# Opera that would deserve a decent modern recording



## Herkku (Apr 18, 2010)

There are operas that in my humble opinion would deserve a new decent recording in modern sound.

1. Cherubini's Medea
2. Spontini's La Vestale
3. R. Strauss's Die schweigsame Frau

I'm not sure who could be the singers, maybe Dessay in #3, but who could be our Medea and Giulia?

Feel free to post suggestions for singers of these roles and add further operas to the list!


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## Almaviva (Aug 13, 2010)

Herkku said:


> There are operas that in my humble opinion would deserve a new decent recording in modern sound.
> 
> 1. Cherubini's Medea
> 2. Spontini's La Vestale
> ...


Dammit, Herkku, you're too sophisticated for us! I don't know any of these three operas.

But I mean it in a good way. I'll be delighted to learn from you, and I'm pretty happy that you came back to the forum. You're an asset for us.:tiphat:


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## DarkAngel (Aug 11, 2010)

Herkku said:


> There are operas that in my humble opinion would deserve a new decent recording in modern sound.
> 
> *1. Cherubini's Medea*
> 2. Spontini's La Vestale
> ...


*Speaking of Medea.........*

There is a very hard to find expensive movie version from 1969 directed by italian PP Pasolini starring Maria Callas! (her only film role) very little dialog and no singing just artsy film shots and strange tribal music.......very abstract and almost no commercial mainstream value, wonder what Callas was thinking 










Medea youtube


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## Almaviva (Aug 13, 2010)

DarkAngel said:


> *Speaking of Medea.........*
> 
> There is a very hard to find expensive movie version from 1969 directed by italian PP Pasolini starring Maria Callas! (her only film role) very little dialog and no singing just artsy film shots and strange tribal music.......very abstract and almost no commercial mainstream value, wonder what Callas was thinking
> 
> ...


Is it based on Cherubini's? Or Charpentier's? Or has it anything to do with the two operatic versions of the story?


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## DarkAngel (Aug 11, 2010)

Almaviva said:


> *Is it based on Cherubini's? Or Charpentier's*? Or has it anything to do with the two operatic versions of the story?


No it is based on greek Medea from Jason & Argonauts, golden fleece etc....

Seems to be mainly a vehicle to show artsy shots of Callas, do arthouse filming and use obscure primitive tribal music, entire movie appears to be on youtube

has nothing to do with opera.....:lol:


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## Almaviva (Aug 13, 2010)

DarkAngel said:


> No it is based on greek Medea from Jason & Argonauts, golden fleece etc....
> 
> Seems to be mainly a vehicle to show artsy shots of Callas, do arthouse filming and use obscure primitive tribal music, entire movie appears to be on youtube
> 
> has nothing to do with opera.....:lol:


Damn, one would think that since they got Callas, it would have something to do with one of the opera versions of the story. Bizarre.


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## Herkku (Apr 18, 2010)

Alas, Pasolini's film has got nothing to do with opera. Callas had already left the stage, but if I remember correctly, she sings a kind of lullaby.


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## superhorn (Mar 23, 2010)

There's a fairly CD recording of Medea in the original French and on period instruments,I believe on the Koch label,but I'm not sure if it's still available. The conductor is Bart Folse.
It's a pretty good performance,but I don't remember the cast members;there are no superstars in it anyway. Check arkivmusic.com; this is by far the best classical CD and DVD website on the internet,with a humongous collection,and it's also the best place to look for hard to find classical CDs.


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## superhorn (Mar 23, 2010)

Oops. I meant to say "a fairly recent recording" .Left a word out by accident.


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## curzon (Dec 1, 2010)

Herkku said:


> There are operas that in my humble opinion would deserve a new decent recording in modern sound.
> 
> 1. Cherubini's Medea
> 2. Spontini's La Vestale
> ...


 There's only one singer who comes close to Callas in Medea today - Anna Caterina Antonacci. See her DVD of the opera - Absolutely riveting despite the rest of the cast not being on her level.
For a recording it would have to be Antonacci, Netrebko, Kaufmann/Calleja and Furlanetto conducted by Pappano

Don't know Vestale well enough but for Schweigsame Frau I would want Damrau, Polenzani, Keenlyside and Pape conducted by Thielemann

Sebastian


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## Aramis (Mar 1, 2009)

I can think of a lot, but you never heard of them - that's obvious result of lack of "decent modern recording".

