The economics of the recording companies dictate much that is not ideal. Wagner’s operas were not composed as they were in order to permit the extraction of bleeding chunks, even on those occasions when strophic song forms do occur.
Among the recent recordings of Mahler’s Eighth Symphony, Valery Gergiev’s release on the LSO Live label is an excellent addition to the discography of this work.
While not unknown, the songs of Alexander von Zemlinsky (1871-1942) deserve to be heard more frequently.
Recorded on 5 and 6 May 2008 and 17 and 18 January 2009 at the Lisztzentrum (Raiding, Austria), this recent Bridge release makes available the piano-vocal versions of three song cycles by Gustav Mahler, Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen, Rückert-Lieder, and Kindertotenlieder performed by mezzo-soprano Hermine Haselböck, accompanied by Russell Ryan.
Contraltos rarely achieve the acclaim and renown of sopranos. Assigned few leading roles in opera, they are condemned to playing the villain or the grandmother, or to stealing the castrati’s trousers in en travesti roles.
Following their 2011 Decca recording of Striggio’s Mass in 40 Parts (1566), I Fagiolini continue their quest to unearth lost treasures of the High Renaissance and early Baroque, with this collection of world-premiere recordings, ‘reconstructions’ and ‘reconstitutions’ of music by Giovanni and Andrea Gabrieli, Monteverdi, Palestrina, and their less well-known compatriots Viadana, Barbarino and Soriano.
Eternal Echoes is an album of khazones [Jewish cantorial music] for cantorial soloist, solo violin and a blended instrumental ensemble comprising a small orchestra and the Klezmer Conservatory Band.
Michael Tilson Thomas’s recording of Mahler’s Third Symphony is an outstanding contribution to the composer’s discography.
Oliver Knussen burst into British music with an unprecedented flourish. In 1967, the London Symphony Orchestra premiered Knussen’s First Symphony, with István Kertész scheduled to conduct.
Based on performances given in Summer 2010 at the Lucerne Festival, this recording of Beethoven’s Fidelio is an admirable recording that captures the vitality of the work as conducted by Claudio Abbado.
Stanisław Moniuszko (1819-1872) was one of the most popular composers of his day in Poland, and of the many works he wrote for the stage, two are performed from time to time, Halka (1848) and Strazny dwór [The Haunted Manor] (1865).
The Polish alto Jadwiga Rappé is a familiar voice in various stage and concert works, and the recent release of a selection of songs by Stanisław Moniuszko (1819-1872) is an opportunity to hear her performing artsongs.
Originally released on multiple discs in 1981 this reissue on two CDs is a comprehensive collection of art songs by Italian and French composers from the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.
An exciting contribution to the discography of this popular opera, the live performance of Richard Strauss’s Salome from the Festspielhaus at Baden-Baden is a compelling DVD.
Released in late 2011, Deutsche Grammophon’s DVD of the new staging of Berg’s Lulu at the Gran Teatro del Liceu, Barcelona is an excellent contribution to the discography of this fascinating opera.
A recent release by the Metropolitan Opera, this two-disc set makes available on DVD the famous performance of Berg’s Lulu that was broadcast on 20 December 1980 as part of the PBS series “Live from the Met.”
The novels of Sinclair Lewis once shot across the American literary skies like comets, alarming and fascinating readers of that era, but their tails didn’t extend far behind them.
Once the province of only the most dedicated opera fanatics, mid-20th century recordings of privately taped live performances have become more widely available.
Flute players in opera orchestra around the world must look forward to the frequent appearances of Donizetti’s Lucia di Lammermoor, knowing that while the stage spotlight in the mad scene will be on the soprano, the orchestral spotlight will be on their instrument.
Since his debut at the Metropolitan Opera in 1971, conductor James Levine has come to represent the house’s commitment to artistic excellence — reliable, professional, and immaculately presented.
This is a most sympathetic performance, though perhaps being a Fleming helps. In my small country on the frontier of Northern and Southern European influences, many musical styles made their entrance and became popular.
Until the seventies, Bel Canto on the radio meant broadcasts of Italian, French, German and Russian opera, operettas, zarzuela, the token Gilbert and Sullivan, canzoni napolentane and American love songs. Because of the eclectic mix, “O wie so trügerisch” and “Comme la plume au vent” sounded as familiar as “La donna è mobile” performed in half a dozen different languages.
And then there was Henri Goraieb, a well-known French pianist who programmed a Bel Canto program on France Musique, which was immensely popular all over Western Europe. Almost every week Goraieb presented selections from a seemingly inexhaustible collection of radio performances given in France from the forties until the sixties. Rarely recorded artist such as Marthe Luccioni, Georges Noré, Odette Turba-Rabier, Jeanne Guyllama, Raphael Romangioni, and many others now became household names. Even great names like Alain Vanzo became greater still with the broadcast of performances of the prime, and even exhumed recordings thought to be lost forever. Even the lesser “starry” singers were busily employed at French radio that they had almost a year’s workload. Singers like Joseph Peyron, Lucien Lovano and Geneviève Moizan found that a radio career was ideally suited to their personal needs.
Hence, this Snegurochka is somewhat of a feast of recognizance for this reviewer, who maybe is somewhat less objective than ought to be. This is not my first choice, however, if one absolutely needed an authentic and complete Russian version. There are some cuts in the performance, and the sound is a bit constricted, favoring the voices, which makes it difficult to judge the role of conductor Charles Bruck. Yet the ensembles go smoothly without hesitation, which may be due in part to strict rehearsals.
The performance begins with Solange Michel, a fine voice and a truly authentic Carmen, which nevertheless is only the second mezzo in the cast accompanying Rita Gorr in the role of Lel. For Gorr admirers, the voice is at its best with the well-known lush sound without stridency. The title role, sung b Janine Micheau, a fine lyric soprano with somewhat sweet and sour timbre French sopranos are famous for. Her voice is still fresh and beautiful, far less wooden that later recordings. Yet vocal honors certainly are awarded to Geneviève Moizan as Kupava. Her sound is wonderfully lyric, clear, and personal, a sound, which makes the listener sit up and take notice. Michel Roux is a sonorous and convincing Mizgir, and tenor Jean Giaudeau’s role is completely suited to his particular talents. All these singers have excellent pronunciation. Even the women are almost always clearly understandable.
So, if you want to know what French singing was all about before the run for original language performances, this is the recording for you. Hopefully Ponto will further delve into the rich heritage of French radio in the future.
Jan Neckers