaying the same roles as
here.
One particular point
of interest is that in this production Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau
essayed Mandryka for the very first time; this was to become
something of a signature role for him. He may have been new
to it but it is typical of the degree of preparation that he
would have made that his characterisation seems already to be
fully formed. He conveys superbly the varying emotions that
Mandryka experiences during the course of the opera and his
singing is never less than splendid. He commands attention from
his very first entry when he appears noble, dignified and as
a man who clearly has some dash about him. Later on, in Act
Two and at the start of Act Three, when he believes he has been
betrayed by Arabella, his dismay and then his rage are potent
but he never rants. In fact, I’d say that he’s in sovereign
voice throughout the evening and at that stage in his career
though he sings off the words quite splendidly I don’t detect
any signs of the over-emphasis on words that was sometimes a
troubling feature of his singing in later years. His long solo
in Act 1 (CD1, much of track 9) is superbly authoritative.
Opposite him he
has an Arabella to die for. Lisa Della Casa was not new to the
role, having sung it for the first time in 1952. However, she
brings no less freshness to her character than does Fischer-Dieskau
to his. Her glorious silvery voice is a delight from start to
finish. Her phrasing is glorious and the top of her voice sounds
so easy and free. Furthermore, she invests the character of
Arabella with poise and charm and a feminine radiance that is
completely beguiling. I loved the pathos and longing with which
she sings of her search for Mr. Right in Act One and the duet
with her sister, Zdenka, which follows (CD1, track 5) is quite
exquisite and, quite understandably, rouses the audience to
applaud; this, by the way, is one of very few such instances
of applause during an Act.
It seems to me that
Della Casa and Fischer-Dieskau interact marvellously. Their
first meeting and his proposal (CD2, tracks 2 – 4) are beautifully
handled. He is the ardent but noble suitor while she soars effortlessly
and ecstatically above the stave.
The characters of
Arabella and Mandryka dominate much of the action but several
other singers have important parts to play. It seems that the
production was cast from strength. Anneliese Rothenberger makes
a spirited and engaging Zdenka. She sings delightfully. Kurt
Ruesche presents Matteo, the object of Zdenka’s affections,
in a pleasingly light-voiced, ardent style. There’s a good,
passionate ring to his voice when required. Otto Edelmann and
Ira Malaniuk were both vastly experienced singers and they give
fine portrayals of the Count and Countess Waldner. The remaining
roles are well taken.
Joseph Keilberth
is not now regarded as one of the foremost directors of his
day but he was an extremely experienced opera conductor, especially
of the Austro-German repertoire. He conducts well and leads
the cast and orchestra in a lively and affectionate account.
Unfortunately the recording favours the voices and the contribution
of the orchestra is not done full justice. This is a sumptuous
score but a good deal of detail is muffled and, for example,
the all-important horn section doesn’t ring out as gloriously
as I’m sure it did that night in the theatre. However, enough
emerges from the pit to suggest that the VPO played splendidly
on the night. The final reconciliation between Arabella and
Mandryka (CD 3, track 9), a passage of echt-Strauss,
is beautifully introduced by Keilberth and the VPO. Then Della
Casa is meltingly lovely and she and the VPO combine ecstatically.
She and Fischer-Dieskau sing rapturously in the closing pages
before the headlong ending for orchestra alone. The audience
reaction is most enthusiastic, and rightly so.
It’s quite astonishing
that the very next night after she had taken part in a full
staged performance of Arabella Lisa Della Casa was back
on the stage of the Festspielhaus to sing in concert with the
VPO. She it was who made the first recording of the Four
Last Songs back in 1953. Then too she was partnered by
Böhm and the VPO. For that Decca recording she presented the
songs in the composer’s preferred order. Thus ‘Beim Schlafengehen’
was placed first followed by ‘September’ and ‘Frühling’ with
‘Im Abendrot’ concluding the set. Interestingly, in this performance
the order of ‘September’ and ‘Frühling’ is reversed.
That Decca recording
has always been a personal favourite version of what for me
is a much-loved work. This live account from 1958 adds a different
dimension to my appreciation of Della Casa in these songs. Throughout
she sings with lovely, creamy tone and she betrays no sign whatsoever
of tiredness after the previous night’s vocal exertions. As
was the case in Arabella, her diction is once again crystal
clear. It seems to me that the 1953 studio sound is warmer than
the 1958 radio sound and it’s certainly closer, allowing more
detail to register. On the other hand if anything Della Casa
is in even finer voice in the earlier recording.
In the 1958 reading
of ‘Beim Schlafengehen’ the orchestra’s leader (was it Willi
Boskovsky, I wonder?) phrases his important solo gorgeously.
Then at the glorious phrase “Und die Seele, unbewacht” Della
Casa soars gloriously and effortlessly, spinning a wonderful
line before this beautiful song comes to a gentle, glowing orchestral
conclusion. I actually have a slight preference for the 1958
account of ‘September’. I’ve always felt that the Böhm/Della
Casa performance of this song is just a little too fleet – ideally
it needs a bit more space than they allow. However, in 1958
their reading has just a touch more ‘give’ in it and I like
that.
Böhm certainly doesn’t
hang about in the orchestral introduction to ‘Im Abendrot’ and
he’s even quicker off the mark here than was the case in 1953.
For my money he’s just a bit too fast this time and he has to
apply the brakes somewhat before the singer’s first entry. The
final stanza is superb in both versions but the live account
has an extra frisson, it seems. Della Casa is beautifully
poised at the words “O weise, stille Friede! So tief im Abendrot.”
Böhm and his singer are really slow and rapt in these pages,
daring to take risks. “Wie sind wir wandermüde – Ist dies etwa
der Tod?” the soloist asks and Strauss’s deliberately inconclusive
vocal line just seems to hang in the air here before, as it
were, he answers Eichendorff’s question with a quotation from
Tod und Verklärung. These last few pages are superbly
and devotedly handled. This live 1958 performance may not supplant
the classic studio account but it’s an invaluable supplement
to it.
How then to sum
up this set? On the debit side there’s the confusion over the
join between Acts Two and Three. Also, the text is not complete;
for that you’ll need a studio version. The lack of a libretto
is a disappointment and finally the sound, whilst more than
acceptable in terms of the voices, does not allow enough of
the orchestral accompaniment to come through and there’s certainly
no bloom on what we do hear of the orchestra. However, there
are plenty of things to set on the credit side of the ledger
too. There’s a palpable theatrical ambience and, indeed, a sense
of occasion. Joseph Keilberth conducts idiomatically and well.
Although it’s a live performance the audience is far from obtrusive.
The cast is strong and the leading roles are far more than that.
In particular we have singers at the height of their considerable
powers in the two leading roles. Lisa Della Casa and Dietrich
Fischer-Dieskau sing superbly and present involved and involving
assumptions of their respective characters. Finally there’s
a substantial and generous bonus in the fine and dedicated performance
of the Four Last Songs.
Despite the drawbacks
that I’ve felt duty bound to mention I enjoyed this set very
much and I know I shall return to it with pleasure in the future.
John Quinn
Graf Waldner: Otto
Edelmann (bass)