Woe to last generation of conductors and impresarios when I pierce them with by baton - they failed. Every time they conduct Beethoven and Mozart with knowledge that there are so many things to record instead they commit a crime.

WOE, WOE TO THEM

<WIND HOWLS LIKE THOUSAND DEVILS>

WOEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

WOEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

<SUDDELNY DISAPPEARS FROM SIGHT IN THE WINTER STORM>

<SILENCE>


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## Aramis (Mar 1, 2009)

One more thing - those last two woes with caps lock should be sang like Erik sings in Wagner's Hollander when he enters for the first time singing SEEENTA... SEEEENTAAAAAAA!


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## myaskovsky2002 (Oct 3, 2010)

R. Strauss's Die schweigsame Frau

This opera really IS BAD!!!!!!!! SO BAD!!!! (The silent woman)...She shouldn't speak nor sing. The worst Strauss' opera ever.

Martin Pitchon, who likes R. Strauss but not the Rosenkavalier...either


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## Almaviva (Aug 13, 2010)

myaskovsky2002 said:


> Martin Pitchon, who likes R. Strauss but not the Rosenkavalier...either


What do you find reprehensible in Der Rosenkavalier? Just curious.


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## Herkku (Apr 18, 2010)

And why do you find Die Schweigsame Frau so BAAAAD? I think it's rather hilarious, not unlike Don Pasquale.


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## Herkku (Apr 18, 2010)

> There's only one singer who comes close to Callas in Medea today - Anna Caterina Antonacci. See her DVD of the opera - Absolutely riveting despite the rest of the cast not being on her level.


I have the Antonacci DVD, but for some reason, it doesn't work for me. Well, I didn't much enjoy her Carmen or her Elisabetta in Maria Stuarda, either. These must be highly personal things, where nobody is wrong or right.


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## curzon (Dec 1, 2010)

Herkku said:


> And why do you find Die Schweigsame Frau so BAAAAD? I think it's rather hilarious, not unlike Don Pasquale.


And, more to the point, it is beautiful music.

Sebastian


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## Herkku (Apr 18, 2010)

The version with Hilde Güden is not bad, but the sound leaves a lot to be desired. Now that I checked, I found a version with Reinhild Runkel - £194.48 at Amazon! Does anybody know something about that?


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## superhorn (Mar 23, 2010)

I got to know and love Die Schweigsame Frau back in the LP era from the very fine EMI recording with Marek Janowski and the Dtaatskapelle Dresden(Strauss's own orchestra) and Theo Adam,Jeanette Scovotti ,and Eberhard Buchner.Unlike the live recordings,it's uncut,fortunately.
It's the only studio recording of the opera so far,and still very much worth having.
Still,it would be great if Thielemann could record it,say with possibly Bryn Terfel or Rene Pape,and perhaps Dianan Damrau or Natalie Dessay
It's sort of Don Pasquale meets Pirates of the Caribbean ! The Met should definitely do this opera.


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## Almaviva (Aug 13, 2010)

Herkku said:


> The version with Hilde Güden is not bad, but the sound leaves a lot to be desired. Now that I checked, I found a version with Reinhild Runkel - £194.48 at Amazon! Does anybody know something about that?


I do know something about this: that it's overpriced. Short of a collection piece autographed by a major singer or something, I can't think of a single opera recording with two or three hours of music that justifies paying more than 300 dolares for it. I mean, you can buy 10 other operas for this price. Can this work (which I don't know, by the way) be *this* good??? I'm thinking bangs for the bucks, amount of pleasure obtained from it. Can't you get a lot more pleasure from ten other versions of operas you like or are curious about, or a prime seat for this price very close to the stage to see live a performer you love? I wouldn't pay 300 some dollars for an opera recording, regardless of how good it is. It's not that I don't want to spend money on opera, I've recently been through a $410 shopping spree, but I got two books and some 15 top operas from it. Unless you're filthy rich, in which case, go for it, if you don't like it, you can donate it to one of us.


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