Customer Reviews

Meyerbeer - L'Africaine / Arena, Domingo, Verrett, San Francisco Opera

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

 

 

This was a 1988 revival of a 1971 production (available on a live CD) that teamed Domingo (Vasco da Gama) and Verrett (Selika - both then very much in their prime) in Meyerbeer's discursive swan-song. Seventeen years on, they are more statuesque than sexy, but both give larger-than-life performances that contain moments of completely thrilling vocalism. That is the only way to do a piece like this - which is leisurely, structurally broken-backed (though the many cuts exacerbate this) and contrasts music of real prophetic power (Verdi certainly took several ideas over into 'Aida') with some of mind-numbing banality, that is almost unintentionally comic - but that was Meyerbeer's problem, no quality control and a short breathed melodic invention that shows him wanting next to the real masters of 19th century opera. However, this traditional and opulent production makes the best possible case for the piece and it is thoroughly enjoyable in a slightly camp way.

The casting is very strong, with the exception of Justino Diaz's Nelusko, which has strong presence but not much vocal allure. As Inez, Vasco da Gama's fiancee and rival for Shirley Verrett, Ruth Ann Swneson sings with great beauty and has impressive stage presence, very much holding her own in the confrontation with Verrett in the last act (precursor of Aida and Amneris here). Domingo is refulgent of tone and dramatically convincing, and he and Verrett strike sparks. She really comes into her own in one of the most preposterous mad-scenes in all opera, where she is slowly poisoned by the scent of a giant tree, contriving to make this dramatically truthful and even moving. Bravos all round for a good old-fashioned night at the opera.

I've got to say, I am a Meyerbeer fan, as well as a fan of Grand opera in general. When I listened to "Les Huguenots", it was for me a real revelation. Thus, I had high hopes for this opera, which is Meyerbeer's last work, his swan song. I was in no way disappointed, though this work has a very different feel to it than Les Huguenots. While Les Huguenots is a very somber story, with persecution, impossible love, religion, and martyrdom, L'Africaine is entirely a love story, and manages to be sometimes very intimistic, despite it's use of chorus and grandiose effects.

If I had to compare this work to any other work of the romantic era, I would compare it to Verdi's "Falstaff". Of course, both works have, esthetically, pretty much nothing in common (if this work is musically similar to a Verdian work, it is Aïda, for it uses similar orientalizing elements), it's only that L'Africaine seems to have a bit of Verdi's last opera's atmosphere. For both composers, throughout their lives, composed melodramatic love stories, more or less in the spirit of their time. While Verdi ends with a comedy where he makes fun of all his teary-eyed tragedies, Meyerbeer gives us a last tragedy, but seems to approach it more philosophically. As if, used to this atmosphere, he tries to find a moral to the ensemble of the operas he ever composed, giving the sentence it's period, the sundae it's cherry. He approaches the cast's misfortunes with a tender eye, instead of over-dramatizing, and gives the world a somewhat lighter work than his previous Grand operas, which doesn't stop him from giving a worthy rendition of the characters' feelings, and being pathetic when need be (especially at Selika's death scene). Aside from Don Pedro, who is all evil, and Ines, who is all good, all characters have good and bad points, and overall, the moral of this work is pretty much that love smiles on everyone, but only your luck decides wether it will make you happy or sad. This is pretty much the moral of all melodramas.

From a musical point of view, I have trouble finding the famous downsides other reviewers have pointed. Regarding the lyricism, it is maybe less direct than Verdi's, but equally expressiveand effective. The arias are more elegant, have a more french aesthetic. But it in no way means that his lyrical invention is inferior. As I said, this work is not as passionate as Les Huguenots. As for the famous "broken-backed" act formation, I just don't see what it may be about. This is not because an opera doesn't have the musical continuity of Wagner's lyrical dramas that it lacks good structure. After all, despite Meyerbeer's success, the music critics of his time wouldn't have acclaimed the work as they did if it wasn't well-built. For me, an act is ok from the moment the story and the action make sense.

Regarding the cast, everyone is very good. Placido Domingo is thoroughly chilling as the intrepid explorer. He shows well that back then, the aria "O paradis" was a party-stopper. Shirley Verrett sings her second-act sleep aria very well, and is very moving at the opera's end. All of the supporting cast is also top-notch. The famous "workhouse" sounds are mostly when the music is "piano", soft. Most of the time, however, I've had no problems with this recording. The Dolby digital sound is very ok.

Finally, if you must make a choice between this work or Les huguenots, I'd say this dvd may be a surer bet than the Australian dvd of "Les huguenots", since the cast here is of greater quality. However, Les huguenots has, I think, a "grander" subject, and it's emotional impact is greater, I feel, than L'Africaine. Still, I would recommend you to buy both instead of making a choice, since each one has such a great musical and dramatic value.

The singing of all the principals is excellent, especially Verrett, Domingo and Swenson. The production of this complex, multi-scene work is fine, the conducting a little leaden. But all in all, it is surely the best available recording (3 other live performances on CD) of an archetypal mid-19th century cultural experience (with all its non-politically correct moments). Wonderful, if very carefully constructed melodic lines--this is where Verdi's great Don Carlos comes from. An essential operatic DVD.

Both from the musical and scenical points of view, this is a great performance of Meyerbeer's opera with the elegant and beautiful Shirley Verrett, the powerful Domingo and Ruth Ann Swenson.
However I should have prefered to have much less noise in the recording. Sometimes I am tempted to turn off the DVD for it sound more like a workshop than an opera house. This is a minus five star performance of the sound engineers, in an otherwise great opera recording.

