Customer Reviews

Gluck - Iphigénie en Tauride / S. Graham · Groves · Hampson · Rouillon · Mozarteum · Bolton

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First,of course,the singing, or maybe I should say vocal acting:all the cast are totally committed to their roles and I only wish I could have been present at the performance.
It is refreshing to hear such a vivid recording in this often too scholarly field. Graham and Hampson are intense and passionate without sacrificing any of the vocal line or considerable beauty of their singing.
The recording manages to convey the drama of the performance and is the next best thing to actually being there.

More please!!

I was fortunate to seeing Susan Graham live in San Franciso last night in an absolute stunning production of Iphigenie. Pure bliss. If you happen to be in SF go see it! There's two more dates

Gluck's masterpiece opera 'Iphigénie en Tauride' has long been admired as a work of extraordinary beauty of melody and of operatic drama, but for some reason stage performances in this country have been rare. That is all the more reason to purchase this live recording from the 2000 Salzburg Festival with a stellar cast and conductor. The set of CDs is well worth the investment.

Though the music world has long acknowledged Susan Graham vocally as one of the finest mezzo soprano artists on the recital and operatic stages of today, moving comfortably from Baroque to Contemporary operas with complete ease and taking on comedic roles with as much finesse as she honors the tragic roles, her ascension in the ranks as one of the finest Singing Actresses continues to grow. The San Francisco Opera recently produced a stunningly original production of Iphigénie en Tauride with Susan Graham in the title role, Paul Groves as Pylade (a role he inhabits on this recording) and Bo Skovhus as Oreste (instead of Thomas Hampson on this release). So for those fortunate enough to have seen and heard Graham and Groves in that production, here is a gentle reprise of that glowing experience.

Ivor Bolton conducts the Salzburg Mozart Orchestra with a keen ear for the period sound from Gluck's era. His pacing of the drama is beyond reproach and his obvious collaborative communication with each of the singers is at all times evident. Susan Graham is in fine form for this live recording and is matched by Thomas Hampson's richly sung Oreste and Paul Groves' elegant Pylade. The chorus is excellent (in San Francisco's production the chorus was very wisely placed in the orchestra pit for a completely cohesive sound with the instruments under Patrick Summers' astute direction) and each of the minor roles is well cast.

Perhaps 'Iphigénie en Tauride' will now gain the theatrical exposure it deserves. It is certainly one of the finest operas in the literature as this recording so aptly acknowledges. Highly Recommended. Grady Harp, June 07

I also saw the Susan Graham performance in San Francisco earlier this year. It was stupendous. It should have been recorded on DVD as the entire production blew me away. This performance also has Thomas Hampson, who is the next-best-thing to Fischer-Dieskau. A must have!