Verdi - Don Carlo (remastered)
by John Dexter
from Deutsche Grammophon
Verdi: Un Ballo in Maschera
by Levine
from Decca
This DVD features Luciano Pavarotti in one of his most celebrated roles in a classic, all-star performance of one of the great Verdi operas, Un Ballo in Maschera. Available for the first time on DVD, the complete opera of the classic 1980 production by Elijah Moshinsky was filmed live from The Metropolitan Opera. An all-star cast, led by Luciano Pavarotti at the height of his fame, includes Katia Ricciarelli (Amelia), Judith Blegen (Oscar), Bianca Berini (Ulrica) and Louis Quilico (Renato). The incomparable Metropolitan Opera Orchestra is conducted by Giuseppe Patane. This was an eye-catching and thought-provoking production in which Moshinsky staged the action in pre-revolutionary 1774 Boston. Extras include an interview with Luciano Pavarotti and James Levine.
Verdi - Don Carlo / Levine, Domingo, Freni, Metropolitan Opera
by Brian Large
from Geneon [Pioneer]
Verdi - Un ballo in maschera / James Levine, The Metropolitan Opera
by Brian Large
from Geneon [Pioneer]
One thing you could emphatically never say about Verdi was that he skimped on melodies: Un Ballo in Maschera is a veritable greatest-hits opera, not because most of the arias are so familiar (though some surely are), but because their freshness and seemingly inexhaustible supply keep listeners' ears attuned even when the characters in this historically based tragedy perform the usual operatic deeds to each other: betrayal, revenge, and murder. This 1980 Metropolitan Opera production sets the opera in colonial Massachusetts, which was Verdi and his librettist's alternate location after Italian censors insisted it not take place in Europe. (The Met's more recent stagings have returned it to the original Sweden.) Elijah Moshinsky's production works surpassingly well on video, focusing the eyes on the performers, all of whom surpass themselves dramatically and vocally. Louis Quilico makes a credible Renato, who must decide whether his best friend--who is also the "Governor of Boston" (!)--is in love with his beautiful wife. Katia Ricciarelli displays a sweet tone as Renato's wife, Amelia, and none other than Luciano Pavarotti plays Riccardo, torn between loyalty to his friend and love for his friend's wife. Never the subtlest actor, Pavarotti made his name on his one-of-a-kind tenor voice, and in 1980 he was in his prime, making this disc a valuable document. The conducting of Giuseppe Patané is more than adequate. --Kevin Filipski
Luciano Pavarotti in his first Met Ballo heads an illustrious cast in the revolutionary production of Verdi's opera. His portrayal of the ill-fated Riccardo is "peerless Pavarotti." Katia Ricciarelli ("...a brilliant lyric spinto soprano...used to impressive effect...") is heard in her first Amelia at the Metropolitan Opera. Louis Quilico ("...his 'Eri tu?' was one of the real highlights of the evening..."), Judith Blegen ("...focal point of pure light."), and Bianca Berini ("...sang with taste and authority.") round out the cast. For his Metropolitan Opera debut, Elijah Moshinsky places his provocative Un Ballo in Maschera in 18th-Century Boston, on the eve of the American Revolution. It's a time of unrest and transition, when the conflict between civic obligation and personal desire is drawn into even sharper focus. Moshinsky's interpretation of the 1859 classic strips away all the familiar conventions and, as Andrew Porter in The New Yorker sums it up, we see "Verdi's opera to be (in Shaw's words for "The Ring") a work 'frightfully real, frightfully present, frightfully modern'...this is a Ballo about things that matter." This presentation of Un Ballo in Maschera is subtitled in English and was taped during the February 16, 1980 performance at the Metropolitan Opera. No material was taken from rehearsals, other performance, or remake recording sessions.
Verdi Opera 6-Pack (Amazon.com Exclusive)
by Brian Large
from Pioneer Video
Don Carlo
Don Carlo is one of the grandest of all grand operas, a tour-de-force that challenges the resources of even the greatest theaters. The Met has accepted and responded to these challenges in magnificent fashion. Don Carlo is a complex, multi-layered work. Private passions are played out against a backdrop of intense political strivings. Placido Domingo leads the extraordinary cast gathered for this performance.
Un ballo in maschera
Luciano Pavarotti in his first Met Ballo heads an illustrious cast in this revolutionary production of Verdi's opera. His portrayal of the ill-fated Riccardo is "peerless Pavarotti." Katia Ricciarelli ("a brilliant lyric spinto soprano... used to impressive effect" ) is heard in her first Amelia at the Metropolitan Opera. Louis Quilico ("his 'Eri tu?' was one of the real highlights of the evening"), Judith Blegen ("focal point of pure light'), and Bianca Berini ("sang with taste and authority") round out the cast.
Ernani
No opera is more romantic than Giuseppe Verdi's Ernani. Three rivals risk everything for a hot-blooded woman, plotting abductions, hatching conspiracies, swearing fatal oaths. This 1983 Metropolitan Opera production brought together a superb cast of singers, well able to take on the challenge of Verdi's searing music. Stars: Luciano Pavarotti, Leona Mitchell, Sherrill Milnes, Ruggero Raimondi. Chorus, Ballet and Orchestra of the Metropolitan Opera. Conductor: James Levine
Simon Boccanegra
"Sherrill Milnes gave a performance of deep feeling and ...grandeur" --The New Yorker. "The set, costumes and lighting are superb." --New York Times. Simon Boccanegra, Doge of Genoa, is one of Verdi's most profound characters, a complex man ruled by love of family and devotion to country. The compelling, richly colored music of Simon Boccanegra vividly embodies the tangled personal passions and political rivalries of Renaissance Italy. Conducter: James Levine. Soloists: Sherrill Milnes, Anna Tomowa-Sintow, Vasile Moldoveanu, Paul Plishka. Metropolitan Opera Orchestra and Chorus. Production, Tito Capabianco. Includes optional English subtitles.
La Forza del Destino
La Forza del Destino is Verdi's panoramic tragedy of honor and vengeance in 18th-century Spain and Italy. Its characters, ranging from aristocrats to camp followers, from soldiers to monks, are all swept up in the irresistible power of destiny. Leontyne Price's memorable performance as Leonora "can still bring tears to the eyes." "James Levine's conducting is full of drive and fire," and "the grandeur of the magnificent score comes through." --New York Times
Requiem
Giuseppe Verdi's Messa da Requiem is one of the grandest choral masterpieces of the Romantic Era. This production embodies Verdi's vision of a powerful and large-scale work and is presented with all of the intensity and dramatic passion that was conceived for the Requiem. Enoch zu Guttenberg conducted the European Symphony Orchestra with the Neubeuren Choral Society in this beautiful work. It was filmed at the famous Alte Oper in Frankfurt, Germany. Featured soloists are Pamela Coburn, soprano; Trudeliese Schmidt, mezzo-soprano; Vinson Cole, tenor; and Kurt Rydl, bass. This DVD also includes the option of viewing running commentaries on the pieces as they are performed as well as liner notes, a glossary of music terms, historical markers for the pieces, and performer profiles. Audio playback options are 5.1 dolby digital and non-compressed stereo.
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