Search - Vivaldi, Giacomotti, Repetto :: Fida Ninfa

Oh, to what dreadful depths are we forced to sink?

Ingrid Heyn | Melbourne, Australia | 11/01/2004

(1 out of 5 stars)

"Vivaldi's operas are recently making something of a comeback - which is all to the good. I have long wished for good recordings of his operas. I'd like to see them performed onstage as well, but sadly his operas haven't yet the "pulling power" to enable me to launch into such a project at present.



The theatrical music composed by Vivaldi veers between the occasional mundane (but always competent) to the unutterably exquisite. A good performer can always pull off the exquisite stuff to pleasing effect - it takes a great performer to portray the less exquisite arias well. And as far as those fiendish, typically Vivaldian arias for the coloraturally gifted singers are concerned...? Oh boy. Take a deep breath, and prepare yourself for something epic in the way of bravura runs, vocal gymnastics to test even the best, and the challenging requirement for breath control that sorts out the Olympic gods of mythology from the mere mortals who actually need the occasional inhalation.



I was truly astounded to find this recording of a little-known opera, La fida ninfa. I was performing one of the arias from it - one of the aforesaid breath-challengers - and I always enjoy hearing recordings or seeing performances of things I perform myself. I wasn't expecting the recording to be brilliant - it was almost impossible to work out by whom the opera was released. I came to the eventual conclusion that it was Dynamic Opera Remastered - but it could be simply DYNAMIC. With its clearly not being a well-known classical label, I was prepared to put up with the recording being, possibly, less than good.



I was wrong.



It was much, much worse than "less than good."



The singers seem to have been drawn from a pool of operatic would-be chorus singers, and taught by a vocal teacher who impressed them with the idea that "vibrato he is good", and that the more of it they could produce, the better. Dreadful even if they'd been doing Mascagni - unbearable when singing Vivaldi. It's not just the shocking vibrato, though... there isn't a lovely tone among the lot of them. Squawks, squeals and screams are emitted with terrifying frequency, and the sluggish orchestra (had they been dosed with tranquillisers before the recording, perhaps?) does nothing to enliven proceedings.



The fast arias (which Vivaldi's hand clearly inscribed with "Allegro" in the autograph score - no room for squabbling about the speed!) are taken at paces which wouldn't have taxed a crippled snail. The slower, more languorous arias fail to convey beauty or tenderness. The recording quality cannot and does not even try to redeem the recording - it is of the same standard as the production.



I count this as one of the worst operatic recordings ever perpetrated. Yet I cannot rid my collection of it... it is sadly the ONLY recording of this opera across which I've ever come.



I could recommend this recording only to dedicated opera recording collectors who love Vivaldi and want the recording mainly to fill in the gap in "F" under "Vivaldi". I can assure you, no one - but NO one - is looking forward more eagerly than I to a competent and hopefully gorgeous recording of this lovely opera. I pin my hopes upon the series of delicious recordings being released by Opus 111; Virgin Veritas and a Spanish label (Farnace conducted by Savall) have also released some lovely things by Vivaldi.



As soon as a good version of "La fida ninfa" is released, this recording is going to a good home - not mine."