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My facetious title
notwithstanding, it is good to see a younger generation of conductors
taking the spotlight, and, more important, simultaneously making
worthwhile contributions to the catalogues.
Let us start
with Kent Nagano (b. 1951), whose career has been carefully managed
and considered from the start, not forgetting some of the
opportunities that came his way, such as working with Olivier Messiaen
during the preparations for the world premiere of Saint François
d'Assise. Concert performances in the 1980s made him a logical
choice for the revival of Peter Sellars's tv-monitor-ridden staging at
Salzburg, receiving such acclaim that DGG hurriedly arranged to record
the production live. One is barely aware of this provenance, as
Nagano's own Hallé Orchestra makes the most of the composer's
riotous colors while José van Dam in the title role is
authoritative. The work is typical of Messiaen in its inordinate
length (almost four hours) and those not attuned to the composer's
idiom may find it hard going, but, for the persistent, the rewards are
many.
The roles of the various monks are well-defined
musically, and encountering Chris Merritt in a new repertoire is an
indication of his artistic growth. Dawn Upshaw's Angel is far more
impressive on a solely auditory level than onstage in this production
where she was dressed in a business suit and was required to accompany
her words with the gestures of sign language.
Nagano is now
totally at home with this mammoth work, far more than in a no longer
available recording from the Dutch radio or than Seiji Ozawa during
the work's premiere run in 1983 (once available on the now defunct
Cybelia label).
Nagano's work at the Opéra de Lyon has
been documented from the start on either Erato or Virgin, but his two
final recordings are exceedingly welcome additions to any library.
Busoni's Doktor Faust has only been recorded once, by Dietrich
Fischer-Dieskau for DGG under the direction of Ferdinand Leitner.
Nagano's recording scores immediately in that the opera is given
complete whereas the earlier version made niggling little cuts of ten
measures here, ten measures there, throughout the work. In addition,
Nagano allows us to hear two scenes as completed by Anthony Beaumont
on the basis of the composer's sketches rather than the work of one of
Busoni's students, Philip Jarnach, who was entrusted with preparing
the unfinished work.
Fischer-Dieskau is on hand to declaim
the Prologue and Epilogue, while a former student, Dietrich Henschel,
takes the title role, sometimes sounding uncannily like his mentor.
Kim Begley's Mephistopheles makes light of the role's difficulties,
only Eva Jenis lacking vocal seductiveness. Smaller roles have all
been carefully cast, so all we have to do is listen attentively to one
of the more philosophic operas ever written.
Peter Eötvös's
first full-length opera is an adaptation of Chekhov's Three
Sisters, with the recording made during the work's first run of
performances. Rather than a linear adaptation, the composer has chosen
to give us various incidents seen from the perspective of three of the
characters. More curiously, all the women's roles are played by men,
four countertenors for the younger women and a bass for the old
servant.
Even without the atmospheric staging, the conceit
works marvelously well on disc, from the opening ensemble for the
sisters to the various arias for the men, not to mention the
interventions of Gary Boyce as the sister-in-law, Natasha. One hears
the stage noises but they are not distracting, though one is aware of
a certain lack of musical continuity that was not the case in the
theater. At the time, I wondered how it would all work with women
instead of countertenors, but the composer himself has already
acquiesced to this option for performances in Germany and Hungary. The
number of modern operas that bear repeated listening is distinctly
limited, but Three Sisters certainly belongs in that category.
As a farewell to the Hallé Orchestra, Nagano has
recorded an all- Britten disc, including three firsts: a Double
Concerto for violin and viola (realized by Colin Matthews from
Britten's short score), Two Portraits and the version for
small orchestra of the Sinfonietta, op. 1. Again, this is
where Nagano scores, with his curiosity concerning a composer, in this
case Britten's early works that were pushed aside in the rush to
continue working on ever-newer compositions, or showing how
intertwined are the Double Concerto and the almost
contemporaneous Sinfonietta.
Sir Simon Rattle (born
1955) has long worked under the advantage of an EMI recording
conctract, but this new batch of releases allows us to enjoy two
diametrically opposed facets of his work. Szymanowski has clearly been
one of the conductor's preoccupations, but his devotion to the
composer becomes the listener's reward with Król Roger,
the lush orientalisms bordering on the erotic standing up well under
modern recording techniques, something we have until now been deprived
of.
Thomas Hampson may not have the smooth command of the
Polish language available to his competitors, but his stylistic
comprehension is once again something to marvel at. While Ryszard
Minkiewicz's Shepherd may not be as vocally appealing as others who
have sung the role, his understanding of his part in the drama is
unsurpassed. Elzbieta Szmytka's Roxana is not perhaps far enough
offstage for her aria, but that is a minor complaint in the face of a
total accomplishment that will be difficult to beat. The Sinfonia
Concertante for Piano and Orchestra fills out the set so that the
95 minute opera does not become an extravagant acquisition.
Leonard
Bernstein's Wonderful Town has never received the acclaim
accorded to West Side Story or Candide, but its
spontaneity easily raises it to the level of its siblings. The
sisters' duets, "Ohio" and "Wrong Note Rag",
illuminate two facets of their relation, while the solos remain
extraordinary, especially "One Hundred Easy Ways to Lose a Man".
Kim Criswell's vocal range may be more extensive than was that of
Rosalind Russell, but she is almost as expressive, while Audra
McDonald's Eileen is worthy of the Policeman's tribute. Thomas
Hampson, Rodney Gilfry and Brent Barrett all offer healthy baritones,
but each is appropriately differentiated. Far more worthwhile than
prima donnas offering ethnic material or hyped-up, under-voiced tenors
singing religious material or a pale imitation thereof.
James
Conlon (born 1950) offers his first recording with the Paris Opera
forces, an all-Stravinsky disc made after a concert. Natalie Dessay is
justifiably accorded top billing as the Nightingale, her
spectacular performance only one factor inciting enthusiasm. Conlon
places the music squarely in the context of its time, eschewing the
picturesque element deriving from Rimsky-Korsakov and also playing
down the modern element. While none of the other performers has much
to do, each makes his mark, especially Violeta Urmana's Death.
Renard
is another cup of tea, more or less contemporaneous with Les Noces
and as difficult to cherish despite one's admiration for the
composer's novel approach. In both works, the non-Russian singers
sometimes sound uncomfortable next to their Russian-speaking
colleagues, but this is a defect magnified by the recording process
and the manner in which we listen. And why is there no Russian text to
accompany the translations?
Ingo Metzmacher is the baby of
this group, barely 40, but his recordings for EMI of the symphonies of
Karl Amadeus Hartmann, each accompanied by contrasting music by other
contemporary composers, has already indicated a talent to be watched.
His Hamburg appointment has increased his power base, but he has
steadily demonstrated that it is his talent that is responsible for
his advance.
Recording Wozzeck is dangerous enough,
but a live recording indicates the level of confidence of the
conductor in his performing forces and also the confidence of the
record company in its artists. While the balance is very much in favor
of the singers, we can hear that Metzmacher is playing down the
romantic element while stressing the chamber music qualities of Berg's
writing. Bo Skovhus and Angela Denoke provide sufficient drama in the
leading roles to compensate for what looks like a strange staging in
the accompanying photographs. Chris Merritt once again shows how much
at home he has become in the contemporary repertoire, while Frode
Olsen demonstrates that the role of the Doctor need not be barked.
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OperaNet: Reviews