A lovely live performance which yet yields to the GROC class
Ralph Moore | Bishop's Stortford, UK | 11/17/2009
(4 out of 5 stars)
"The issue of this new DG live concert recording with Gheorghiu and Alagna prompted me to revisit the classic 1968 GROC recording with Freni and Pavarotti in freshest, most youthful voice, and for the most part, the comparisons are in favour of the older recording. Gheorghiu and Alagna recorded a delightful version of the famous Cherry Duet in their 1995 recital album, and in many ways this music suits them both ideally, but while there is little to choose between the sopranos - both possessed of beautiful, creamy, expressive voices and both in their prime - Pavarotti certainly has the edge over Alagna, whose grainier tone lacks the sweetness and plangency of Pavarotti in the "dolce ppp" passages and the ping of his top notes. Nor does the new recording present any advantage in the secondary roles. Whereas the otherwise unknown Laura Didier Gambardella represents the only serious weakness in the older recording, with her wobbly, over-ripe mezzo making her sound more like Fritz's auntie than a gypsy boy, Laura Polverelli is not much better in a travestito role which calls for a lean, masculine sound. Similarly, Vicente Sardinero's neat, dark, baritone, expressively deployed here in his first major recording, is far preferable to George Petean's huskier, less imposing voice, which lacks tonal centre.
Typical of Mascagni's skill is the way that the apparent superficial charm of the Cherry Duet is cunningly counteracted by a sense of mounting but unspoken passion; the bucolic idyll masks a sincere and very human desperation.The plot is slight and sentimental but Mascagni exploits all his habitual devices to give the action more substance and impact: chromatic sidesteps, false relations, odd dissonances, references to folk tunes and sudden ourtbursts of passion. Other surprises include an Intermezzo which has been labelled incongruous, in that it is an unexpectedly violent interlude depicting how Fritz earned Beppe's undying devotion by saving him from a snowstorm! Yet another neat little trick is to render the events on stage more intimate by keeping the chorus offstage for the entire opera.
Gavazzeni conducts the Covent Garden orchestra with his usual expertise and flexibility. Veronesi is similarly responsive but sounds a little too restrained and uncommitted by comparison with Gavazzeni. The sound in both sets is ideal, although the live recording obviously has more "air" and obviously more of a sense of theatre about it. Apart from the undoubted brilliance and beauty of Gheorghiu's Suzel, I see no particular reason to prefer the new recording - but her fans will want her in this unusual role, in an opera that remains small-scale but perhaps deserves wider fame. Furthermore, given their current personal and artistic separation, this is likely to be a last souvenir of their collaboration."
Track Listings (22) - Disc #1
