Customer Reviews

Abduction From the Seraglio

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(0)
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Menuhin's set of `The Abduction from the Seraglio' in English stemmed directly from a staged production at the 1967 Bath festival, of which Menuhin was then the musical director. He makes the performance sparkle from first to last, favoring brisk, well-lifted allegros, so that the fun of the piece comes over vividly. The acting of the principle singers is exceptionally fine too, with Noel Mangin superb as Osmin, commandingly comic yet believable too, not least when in duo with Fryatt, an outstanding Pedrillo. Their drinking duet is hilarious as well as musically sparkling. Mangin sings magnificently, firm and dark over the widest register. Nicolai Gedda, brought in as an international star, fully lives up to expectation, giving on of his finest Mozart performances, poised and stylish, his English accent flawless. The American soprano, Dobbs, similarly brought in as a star, uses her bright, agile coloratura brilliantly. Jennifer Eddy makes and enchanting Blonde, perfect as a defiant English girl.
When is come to style, it is the Menuhin touch which makes all the difference: his pointing of the music is equivalently subtle and refined, besides anticipating the scale of later period performances. There is a generous-but not too generous-allocation of dialogue, and as it is separately banded on CD it can be dispensed with if one wants the music alone/ for the score is absolutely complete, with all Belmont's arias included and the full text given in booklet.

'The Abduction from the Seraglio is 'a triumph of love and magnanimity over vindictiveness, covetousness, hate, prejudice and violence.'
Fanfare, USA

'John Fryatt's Pedrillo might well be the best recorded. It is rare to hear a tenor in a comprimario role sing with this kind of tonal beauty and musical skill. His second act aria becomes a highlight in this performance.' American record guide

'Gedda's still in excellent form, the voice clean and perfectly focussed, the breath control superb, the manner dignified and ardent. His Constanza is the American soprano Mattiwilda Dobbs. She sang at Glyndebourne and Covent Garden in the 50's and had eight seasons at the Met, but she recorded very little. She singings beautifully in this set.

CHAN 3081
26 October 2006

The Cast

David Kelsey, speaking part - Pasha Selim
Mattiwilda Dobbs, soprano - Constanza
Jenifer Eddy, soprano - Blonda
Nicolai Gedda, tenor - Belmonte
John Fryatt, tenor - Pedrillo
Noel Mangin, bass - Osmin
Ambrosian Singers
The Bath Festival Orchestra
Yehudi Menuhin -conductor

Recorded in Abbey Road Studios, London
6-15 October & 22 December 1967
Producer - Ronald Kinloch Anderson
Sound engineer - Neville Boyling
Dialogue production - Wendy Toye

I grew up with this recording and did not know until today that it was available on CD. It was recorded when I was 16 and my guess is that I acquired it fairly soon after. I was already an experienced opera goer, I lived in Boston area and got to attend all of Sarah Caldwell's dress rehearsals and some of the performances as well. I got to hear Sutherland, Horne, Gedda (not just in this recording, but live), Sills many times, Donald Gramm and other wonderful singers, so I had ears for good singing already. I adored this recording! The fact that it was in English made it just more wonderful for me because I could understand everything better. My memory tells me that Gedda sang excellently, Matwilda Dobbs quite well if a little under powered (she was really on the soubrette side. She sang Oscar in Ballo and Gilda which in those days was cast with light voices). My memory also suggests that the other reviewers are correct that the Osmin, Noel Mangin sang well over the whole range, which many Osmins do not. I simply can not wait to re acquint myself with this performance, and I hope it is as good as I remember and the other reviewers suggest.