Vincenzo Bellini Evelino Pidograve Orchestre amp Choeurs de l039Opera de Lyon

"The New Amina"

Stanley H. Nemeth | Garden Grove, CA United States | 11/17/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I approached listening to this new CD set with some trepidation, for while "La Sonnambula" is an opera of undeniably glorious melodies, these unfortunately are at the service of a frankly silly story. Further, in performance, melodies apart, the opera invariably rises or falls on the strengths of its central singer, the sleepwalker Amina, who stumbles, innocently, into strange men's bedrooms. More specifically, my worry here was over the casting of Natalie Dessay in the title role. While it's true she's a singer of remarkable coloratura gifts, some of her earlier work had convinced me she was of that school of harsh, astringent high voice only the French reportedly prefer. Her performance of "Lucia" on CD, for instance, was to my ears both overacted and undersung, manifestly short on requisite vocal beauty. Therefore, I had doubts whether she could do full justice to this taxing Bellini role which before all others rests on beautiful voice and elegant voice, along with suitably dramatic voice throughout.

Happily, my doubts turn out to have been unwarranted. Dessay here makes the role spectacularly her own, turning in one of the most remarkably sung and well-acted Aminas on record. She sings much of the role softly, emphasizing great tonal beauty and dexterity in fioriture, while sparing us any of those blood-curdling high notes which in her "Lucia" could have peeled the paint right off the walls. In my judgment, she joins the stellar company of Callas and Sutherland as a great Bellini interpreter.

"

Beware the CUTS!!!

Peep | Adelaide, AUSTRALIA | 12/04/2007

(2 out of 5 stars)

"I don't know what recording the reviewer who states that this has "no cuts" was listening to, but it couldn't have been this one. My heart sank when right from the beginning, half of Lisa's opening aria was cut; this is an outdated and nonsensical practice because it gives the singer no chance to repeat the musical theme and offer his or her personal embellishments. Likewise, in act 2 Lisa had half of her aria "Di lieti auguri" cut - if the singer gets to sing this aria, for heaven's sake, why can't she sing it in full? It's short enough, and in this case the singer wasn't even allowed the luxury of a high B flat at the end. To hear this sung as it should be, listen to Dilber on the Naxos recording - top Fs and all. Continuing on, Elvino's cabaletta was shorn of its second verse, as was the Rodolfo's. Other cuts occurred in the duetting between Amina and Elvino in Act 1. And this is supposed to be a "Critical edition"?? Give me a break. The two stars I give are for Dessay's singing as Amina; she sings quite beautifully, but also a little disappointingly in the cabalettas; "Sovra il sen" abounds with her own individual ornaments, but the whole thing sounds too carefully sung, almost as if she were sight-reading it. And the concluding "Ah! non giunge" is even more disappointing; the critical edition gives the first verse in that stark, simplified edition which Renee Fleming recorded on her Bel Canto album, with the repeat what we are used to hearing as the FIRST verse! So we get none of the fireworks and ornaments that we are used to hearing from Sutherland, Devia, Callas, Peters etc etc. And for those of you who are wondering about the current range of Dessay's voice, she offers nothing above the traditional E flats here; the one closing her first cabaletta is long and exciting, but the one crowning the act 1 finale disappointingly comes in 4 bars later than it should and loses its effect - for real excitement,listen to Sutherland on any of her recordings - even the 1980 one where she is still tons more exciting than Dessay. The tenor here has a lovely plangent voice and offers a few top Cs, but none of the Rubini excursions above; the Lisa is totally forgettable (through no fault of her own, but because of the heinous cuts), and I've already forgotten the Rodolfo and Teresa. Had the performance been complete, I'm sure I would have been a lot more enthusiastic, but as it is...I'll stick with Sutherland any day. An opportunity wasted."

A pleasant enough offering

S. Wells | California | 12/25/2007

(3 out of 5 stars)

"This is a pleasant enough offering, but really no improvement on the competition. Ms Dessay presents a beautifully sung and quite effecting Amina. Her hushed reading of "Ah, non credea mirarti" is especially lovely. Like a previous reviewer, I don't care for the simplified vocal line in the first verse of "Ah, non giunge." The fioratura as printed in the standard edition of the Ricordi vocal score is sung only in the second verse. I've not had a chance to see the critical edition used in this recording, so this may represent Bellini's original intention. But, it just doesn't sound right to me, being accustomed to the runs in both verses of the cabaletta.

Francesco Meli has a larger, darker voice than one usually hears in the role of Elvino. His voice is pleasant and he uses it with taste and intelligence. I simply prefer to hear a sweeter voice in this part. Carlo Colombara and Jael Azzaretti are adequate as Count Rodolfo and Lisa. As pointed out elsewhere, Rodolfo loses the repeat of his first act cabaletta and Lisa loses the repeats of both her first and second act arias. These cuts aren't too surprising as the recording is taken from concert performances given in Lyon.

I give this recording only 3 stars because this opera is well represented on CD and there are better performances readily available. The recording on Naxos is half the price and twice as good as this recording. My personal favourite is Joan Sutherland's first commercial recording - her second commercial recording has little to recommend it, alas. The serious collector would not want to be without the live recording from Cologne in 1957 that captures what must have been one of Maria Callas's most spectacular evenings on stage. This set just isn't up to the competition."

