Search - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Nikolaus Harnoncourt, Thomas Hampson :: Mozart - Don Giovanni / Hampson · Gruberova · R. Alexander · Bonney · Blochwitz · Polgar · Scharinger · Holl · Harnoncourt

A different and ultimately rewarding Don Giovanni

06/09/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"It took more than one listening session to fall for this recording; at first it struggles between magnificence and frustration. Magnificence won. What may shock Giovanni-trained ears at first (mine were) is Harnoncourt's "experimentation?" with the orchestra's acoustical balance. The lovely dancing melodies of the catalog aria, the minuet, the serenade, etc... these are toned down and almost escape the ear, while the bass instruments are pumped up so that the opera sounds unlike any other version I've heard. Sometimes the horns and brass blare unexpectedly. It's not elegant orchestration, but it can be unexpectedly illluminating. Perhaps for this reason? Harnoncourt has balanced his more aggressive (and yet slower, grander-tempied) orchestral sound with an amazing ensemble of beautifully harmonized singers, all of whom could be described as having "sweet" voices. In particular Polgar's honey-sweet bass creates a Leporello who is gentler and more kind-hearted than most. For me, he was the "great discovery." Likewise, Gruberova's Donna Anna is more delicate than fiery but her coloratura, controlled and haunting, soars through her arias with her typical finesse; she really shimmers. Bonney is the perfect Zerlina, a true Mozartian angel voice but spirited and flirtatious; Alexander as Elivira has exquisite top notes of sheer beauty. Hampson's Don Giovanni does not seem to be a graceful nobleman. He is sometimes a rough bully and then, in seductive moments, has the most tenderly romantic voice. His rushed Brindisi sounds a bit forced, but his Serenade is meltingly effortless. Does Harnoncourt want to downplay the orchestral accompaniment to highlight the beautiful voice?? Masetto, especially Masetto, and the Commendatore are rich, well-acted, and finely sung. Where this recording becomes a must-hear is in the ensemble work between all the voices, each beautifully matched to the other. Their harmonies are stunning; no one leaps out of place. So, with some warning about the meddling to the orchestral sound, I must recommend this unusual version as an intellectual alternative with a cast of truly heavenly voices. It's not yet my ideal Don Giovanni (perhaps nonexistent), but it ranks way way up there."

A crispy clean Don Giovanni

danielinyaracuy | San Felipe, Yaracuy Venezuela | 07/10/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This recording is a little puzzling. Is it a great recording or is it just an experimentation? With time I have come to think it is a great recording but somehow I am held back from giving it a 5 stars, even though it has become my second favorite version. It has a crisp and intense interpretation by a particularly good Harnoncourt. Hampson is perhaps the Don Giovanni of our time, the most impatient with life, but yet something is missing. Then again any Don Giovanni will suffer in comparison to Wachter. Certainly, Hampson is as good as they get and perhaps when he records this work again we can expect a Don for the XXI century. The rest of the cast perhaps dampens a little bit the whole effect, nobody is bad but nobody really shines either. So why do I recommend it? For one thing, it dispenses with the fat found on other Don Giovanni interpretations. Harnoncourt must be thanked for cleaning up and refreshing Don Giovanni grown a little bit to complacent by casts and directors more worried about shining than telling us the story of emotional greed of all of its characters. Harnoncourt does not pass judgement on the Don, or his accomplices, he just tells us the musical story as it is. This is what makes a Don Giovanni great, when at the end of it one has serious doubts as to whether Don Giovanni is the real villain of the story..... Whomever wants more than one version, this one certainly deserves very serious consideration. But if you only want, or can afford, only one, then go to the Giulini version."

Disregard the average review rating on this one!

kermit rohrbach | allen, tx, usa | 06/14/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I have owned this since the year it was issued, and many other Don's before and after. I am reviewing it at this late date because I stumbled onto this patently unfair average review of 3 stars. It gives Amazon customers--not Harnoncourt--a bad name. This is the performance that made me realize it was Mozart's most important opera. Of the reviews, read 'a music fan' from 1999. Disregard all of those that approached this with the fixed idea that some conductor (e.g. Giulini) or some singer (e.g. Siepi) had already done THE great Don. In case you doubt my opinion, I will add that of the modern recordings only this and Giulini are diapason d'ors."