Customer Reviews

Handel: Rodelinda

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

 

 

The last opera of Handel's "Heroic opera cycle" (the other two being Gulio Cesare, and Tamerlano), is Rodelinda, a beautiful opera about a man that has been betrayed, and a faithful wife refusing, Betarido's brother. The music is beautiful. I am a very serious Handel purist. Since this opera recording was in english, I did not hope it to be good, and it was not good. The recording is horrible, the sound has a persistent fuzz to it, and the opera is not complete. In addition, you cannot hear Dame Joan without being distracted by the fuzz. And lastly, the conducter conducts some of the numbers to fast, and cuts the da-capo's. By the way, amazon.com, what ever happened to the recording of Rodelinda conducted by Kraemer? Don't buy this recording of this opera you will regret it. Once Amazon.com re-issues the Rodelinda by Kraemer, get is as soon as possible. I am dissapointed.

This historical, but disputable concert, was apparently recorded by one of the spectators, not enjoying a very good seat, using a low-end reel to reel recorder sitting on his laptop. You hear cough, feet, noises, and eventually singing with a sub-FM quality. You benefit from the entire lenght of applauses, uncut. I think it is just a shame that a record company released such thing.

I fully agree with the two other reviewers. Do NOT buy this recording. You will regret it. I had to beg the classical music store where I bought it to take it back. It was such a shamefully poor recording I couldn't stand it (and I love Handel). The sound of people coughing and clearing their throats in the audience is very annoying. The recording quality is abysmal. You can't get past the recording to enjoy the music. Buyer beware!

dear all

this is a great document ! Sutherland fresh and splendid, Tourangeau fulminant, Tappy exciting and all the other are also great.
This is a private - inhouse recording! of course you hear ambient-noises - but the music-world would be much poorer, if we would not have all this treasures preserved by people in the audiance with big tape-recorders on their lap at that time !! If you want perfect sound, never buy those recordings ! Go and buy a (mostly boring) studio-production without neightbours and without feet ! But you will never hear what you hear on this release! Even Sutherlands studio recording of Rodelinda is by far, not the same ! This one touches the heart.

First of all: The sound isn't that bad. Yes, the balance favors the audience, but the voices are cleanly caught and there is almost no surface noise. I can't help but wonder if previous reviewers were thinking of the 1959 Rodelinda in English with Sutherland. The sound of that recording requires a lot of patience, but is worth it for the divine singing.

The present recording does not offer as distinguished a cast, but is still an acceptable record of an under-recorded Handel opera. Sutherland didn't enter the studio to record this opera until 1985, and the only review I've read of it is scathing. Here she caught a couple years before the end of her prime. The freshness she had in 1959 is gone, but this is still a commanding and beautiful performance.

Tourangeau sings with her usual distinction. Elkins, though always reliable, is no patch on Janet Baker in the earlier live recording. The men sing well enough, if without the individuality of the ladies. Tenor Eric Tappy hits a sour note in his first aria but is otherwise fine.

Period performance buffs should stay away. Bonynge makes little effort to turn this into an authentic experience, and the sung text is far from complete.

On the whole, only fans of Sutherland will be satisfied with this recording. But even then my first recommendation is the earlier recording, in which Joan Sutherland truly deserves the title "La Stupenda."

Die Sutherland ist einfach spitze und auch wenn die Aufnahme technisch armselig ist, gibt es nichts Schöneres von Händel. Wen die Aufnahme technisch stört, sollte sich beispielsweise die alten Aufnahmen von Sinatra anhören. Kein anderes Werk von Händel läuft so häufig bei mir.