What Opera Are You Listening to Now?

[Wendell_E]

And, what is a HEA?

I was wondering about that, as well. "Happy Ending", perhaps, but what about the 'A'?

[Roasted Swan]

I was wondering about that, as well. "Happy Ending", perhaps, but what about the 'A'?

Happy Ever After.......?  (FYI )

[André]

Happy Ever After.......?  (FYI )

Bingo !

It's a familiar acronym in cheesy literature. 'And they lived happily ever after' 😻

[André]

Great review. I have two amendments, though.

First: Napoleon III's was the Second Empire, not the Third.

Second:  why would you assume that Massenet took his cues for the grand public sumptuous musical entertainment from Wagner, instead of from the true originators of the genre, with whom Parisian audiences were much more familiar: Auber and Meyerbeer?

And, what is a HEA?

You're right about the Second Empire of course !

IMO Wagner was a lot more influential in France than he is generally credited - and being controversial was part of his impact on his contemporaries. I almost mentioned Meyerbeer, but there is something wagnerian in Massenet and the parallel with Lohengrin was so obvious. Just my 2 cents. 

[Wanderer]

Last week I stumbled upon a delightful find at a used music record store in Vienna - the one featured in Before Sunrise, which seems to be the only solid place left in the city for this kind of browsing. It had more vinyl than CDs, but quite a bit of opera stood out among the usual fluff. What caught my eye was the live 1966 La Fenice recording of Puccini's La Fanciulla del West, conducted by Oliviero De Fabritiis, with Antonietta Stella as Minnie, Gian Giacomo Guelfi as Jack Rance, and Pier Miranda Ferraro as Dick Johnson. The timing felt serendipitous, as I was set to attend a performance of the same opera in Hamburg just a few days later, sparking my interest in this version since I could find no reviews, Amazon listings, or streaming options for it, making it a complete mystery. I didn't have any particular expectations, other than hoping Guelfi would be solid in the role as he had usually been, and I was eager to listen upon my return, curious to uncover what this recording held.

The recording is beautifully sung, with Ferraro's Dick Johnson truly standing out in the Act I duet with Minnie, "Quello che tacete". He beautifully expressed the role and he was very good elsewhere throughout the opera, as was Stella. The poker scene in Act II was electrifying, with Stella and Guelfi facing off in a dramatic showdown that captured the high stakes of the moment - Guelfi's Rance was savage but not cartoonishly Scarpian, his intensity filling the role with a menacing edge, and the final "buona notte" was perfectly judged and timed, a moment few can pinpoint without it feeling abrupt. The mono recording has an atmospheric quality, with occasional clapping after numbers and stage noises that I found more engaging than distracting, giving a real sense of being in the theater at La Fenice.

A lovely memento and a nice find!

[JBS]

Last week I stumbled upon a delightful find at a used music record store in Vienna - the one featured in Before Sunrise, which seems to be the only solid place left in the city for this kind of browsing. It had more vinyl than CDs, but quite a bit of opera stood out among the usual fluff. What caught my eye was the live 1966 La Fenice recording of Puccini's La Fanciulla del West, conducted by Oliviero De Fabritiis, with Antonietta Stella as Minnie, Gian Giacomo Guelfi as Jack Rance, and Pier Miranda Ferraro as Dick Johnson. The timing felt serendipitous, as I was set to attend a performance of the same opera in Hamburg just a few days later, sparking my interest in this version since I could find no reviews, Amazon listings, or streaming options for it, making it a complete mystery. I didn't have any particular expectations, other than hoping Guelfi would be solid in the role as he had usually been, and I was eager to listen upon my return, curious to uncover what this recording held.

The recording is beautifully sung, with Ferraro's Dick Johnson truly standing out in the Act I duet with Minnie, "Quello che tacete". He beautifully expressed the role and he was very good elsewhere throughout the opera, as was Stella. The poker scene in Act II was electrifying, with Stella and Guelfi facing off in a dramatic showdown that captured the high stakes of the moment - Guelfi's Rance was savage but not cartoonishly Scarpian, his intensity filling the role with a menacing edge, and the final "buona notte" was perfectly judged and timed, a moment few can pinpoint without it feeling abrupt. The mono recording has an atmospheric quality, with occasional clapping after numbers and stage noises that I found more engaging than distracting, giving a real sense of being in the theater at La Fenice.

A lovely memento and a nice find!

That would be this one?
But the soprano is different.


There's another one conducted by him, floating around. Rome 1950.


