Search - Richard [1] Strauss, Wolfgang Sawallisch, RAI Orchestra :: Strauss: Elektra

Nilsson excelling in a role that mesmerized the opera world

Santa Fe Listener | Santa Fe, NM USA | 02/15/2010

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Any time that Birgit Nilsson lives up to expectations, an opera is worth hearing. In this case, almost everyone else exceeds expectations. Sawallisch gets the RAI orchestra to play far beyond their usual, and his reading is urgent and intense for the most part. He can't seem to help lapsing into dullness here and there. (I've found that these Italian radio performances from the studio are consistently better than opera house recordings -- with some notable exceptions, of course -- because of the controlled sound and disciplined execution.) Thomas Stewart makes for a fierce, commanding Orest, not surprising when you cast a leading Wotan. The Chrysothemis, unfortunately, is ordinary. The recorded sound is full, vivid mono form 1971, its only flaw being a somewhat boomy bass and a certain mfffled cast.



Nilsson's assumption of the title role for Solti on Decca four years before this swept the field and has been a source of astonishment ever since. When deprived of retakes, however, she could miss the pitch; this happened too much in her later Elektra performances, even though the house would always be sold out and she would get a standing ovation. Happily, the problem is at a minimum here. Without Solti's electro-shock approach to the score, she sounds less psychotic, and the added breathing room benefits her phrasing. Otherwise, this is the patented portrayal that kept the opera world enthralled. At its bargain price, this appealing Opera d'Oro has much to offer lovers of Elektra, including those of us who know quite a few rival recordings."

Killer music, but the voices hold still to their positions :

Constantinescu Marius | Bucharest, Romania | 01/11/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I'm not and never will be the hugest fan of this opera fot the sole reason that I haven't been that much exposed to it so to make further appreciations.

The music is violent, tempestuous, savage, crushing the listener under its vivid, yet somehow disarticulate identity. What makes this recording worth buying is, in my humble opinion, the astonishing performance of the two leading ladies: Birgit Nilsson has been THE Elektra of her time, yet Viorica Cortez steals the show with her lustruous copper voice, vehement, hurt, avengeful, desperate, crazy, almost lunatic. It's a surprise to hear this gorgeous singer, one of the most sought after mezzos in the 70's and 80's for Carmen, Dalila, Amneris, Eboli and Azucena, offering such an intense rendition of a character she portrayed out of her regular repertoire.



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