Customer Reviews

Meyerbeer in Italy: Opera Excerpts

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This CD is a compilation of selections from Opera Rara's complete recording of Il Crociato (several tracks) and the 1811-1820 and 1821-1830 volumes in the `100 Years of Italian Opera' series. As a survey of all six of Meyerbeer's early operas written in Italy, it is unique in the catalogue. But really at full-price it was an unfortunate decision to cut the texts and translations. Given that these are not Meyerbeer's best works, something for specialist collectors only.

This is a wonderful compilation. As is the case with many "extracts offerings", I wasn't sure there'd be enough listening time for each opera. But, there is enough - for a nice taste of each anyway.

Il Crociato fares best with more than a half an hours time. The Semiramide is beautifully sung, as is the trio from Margherita d'Anjou and I definitely prefer the twelve and a half minutes of this L'Esule di Granata to the recent highlights CD that Opera Rara offers of the same opera. (The cast here is far superior.)

This immersion into early Meyerbeer lasts just over an hour. It is beautifully sung, well conducted and very likely to leave you wanting more.

Even though the 6 operas represented here are not Meyerbeer's best, they are important documents to understand the musical career of the most important figure of French XIX Century opera. The selections are definitely some of the most impressive moments of these early operas: the first traces of Meyerbeer's genius in creating the "Grand French opera" formula.
We can see how Italian opera played a definite part in Meyerbeer's musical style, from the fist of these operas to the last, Il Crociato in Egitto (which is pretty much a "grand" Italian opera). Rossini was a great influence in the music of Meyerbeer (Rossini once even referred to these 6 operas as "the Rossini grand operas"). You can see this in the musical style and singing technique of the arias and ensembles.
It was after "Il Crociato" that Rossini invited him to Paris to present this work at the Theatre Italianne: Meyerbeer was now on his way to Paris. And we know the rest of the story.
His years working in Italy were then determinant on his training as composer, something totally unknown to me. I guess you can compare this with the importance that Gluck's early Italian operas had for his mature work.