Live from Baden-Baden: The Opera Gala (complete concert) (2008)
Performers: Anna Netrebko, soprano/ Elina Garanca, mezzo-soprano/ Ramon Vargas, tenor/ Ludovic Tezier, baritone/ SWR Symphony Orchestra Baden-Baden and Freiburg/ Marco Armiliato, conductor
Producer: Bernhard Fleischer
Studio: DGG 00440 073 4377
Video: 16:9 color
Audio: DTS 5.1; PCM Stereo
No Region Coding
Length: 138 minutes
Rating: ***1/2
This is the gala recital that has been making quite a stir recently, already appearing on CD but with only about half the music that we get here. It is a spectacular setting; Baden-Baden has a spanking new and technically splendid concert hall that is glorious to see and hear (built on an old railway station), the acoustics for the most part reflecting a very natural and well-balanced orchestral sound, though the singers are obviously miked (but not overbearingly so). Visually it is a real treat, with different color schemes presented on differing spots in the hall – quite stunning to look at. Camera-wise it is very busy, the producers determined to let us see as much of the theater from as many angles as possible, though I don’t think it overdone—just close to being there.
The sound is excellent, DTS sparkling like only it can when done by someone who knows what they are doing, though the voices are somewhat louder than one can imagine they would be in relationship to the orchestra without the microphones, but still clear and distinct, with no fatal flaws. Performance-wise I am a little more mixed in my opinion. Maybe I have heard too many of these things, but it seems as if the selections are all very predictable and have a feeling of “been there, heard that”. After the Bellini Sinfonia to Norma, we get a set of solos, duets, and quartets that are solidly done, some even inspired, but nothing that really sends me away thinking “wow!”
Anna Netrebko shows why she is the hottest thing in opera today, never less than affecting, though not as inspired as I have heard her on other recordings. She does give a showstopper of a reading of Lehar’s “Meine Lippen” from Giuditta, displaying her dancing ability while flirting with men in the audience and the concertmaster himself (at one point having to pause because she ran out of breath), which the audience loved and continues to prove why her iconoclastic attitude towards opera is so appealing. Elina Garanca is a fine mezzo, one of the best and more serious in her general approach to good effect. Vargas can astonish much of the time, but there are also some moments when I felt him straining, perhaps fatigued as this thing went on for three consecutive evenings, though I cannot be sure which night brought these performances (probably a mix). And baritone Ludovic Tezier has great dramatic ability and obviously gripped the audience with his efforts, though I detected a certain annoying buzz in his voice (and only his) that after a while I could not let go of. I do not know if it is natural, a result of his microphone placement, or what, but it is definitely there, and if you are the type that picks up on these little things it might bother you also.
There is well over two hours of music here and very well done. If I was picking something like this myself I would probably go with one of the Metropolitan Opera Galas (either for their anniversary or of Levine’s) which are actually longer and more star-studded. But for a taste of the new generation this might be the ticket.
Selections:
Léo Delibes : Lakmé–Viens, Mallikà…Sous le dôme épais “Flower Duet”; Donizetti, Gaetano : L’Elisir d’Amore–Una furtiva lagrima; Bizet, Georges : Les pêcheurs de perles–Au fond du temple saint; Bellini, Vincenzo : Norma–Casta diva; Verdi, Giuseppe : Don Carlos–Io morrò, ma lieto in core; Camille Saint-Saëns : Samson et Dalila, Op. 47–Mon coeur s’ouvre à ta voix; Verdi, Giuseppe : Rigoletto–Bella figlia dell’ amore [Quartet]; Verdi, Giuseppe : Luisa Miller–Oh! Fede nagar potessi; Puccini, Giacomo : La Bohème–O soave fanciulla; Chapi y Lorenta, Ruperto : Las hijas del Zebedeo–Carceleras; Bizet, Georges : Carmen–Votre toast je peu vous le rendre “Toreador Song”; Verdi, Giuseppe : La traviata–Libiamo ne’ lieti calici “Brindisi”
— Steven Ritter
