Bellini singing is undergoing something of a revival these days,
and long may it continue! The appearance of great bel canto
singers like Dessay, Bartoli and Florez has re-ignited interested
in his music and has encouraged more houses to stage his work.
This set of highlights comes from the set released in 2007 (see
review)
and it’s a very good complement to any existing set you may own,
though it doesn’t knock any off its perch.
This opera begins and ends with Amina, a
role which, at the time of writing, Dessay is singing at the
New York Met. Her bright, clear voice is well suited to this
role, though interestingly she is a far more human and vulnerable
Amina than Sutherland or Callas were. The jaded sense of loss
in the final sleepwalking scene is made all the more immediate
by the pale tone she assumes. Her elation in the opening scene
(Care compagne) is beautifully innocent. This is a relatively
small-scale reading, unlike the fire-eating Callas or somewhat
ethereal Sutherland. This only accentuates the sense of pastoral
idyll that this work inhabits so successfully. Needless to say,
Dessay’s coloratura is flawless: the dazzling runs of tracks
3 and 18 are only two examples that one could choose from many.
None of her fans will be disappointed.
She is by far the most interesting thing
about this disc, however. Francesco Meli’s Elvino is solid and
(mostly) secure in his singing. There is little strength or
clarity about his voice the way you would find in, say, Pavarotti
or Florez. However I’d still rather listen to him than Nicola
Monti, Callas’s Elvino. He seems to be almost a little nervous
about some of the more exposed writing. Consequently it is the
quieter sections of his duets with Amina that are the most moving.
Listen to the final minute of Son geloso del zefiro errante to see how well it works compared to what
has gone before. Carlo Colombara is an unorthodox Count Rodolfo
because he makes the character sound younger than he is normally
portrayed. This may add an extra frisson to his encounters with
Amina, but it means that you lose the sheer strength of a bass
like Nicolai Ghiaurov - on Sutherland’s second recording. Jaël
Azzaretti’s Lisa is fine, but the most interesting contribution
to the big Act 2 ensemble is Sara Mingardo’s Teresa. Her voice
leaps out of the speakers in a way those of the other characters
do not, sounding imperious and individualistic as the maternal
figure.
Pidò conducts a lithe, sprightly reading
of the score that brings out lots of percussive colour. The
Lyon Opera Orchestra play almost like a period band, adding
to the more intimate scale of the reading.
So while Dessay dominates this recording
it’s the lack of support from her co-stars that lets it down.
My favourite version remains Sutherland’s second recording with
Pavarotti and Ghiaurov, catching all three stars in the last flush
of their great period. For a totally different - and arguably
even more intimate - reading you could go to Decca’s most recent
recording with Bartoli and Florez which sheds an entirely different
but just as refreshing light on the piece.
Simon Thompson
see also Reviews of the complete set by Göran
Forsling and Robert
Farr
Tracklisting:
1. Act I, Scene 1:
Viva! Viva Amina! (Coro) 2:17
2. Act I, Scene 1:
Care Compagne, E
Voi, Teneri Amici (Amina/Coro) 5:20
3. Act I, Scene 1:
Sovra Il Aen La Man Mi Posa (Amina/Teresa/Coro)
4:36
4. Act I, Scene 1:
Prendi: L'anel Ti Dono (Elvino/Amina/Coro) 5:05
5. Act I, Scene 1:
Ah! Vorrei Trovar Parole (Amina/Elvino/Tutti/Lisa) 2:55
6. Act I, Scene 1:
Vi Ravviso, O Luoghi Ameni (Rodolfo/Tutti/Lisa/Coro) 4:45
7. Act I, Scene 1:
Son Geloso Del Zefiro Errante (Elvino/Amina) 6:26
8. Act I, Scene 2:
È Menzogna (Elvino/Coro/Lisa/Amina/Teresa) 2:00
9. Act I, Scene 2:
D'un Pensiero E D'un Accento (Amina/Elvino/Lisa/Teresa/Alessio/Coro)
4:44
10. Act I, Scene 2:
Non Più Nozze (Elvino/Amina/Lisa/Teresa/Alessio/Coro) 2:55
11. Act II, Scene
1: Vedi, O Madre....É Afflitto E Mesto (Amina/Elvino) 4:04
12. Act II, Scene
1: Viva Il Conte! (Coro/Amina/Elvino/Teresa) 1:17
13. Act II, Scene
1: Ah! Perché Non Posso Odiarti (Elvino/Coro) 2:19
14. La Sonnambula:
Act II, Scene 2: Signor, Conte, Agli Occhi Miei 4:50
15. Act II, Scene
2: Lisa! Mendace Anch'essa! (Elvino/Teresa/Lisa/Rodolfo) 4:26
16. Act II, Scene
2: Oh! Se
Una Volta Sola (Amina/Rodolfo/Teresa/Tutti) 5:20
17. Act II, Scene
2: Ah! No Credea Mirarti (Amina/Teresa/Rodolfo/Elvino/Alessio/Coro)
6:43
18. Act II, Scene
2: Ah! Non
Giunge Uman Pensiero (Amina/Tutti) 3:48
Natalie Dessay
(soprano) – Amina; Carlo Colombara (bass) – Il conte Rodolfo; Francesco
Meli (tenor) – Elvino; Sara Mingardo (mezzo) – Teresa; Jaël Azzaretti
(soprano) – Lisa; Paul Gay (baritone) – Alessio; Gordon Gietz (tenor)
– Un notario
