Customer Reviews

Gilbert & Sullivan: Iolanthe

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This recording from 1960 was the second that John Reed had made. His rendition of the Lord Chancellor is a delight, although he was not fully 'rounded' in performance as in later years. This is a part that requires a mature experience. The downside being that this can also mean loss of control in diction, as was the case in his later recording of 1974. The rest of the cast are brilliant, the chorus superb and the whole performance under Isidore Godfrey magnificent. The inclusion of the use of the Grenadier Guards for the entrance of the Peers is well worth the purchase. They were usually used in performance when the company performed in London, dating a tradition from the original plan of Gilbert in his 1882 production. Of all the recordings made by the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company, especially since the late 1940's, this is quite the best. The dialogue is quite a joy and the scene from act 2, between Tolloller and Mountarat, affectionately known as the 'Thomas and George' scene is perfection itself. How we all miss such definitive renditions of the parts and with such style.

This CD is much better than any other Iolanthe CD because it also has the dailogue. I found it great for myself as a performer who will appear in this play to listen to it so that I can be better aware of what is occuring so I know how to react to certain incidences. Anyone who loves Gilbert and Sullivan will love the complicated Act 1 Finale by far is one of the longest Finales written by G & S. The Invocation of Iolanthe is also quite dramatic. I hope you enjoy this CD as much as I, a seasoned Gilbert and Sullivan performer have enjoyed this awesome work of Gilbert and Sullivan.

Never mind that this work has some of the most beautiful music ever composed for any musical format, it is Gilbert's lifelong battle against human stupidity (is there any other kind?)that makes this libretto so incredibly timely. The second act opens with a sentry commenting on how party loyalties make it unnecessary for politicians to have any brains at all when it comes to voting; and this is followed soon after by a song about how those who govern do best when they do not meddle "in matters which they do not understand." Good advice for bureaucrats who know how to run hospitals, schools, and private behavior. For once, you might not want to program out the dialogue...which is not given separate tracking so you could not do it anyway. A real treat for those who never heard IOLANTHE and the only recording with the complete dialogue.

Mikado, Pirates, and Pinafore are the most POPULAR of the G&S operettas. Musically, however, the BEST three are Ruddigore, Iolanthe, and Yeomen. If you want to enjoy a total theatre experience one of the first three mentioned might be best (it would certainly be more likely). For a good listen at home - the last three, every time.

This recording is a little dated, technically and performance wise - get hold of a libretto if you can, as the words are not always quite as crystal clear as they might be, and missing any of them would really be too bad.

Until a really good modern recording replaces it - still the best recording of Iolanthe, which means one of the very best operetta recordings you can get!

SOURCE: September 1960 studio recording made in London.

SOUND: When new, the series of G&S recordings that included this "Iolanthe" was generally regarded as being at the leading edge of commercial analogue stereo. The digital remastering carried out in the late 1990s was generally successful and the sound on these CDs will be perfectly satisfactory to anyone but hyper-finicky audiophiles.

CAST: Lord Chancellor - John Reed (patter baritone); Earl Mountararat - Donald Adams (bass-baritone); Earl Tolloller - Thomas Round (tenor); Private Willis - Kenneth Sandford (bass-baritone); Strephon - Alan Styler (baritone); Queen of the Fairies - Gillian Knight (mezzo-soprano); Iolanthe - Yvonne Newman (mezzo-soprano); Celia - Jennifer Toye (soprano); Leila - Pauline Wales (soprano); Fleta - Dawn Bradshaw (speaking part); Phyllis - Mary Sansom (soprano). CONDUCTOR: Isadore Godfrey with the D'Oyly Carte Opera Chorus, the New Symphony Orchestra of London and the Band of the Grenadier Guards.

TEXT: With one significant exception, the text of this performance is the standard text adopted by the D'Oyly Carte Company early in the Twentieth Century and performed by them until the company's demise at the hands of the penny-pinching Thatcher government. The standard text contains one major cut from the opening night's score, a song for Strephon called "Fold Your Flapping Wings." The song was not recorded here, although it has been restored in the 1991 recording of the (quite different) New D'Oyly Carte Opera Company.

