Christoph Willibald GLUCK (1714–1787)
Orfeo ed Euridice
Franco Fagliolis (counter-tenor) – Orfeo; Malin Hartelius (soprano)
– Euridice; Emmanuelle de Negri (soprano) – Amore
Accentus, Insula Orchestra/Laurence Equilbey
CD 1: Orpheo: Highlights of the versions for Vienna (1762) and Paris
(1774)
CDs 2-3: Orfeo ed Euridice. Complete recording of the original version
(Vienna 1762)
rec. live, 5, 7 April 2015, Théâtre de Poissy, France
Libretto with translations into French, German and English enclosed
ARCHIV PRODUKTION 479 5315 [3 CDs: 66:38 + 38:02 + 47:18]
There is no shortage of recordings of Gluck’s ‘reform
opera’, which exists in several versions. The earliest I have been able
to find is a 1935 Pathé recording of the Berlioz version, sung in French with
Alice Raveau and Germaine Feraldy in the leading roles. It was abridged and
so was the 1947 Decca (Ricordi/Italian) with Kathleen Ferrier. We need to
go to the 1950s and the LP era to find more complete versions. The main ones
are the Vienna 1762 and the Paris 1774, both the work of Gluck himself. After
the death of Gluck the opera was often played but changes of various sorts
were made. Berlioz, who was a great admirer of Gluck, went back to the sources
and in 1859 presented his restoration of the 1774 version, but now for a contralto
instead of a high tenor, a breed that was then on the decline. However, there
have been various ‘agglomerations´ after that where bits and pieces
from different versions have been mixed and matched. Now Archiv have issued
a set giving us an opportunity to compare certain aspects of the Vienna and
Paris versions. The latter is represented on a highlights disc and the following
two discs presents the Vienna version. There are still compromises insofar
as two numbers from the Paris version, which, naturally enough, was in French,
have been adapted by Thibault Perrine and are sung in Italian. I can understand
the pedagogic ambitions but still think that, considering the short playing
time on CDs 2 and 3, those extra numbers from the Paris version could just
as well have been included separately after act III. There is more than 30
minutes playing time available. Be that as it may, what counts is the quality
of the singing and playing of the Vienna version – and it’s great.
I hadn’t come across the Insula orchestra and its conductor Laurence
Equilbey before and they are excellent. Ms Equilbey chooses sensible tempos
throughout and the precision of the playing is stunning. We need only mention
the ominous dance of the furies at the beginning of act II and the short dance
in the Elysian fields in scene 2 of the same act (CD 3 tr. 1). The more extended
version in the Paris version can be heard in all its heavenly beauty on CD
1 tr. 7. The chorus, so important in this opera, is also alert and sing with
homogenous perfection.
The soloists are eminent. French soprano Emmanuelle de Negri has specialised
in baroque repertoire, not least in close cooperation with William Christie.
She has also appeared in Mozart, Rossini and even Debussy: Yniold in Pelléas
et Mélisande. Here she is a vivid Amore. Malin Hartelius, Swedish-born
but primarily based in Zurich, is a lovely Euridice, and she has dramatic
bite too, in the duet with Orfeo (CD 3 tr. 8). She expressively voices Euridice’s
sorrow over Orfeo’s coldness when he leads her back from the dark cave
(CD 3 tr. 9) in the recitative as well as in her aria Che fiero momento!
(CD 3 tr. 10).
The heaviest burden in this opera is however on the shoulders of Orfeo, and
Franco Fagliolis, who has rapidly conquered the central counter-tenor roles,
is tremendously good. The sheer beauty of his voice is stunning and his nuanced
expressivity impresses. His technical accomplishment, well-known from other
recordings and live appearances, is not so much in evidence in this rather
terse music. Even so, his trill impresses and there are some elegant grace
notes that reveal his mastery. Che faro (CD 3 tr. 12) is really beautifully
sung, but how authentic are the decorations? They are tasteful and not too
self-assertive but would Gluck have accepted them? For someone who, like me,
learnt this aria through Kathleen Ferrier’s recording, straight –
and sung in English – this seems unauthentic. Let me hasten to add that
this is not a criticism in itself; only a statement. Without having heard
more than a limited number of the available recordings, I believe that this
recording, given its beauty of singing and playing, holds its own against
the keen competition. As for the music itself, once again one marvels at the
nobility, beauty and power of this score.
Göran Forsling
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