This is a excellent performance of a very good opera. The only complaint I have on this DVD is that the background noise from the live performance was not adequately removed. In spite of that, I would highly recommend it.

Unfortunately, that seems to be an open question in 2012. On the side of optimism, there are scores of operas being staged from coast to coast, not just in the "major" opera houses but by festivals, universities, smaller community theaters, experimental companies, semi-professional and amateurs. On the less optimistic side, there has been rather dismal news from well-established companies on both coasts. The New York City Opera, the company where so many 'stars' first shined, is virtually defunct; it has fled from Lincoln Center and its alternate-venue 2012 season is on the edge of cancellation. The San Francisco Opera, which produced the sumptuous "L'Africaine" of this DVD in the mid 1990s, has been losing money faster than my or your stock portfolio: $1.5 million, $1,8 million, and $2.4 million over the last three seasons. The management has announced a retrenchment, a coming season with one less production and fewer performances. Plans are based on a season weighted toward "warhorses": 12 performances each of Rigoletto and Tosca, 9 of Tales of Hoffman with Natalie Dessay, 7 each of Lohegrin and Cosi Fan Tutte, and 6 of Bellini's Capulets and Montagues starring Joyce di Donato. It's wildly hoped that such a season of standards will carry the cost of two contemporary works; a revival of Jake Heggie's Moby Dick and a premiere of Mark Adamo's The Gospel of Mary Magdalene. Alas, anyone who has attended an opera in SF in recent years has observed the "graying" of the audience, a shock for European vsitors who are accustomed to sharing the aisles with lots of younger opera lovers. But it's worse, mes amis, than it looks; the SF Opera has a generous policy of selling "senior rush" tickets the morning of each performance, the best seats available for $30, with a limit of two per senior. The lines are always long but seldom does anyone go home ticketless. That sea of gray heads in the orchestra is not paying the cost of production, even with regular prices over $200 a seat.

This staging of Meyerbeer's "L'Africaine" -- a love-triangle melodrama based with hardly any regard for historical fact on the life of the explorer Vasco da Gama -- was filmed and recorded for TV, directed for video by the ubiquitous Brian Large. The visual quality is way below current standards of HDTV, and the sound recording is feeble and poorly balanced. On the other hand, this was still in the era of stage-front stand-and-sing BIG voices, voices than could quell any upstart orchestra. Placido Domingo, in the role of Vasco, was at the apex of his dramatic vocal projection; his singing was a robust as his manly still-slender appearance. Ruth Ann Swenson was young svelte, lovely, and vocally angelic in this production; her opening aria alone was worth the price of a 1997 ticket. Shirley Verrett sang the title role, as an "East Indian Queen" carried to Portugal as a slave. Even with puny sound recording technology -- what sounds like a single microphone in the third row of the Grand Tier -- the singing of these three is still breathtakingly beautiful.

The music per se? Giacomo Meyebeer (Jakob Liebmann Beer 1791-1864) doesn't get a lot of respect these days, but to my ears this score sounds 'pretty darn good'. It's less bombastic and much less schmaltzy than most of Verdi's tragedies. Yes, it's transparent and lightly colored instrumentally, but it never resounds with one affect while the drama calls for another. That's the grave flaw in many of Verdi's operas. It's prettier than early Puccini. Is that a fault? Honestly, people, it's just entertainment! It's a vehicle for glorious singing, and since the singing IS glorious, it gets my five stars.

I've seen no staging of Meyerbeer's operas and this come as a surprise. Shirley is imposing in every scene and Domingo, well is Domingo.
I do not know if Vasco de Gama adventure has been retelled by other composer.

This is a somewhat mediocre opera given a great production that employs some superb talent. Domingo, Verrett and Swenson are in fine voice, the production values are top-notch, but the material is second-rate and terribly old-fashioned. (At times one can practically sense the singers trying awfully hard to keep a straight face.) This is neither Meyerbeer's nor Scribe's finest hour: a hokey, historically inaccurate (of course) mess which fails both musically and dramatically. (The emotionally fickle tenor [i.e. one of the stars!] disappears 3/4s of the way through, never to be heard from again. How bizarre is that?) Everyone involved acquits themselves admirably, but what is fun and colorful for the first few acts quickly becomes tiresome and dull. Whereas it's great to see the little-filmed Verrett and Swenson, there are certainly better opportunities to see Domingo in DVDs of finer operas. A curiosity, certainly...but not worth full price.

The music was sweet, but the only discernible tune that I noticed was Ruth Ann Swenson's, her quoting what her lover sang to her before he went to sea, and even that tune was not particularly defined. I sigh only watched the 1st act, from this I inferred that the rest of the thing was going to be more of the same and I wasn't willing to sit through another 2 hours and 28 minutes to find out whether I was wrong. This is not Meyerbeer's customary coloratura fare, and I was disappointed and edgy with boredom. Domingo of course was wonderful & very frenetic and energetic in his character's enthusiasm. Everyone did a wonderful job with his singing and acting. Verrett sang a little but strangely did not take a curtain call after the 1st act. I wonder why. The music was sweet, pleasant but came across to me as one long recitative, which I always find tedious however sweet. I will either trash this DVD or save it for a few years and give it a second chance, as a rule I like Meyerbeer, though never as well as I like Donizetti. The plot was making me angry when I shut it off. The open-minded tolerance of the clergy does that to me.