The exception to the standard text in this performance arises from the fact that the original production of "Iolanthe" was offered to the London audience in an ultra-sumptuous production. That production had a full military brass band to play for the spectacular entrance of the peers in Act One. The D'Oyly Carte touring companies, on the other hand, playing year after year throughout the length and breadth of Britain and Ireland, could not afford the luxury of a second band. For them, Sullivan thriftily provided a version of the entrance music that could be played by the pick-up orchestras playing in the pits of provincial theaters. The touring version became the standard version and was played on all prior recordings.

It should be noted that this set was recorded at a time when the record producers elected to break with the long-established practice of omitting spoken words. The labels on both the old Lp album and the earlier version of the CD case proudly proclaimed "Complete with dialogue" and so it was and is. You are free to regard this fact as a welcome addition or as an insufferable nuisance.

COMMENTARY: This recording captures the D'Oyly Carte Opera Company--the production company founded by Gilbert, Sullivan and their producer, Richard D'Oyly Carte--in the height of its 1960s form. At its core were stars still held fondly in the hearts of many G&S afficionados worldwide: John Reed, Kenneth Sandford, Thomas Round, Donald Adams and Gillian Knight. It was certainly a very sound cast and, naturally, the most experienced in the world in the G&S repertory.

This is a performance in the classic D'Oyly Carte tradition which stretches directly back to the days when genial Sullivan conducted from the pit of the Savoy Theatre and glowering Gilbert was the stage director.

The recordings of the original DCOC can be divided into four strata: the electrical recordings of the late 1920s and early 1930s, the mono recordings of the 1950s, the first stereo recordings of the 1960s and the second stereo recordings of the 1970s. Fans debate with considerable heat about the respective merits of the three earlier strata. (Nobody pays much attention to the final one.) The 1960s cast certainly has its adherents. Purely as a matter of personal taste, I prefer the earlier ones, but they are recorded in the "historic" sound not beloved by ears accustomed to the digital era.

This "Iolanthe" is more brisk than the contemporary and rival version conducted by Sir Malcolm Sargent. However the whole Sargent series has been widely criticized from the outset as being unnecessarily lugubrious. What is recorded here is a fair presentation of the tempo of the actual DCOC stage production as I remember it. It is about the same as the 1950s version and, if anything, a bit slower than the 1930s version.

Overall, a good stereo version of "Iolanthe" displaying the absolutely authentic performing tradition for the works of Gilbert and Sullivan.

Five stars.

"Iolanthe" isn't nearly as famous as "The Pirates of Penzance" or "The Mikado" or "HMS Pinafore" but this Gilbert and Sullivan Musical Play is a masterpiece of equal merit. It is a satire on the English Class System. And it is VERY funny! For example there is track 8 entitled, "Loudly let the trumpet bray". On that track the snobbish Lords are singing to the audience: "Bow ye tradesmen, bow ye masses"...telling all us "masses" and "tradesmen" to bow down to them! The thing that makes this really funny is that these snobbish Lords are a bunch of "silly fellows" who are actually much inferior to "the masses" of their fellow citizens whom they are ordering to bow down to them!

There is much clever and charming dialogue and many clever and tuneful songs. You'll enjoy this CD and you'll look forward to sometime in the future when you can see this charming masterpiece performed on stage in person. Until then, you'll cherish the CD! Email:boland7214@aol.

Unlike many of the G&S CD's--this one includes the 'book' or spoken lines. A fine recording with first-class talent (Donald Adams, Gillian Knight).

Iolanthe is the story of a lad who is the result of the union between a fairy and a mortal. Inheriting the traits of his parents he is half fairy and half human---quite literally human from the waist down and fairy from the waist up. The internal civil war between his fairy brain and mortal extremities leads to endless merriment.

The music is simply beautiful; the lyrics are hilarious satire. What a treat for G&S fans. I'm so glad I bought this!

A wonderful bit of ridiculousness courtesy of Gilbert and Sullivan. This recording is great, and includes the intermediary dialogue. If you like some of the more mainstream Gilbert and Sullivan musicals, such as Pirates of Penzance or the Mikado, then you'll enjoy this one. The story involves a young man named Strephon who is half fairy (from the waist up) and who is in love with Phyllis, a ward in Chancery. Although there are some refrences to British parliament which many American's (myself included) are probably missing out on, it remains an enjoyable and whimsical operetta with a classic happy ending in typical topsy-turvy Gilbert and Sullivan stye.

i ordered this last month and received the mikado instead. i did not return the mikado as i gave it as a gift. please insure that i ger iolanthe this time