Super

Giles Kotcher | Somerville MA | 10/17/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Two Callas recordings made me fall in love with this opera: one with Votto live in Cologne July 4,1957 (apparently not available on CD; old LP of exerpts only ?; John Ardoin rates this as an "ultimate testimony to the greatness of Callas" ) and the more famous 1955 live recording with Cesare Valetti and L. Bernstein conducting. At first I missed Callas' unique "electricity" in listening to Nathalie Dessay as Amina, but the more I listen the more I love the entire recording. Dessay honorably approaches Callas in her abilities both as singer and actress. Dessay is possibly more to the "right", modest, innocent, human scale of Amina's character than Callas was given the superhuman aura the latter projects in the live recordings from the 1950's. The 2006 casting is uniformly as good as it gets these days. Francesco Meli's Elvino matches Dessay in elegance. Evelino Pido, the conductor, lets Bellini's exquisite melodies breathe. Something wonderful must be going on at the Lyons Opera because this is the second opera production of superb quality (known to me, anyway) recorded there; Dessay (again) and company in Offenbach's "Orphee aux Enfers" are thrilling and very funny."

A Critical Edition Performance - with cuts, alas.

Niel Rishoi | Ann Arbor, MI USA | 01/13/2008

(3 out of 5 stars)

"The particulars:

Amina: Natalie Dessay

Elvino: Francesco Meli

Rodolfo: Carlo Columbara

Teresa: Sara Mingardo

Lisa: Jael Azzaretti

Alessio: Paul Gay

Un notaro: Gordon Gietz

2 CDs

Orchestra, Chorus, Opera Lyon

Evelino Pido, conductor

Recorded November 2006, "during and subsequent to the concerts at the Opéra de Lyon" (numerous takes?)

The first thing one should know about this recording: there's cuts. Lots of them. What makes this so indefensible - not only in these times of striving to restore the aims of "somewhat" correct performance practice - but the booklet notes makes much ado about this performance being based on the new so-called critical edition of the opera. Restored are some keys, and claims are made for orchestral "details" - including the restoration of the duets for trumpet prior to Elvino's aria in act 2 - well whoopteedoo - that aria in itself is CUT CUT CUT!

Poor Lisa, that tarty wench, she only gets to whine for one verse each in her 2 arias. Rodolfo loses his second verse of "Tu non sai." "Ah! vorrei trovar parole" is halved. Numerous other trims. None felicitous, in this, a comparatively short opera.

What is the logic here? I figure that with the embarking upon a critical edition, there would be as well aims to full restoration in every sense. A scholarly (in the best sense please) aim in researching ornamentation, working with the singers, and making it stylish, innovative, spontaneous, would be the ideal. It isn't realized here. Amina gets all full measures in her big scenes, but that's it. What was the decision based on? That second verses slow the opera down? That the singers don't wan't to be bothered with annoyances of decoration? They can't do it? Then bel canto shouldn't be in their rep.

I don't get that Evelino Pido has any great love for this work. The tempi are often slow, lacking in pulse and impetus. Everything sounds clean and clear, scrupulous, but it sounds very deliberate, not surging with life and vitality. There is little theatricality, it sounds so carefully delivered. The Bernstein performance from La Scala, also cut, wildly eccentric, and sometimes shamefully indulgent - bristles with sparkle and whiz-bang theatricality.

Natalie Dessay is the set's chief selling point and virtue. She gives a lovely, understated reading of the role. In light of her intense *in extremis* Lucia, it's nice to hear a more relaxed approach. Some of her vocal shadings are exquisite, as is her delicate sigh effects which work nicely in her characterization. You can audibly hear a sense of care and means to achieving a flesh-and-blood portrayal. The Sleepwalking scene is quite moving, with many finely limned touches incorporated throughout. The voice has also gained a warmth in the middle register. Some of the ornamentation is quite individual and interesting.

Against that, Dessay, only 41-42 when this was recorded, sounds vocally worn-out and aged. It appears that the vocal crisis she had a few years ago and subsequent rehabilitation has effected only a partial recovery. The vocal cords don't vibrate properly; you can tell they are afflicted, loose and flapping. Dessay tries to control the waver by beginning a tone straight, but it winds up being a tremolo. The upper note in a line from an interval is almost always unsteady, and at forte, it often bulges and veers precariously out of control. The close microphoning does not help, and the cold digital hardness must surely accentuate what was possibly not so evident in the house. There's a certain fatigue to the relentless brightness of listening to this "empty chasm" space engineering. Dessay works hard to kick in the trills, and sometimes slows down the rhythmical impetus to get the voice settled; and there are a lot of long pauses that pulls down the momentum. The staccati are as pinpoint as ever, some of the coloratura accomplished, though some of the descending chromatic scales are slightly blurred.

Francesco Meli has perhaps the healthiest voice on here, and he sings sweetly, with a most attractive melting timbre, but there's also some muscling out of the tone. The interjections during "Ah non credea," though, are some of the most heartbreakingly sweet I've ever heard.

Carlo Columbara has a welcomely rich tone, maybe one of the better current Rodolfos on record, but that's not saying much. He too in unsteady, with some of his sustained tones having a really pronounced beat. I hate to keep harping on this factor, but he, like every other bass nowadays, ignores the upward slurs in "Vi ravviso" - they are so important to the expression of this beautiful, elegiac aria. Those slurs serve an important function. The piece is very emotional, but also very contained in an aristocratically elegant way; the slurs give that nice, sweet little lift of endearment in the character's nostalgic yearning. Again, Pol Plancon, Cesare Siepi and Plinio Clabassi are the models. Plancon's is a true thing of beauty, the attractiveness of personality just oozing out in spades from within the 1907 sonic murk.

The Lisa, Jael Azzaretti, has a noticeably healthier, fuller voice than Dessay, but so much of her work is compromised by the cuts.

There are now many fine Sonnambuli on the market - one can take their choice in terms of their favorite divas - Pagliughi, Callas, Sutherland, Devia, Gruberova, Orgonasova. I have all of them, all with merits. If you like Dessay, this new one will probably please you. As for me, I can't believe the decisions to somehow just chuck chunks of the score, whilst proudly offering the "critical edition!"

"

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