God knows what the SQ is like if they can't even mention the name of the opera house.

[Wanderer]

That would be this one?
But the soprano is different.

No, that's not the one I mean. The "Opera Fanatic" release you're showing is mislabeled - it lists Magda Olivero for February 14, 1966 at La Fenice, but her recording from there is actually from 1967, with Daniele Barioni and Gian Giacomo Guelfi, conducted by Oliviero de Fabritiis. The one I'm talking about is the official 1966 La Fenice recording with Antonietta Stella as the soprano, alongside Guelfi and Pier Miranda Ferraro, released by MondoMusica, the label tied to the Archivio Storico Fonografico del Teatro La Fenice.

[ritter]

This one, isn't it?



It's just been rereleased in this set:

[Wanderer]

Yes, that's the one!

[San Antone]

Throughout today, three recordings of Lucia di Lammermoor:

1953 Callas, Serafin
1954 Callas, Karajan
1957 Gencer, de Fabritiis

Your comments on these three, your preference, and other notable recordings, would be appreciated.

[Kalevala]

This is probably my favorite Lucia:



I'll have to do some digging to see which Callas recordings I have. 

K

[ando]

Handel: Imeneo (1986, Vox) Ostendorf/Baird/Fortunado/Hoch/Opalach Brewer Chamber Orchestra/Rudolph Palmer
Apple Music Edition

The plot is hilariously inane but the singing here is glorious. I suspect the work would come over just as effectively as an oratorio.

[T. D.]

Handel: Imeneo (1986, Vox) Ostendorf/Baird/Fortunado/Hoch/Opalach Brewer Chamber Orchestra/Rudolph Palmer
Apple Music Edition

The plot is hilariously inane but the singing here is glorious. I suspect the work would come over just as effectively as an oratorio.

I've actually seen a live performance of this (Glimmerglass Opera, 2004). Music was outstanding, the production was entertaining but had elements of Regietheater.

[nico1616]

This is probably my favorite Lucia:



I'll have to do some digging to see which Callas recordings I have. 

K

Superb recording! Almost the same cast repeated this success with the best Puritani on record.

[Tsaraslondon]

Superb recording! Almost the same cast repeated this success with the best Puritani on record.

Debatable. Personally, I prefer this one



and this one



But I guess they all have their merits.

[nico1616]

Debatable. Personally, I prefer this one



and this one



But I guess they all have their merits.

The Callas has quite some cuts and the sound is not top notch. Caballé is of course gorgeous but Manuguerra is no match for Cappuccilli. Joan Sutherland is always a matter of taste, but her coloratura is breathtaking, and Pavarotti has seldom sounded better.

[San Antone]

Debatable. Personally, I prefer this one



and this one



But I guess they all have their merits.

I can't read the cast on the Callas one, is it with Serafin from 1953?  If so, I have that one and the Caballé in my Spotify folder, as well as these two:

(1961) Gencer, Raimondi, Quadri
(1969) Freni, Pavarotti, Muti

[nico1616]

I can't read the cast on the Callas one, is it with Serafin from 1953?  If so, I have that one and the Caballé in my Spotify folder, as well as these two:

(1961) Gencer, Raimondi, Quadri
(1969) Freni, Pavarotti, Muti

These 2 seem like rarities, which makes me curious. I can imagine Gencer as Elvira, I find it harder to see Freni in that role.

[Kalevala]

I can't read the cast on the Callas one, is it with Serafin from 1953?  If so, I have that one and the Caballé in my Spotify folder, as well as these two:

(1961) Gencer, Raimondi, Quadri
(1969) Freni, Pavarotti, Muti

There's a larger image of it here--though it doesn't mention the year.  https://www.warnerclassics.com/sites/default/files/styles/release_and_playlist_cover_756_x_756_2x_webp/public/0825646341184_0.jpg.webp?itok=4P4T50-Z

K

[Tsaraslondon]

There's a larger image of it here--though it doesn't mention the year.  https://www.warnerclassics.com/sites/default/files/styles/release_and_playlist_cover_756_x_756_2x_webp/public/0825646341184_0.jpg.webp?itok=4P4T50-Z

K

It was recorded in 1953, the second of her recordings under her new EMI contract. The first was Lucia di Lammermoor, which was recorded in Florence. After that all her complete opera recordings until 1961 were with La Scala forces, except Il Barbiere di Siviglia and the 1959 Lucia di Lammermoor, which were recorded in London with the Philharmonia.