Search - Verdi, Raimondi, Christoff :: I Masnadieri

An intense performance of a musically rich work

Armindo | Greece | 01/12/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Of Verdi's lesser known works i.e. Alzira, Aroldo, Oberto, Giorno di Regno, Stiffelio, Jerusalem and even I Due Foscari, Masnadieri is musically my favourite. It's got juicy roles for the soprano and tenor while both the bass and baritone get to sing beautiful melodies in the duets and ensembles.



This live performance from the 70s boasts strong voices and a sensitive conductor. A somewhat aged Raimondi recovers from a frog moment in his first aria to give a fine Verdian performance with good top notes. The audience loves him. Ligabue as Amalia was an interesting discovery for me. A pleasant lyrico-spinto soprano who must sound even better in less florid roles. I especially enjoyed her strong top notes. The young Bruson sings superbly and confirmes the bright future ahead of him. Christoff's voice sounds heavier and older but this suits Massimiliano's character perfectly. His performance stands out in my opinion and will probably be the standard for future comparisons.



Maestro Gavazzeni revealed quite a few sensitive moments that I hadn't noticed on the otherwise splendid Gardelli recording for Phillips. Speaking of that recording, it's not terribly dramatic but the singing is gorgeous which I feel brings out the drama of the music.



There aren't many live recordings of this work available but this one pretty much gives us the essense of the opera. The sound by the way is perfectly acceptable."