Customer Reviews

Offenbach: Les Contes d'Hoffmann/The Tales of Hoffmann

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Domingo, Sutherland, Bacquier and Tourangeau star in this lively and very French recording of "Hoffmann". Richard Bonynge, the conductor, follows what he considered at the time to be the most "Offenbach-ish" version of the opera, one in which a little new music is added, other music is cleaned up, other music left alone and the recitatives cut out all together. The cast is entirely French except for Domingo and Sutherland, so it is a delightful experience to hear Frenchies speak French in true Opera-Comique style.

Domingo as Hoffmann leaves nothing to be desired. He was quite young when this recording was made, and has no trouble at all with the high tessitura of the part. He sings here as I have rarely heard him sing before and with such careful attention to the music and his role that he makes Hoffmann come alive -- something I have not witnessed any other Hoffmann to do.

Sutherland, singing the four heroines, tackles an extremely difficult part with her trademark agility. Nothing seems too difficult for her: her coloratura passages as Olympia shimmer and sparkle in the midst of their preciseness, and she sings Giulietta, the courtesan, with powerful conviction.

However, I believe it is in the "Antonia" act that she sings the best. The quality of the music in this act is far above the others, for some reason, and Sutherland takes advantage of this at every moment. Every note is a polished jewel; intengrity, musicality and convicted singing blend beautifully and effortlessly. She *becomes* Antonia, and sings the highly complex passages as if it were no more difficult than rolling out of bed.

Gabriel Bacquier as the four villians, and Hugette Tourangeau as Nicklausse/The Muse are perfectly casted in their roles. Tourangeau was especially good. Her creamy, dark mezzo voice is easy to fall in love with.

There is no weak link in this CD. The chorus is excellent, the minor characters fresh and exciting...the list goes on and on. This album is most definitely worth your time and money.

This recording is Bonynge's attempt at a reconstruction of Offenbach's uncompleted swan song. While recent discoveries have rendered this edition obsolete, it remains a truly beautiful recording. I personally prefer 1 soprano as the 4 heroines to mirror the baritone as the 4 villains (why have one without the structural & psychological strength of the other?) Sutherland is at the top of her form here. I have always loved the breathless abandon she brings to the 'Antonia' act trio. Most amazing is her dialogue delivery, for those who insist she cannot act. Domingo is likewise exellent, there is true passion in his readings and his voice had that youthful luster. Bacquier is stunning in his 4 characterizations, all different and beautifully rendered. The dialogue was excellently coached and rips along at a breakneck pace. I much prefer this to the endlessly dull recitatives of the Choudens edition. I have heard many Hoffman's over the years, including the recent and more accurate reconstructions, but this recording remains my favorite. (However, I also recommend the recent recording with Alagana.)

Especially with Maestro Bonynge's willingness to delve into the history books and records, and sort through the years of abuse Offenbach's only opera went through(all the others...Orphée aux Enfers, La Périchole and the like were operettas). The reason for all the mixup, and the need to find the REAL Contes d'Hoffmann was due to the fact that the composer wasn't there to see his precious opera performed(he died a few months before opening night). In fact, he was only able to create an orchestrated version of the prologue and first act, and a piano score to the rest of the opera, that was later carefully developed according to Offenbach's dream. However, due to many cuts and edits of stage directors and people's tastes-of-the-day, but mainly the director of the Opéra-Comique, Carvalho, the entire score was worked over to form other people's wants. Not the views of poor Offenbach who couldn't defend his opera.

Enough of my babbling though, the half-inch libretto/booklet will tell you all about Offenbach's life, this work, and Bonynge's work with it. And not to mention it's in German, French, and English. So is the libretto.

As for the recording itself, it's considered a classic. And rightfully so, because Bonynge has made wise decisions with the score, whether big or small, to create the most pleasing and entertaining version of the opera, while correcting some of the long-adhered amendments people had made along the way. The main reason I was attracted to this recording was my love of Dame Joan Sutherland though. I knew that this was an opera that absolutely showcased a soprano and all her abilities... drama, coloratura, and ultimately a beautiful voice. And who better at the time to choose than La Stupenda? She certainly doesn't disappoint her devoted fans such as I. A breathtaking voice, at the height of Sutherland's prime attacks each of the roles and makes them all, separate, tragic individuals. This is the compounding point to having one soprano sing all the roles...it's quite a feat. The maestro puts it best when he says, "It is imperative that the four soprano roles be played by the same singer -- Olympia, Giulietta, and Antonia are all facets of the Hoffmann's unattainable beloved Stella. Similarly Lindorf, Coppélius, Dapertutto and Miracle must be given to one singer -- these are all manifestations of evil in different forms." I couldn't agree more.

All the other performers do such a great job in their roles, especially Gabriel Bacquier. He's vengeful, nasty, and downright sinister... I enjoyed his playing of the four villains very much. Huguette Tourangeau does a wonderful job playing La Muse and Nicklausse as well. Almost all the rest of the supporting cast is French as well, and makes for a truly French performance, except... for the man playing Hoffmann himself, Placido Domingo. I'm sorry, but just as with the great Pavarotti, the Italian just butchers the French. But besides the repugnant diction, Domingo IS Hoffman. Tragically fated by the stars be a forelorn and unlucky lover. And this comes from a person who really doesn't like Domingo at all. I actually found myself liking him here.

And of course, Bonynge doesn't disappoint as a conductor. There are operas that he's conducted where people think he just didn't quite get it right. But here, other people agree with me, that he conducts excellently. Overall, the best out there at the time it was created.

The best competition to this version is the new Nagano version with restorations galore. Yet still more clues are being unearthed, and there is probably more repairing of the score to be done. And this version uses four different ladies, which takes away some of the uniqueness and greatness of this opera. I think it's best to wait around for another version that hopefully will encompass all of Offenbach's intentions for the opera(I'm hoping it will be with Bonynge and maybe Sumi Jo as the four ladies). For now though, this is in my opinion the best version available, with a great cast all singing their best.

Excuse my lengthiness, but I hope I've been enlightening. Enjoy.

I can`t think of any other records of this enthralling opera by Offenbach, that is, in its ENTIRETY, better than this version. It has it all: beauty, humor,drama etc. And this is comming out in such a brilliant way here, so you`ll get totaly thrilled.
Especially Domingo is enormous, maybe unsurpassed in this role and Sutherland unbelievable in all her different characters.
Go for it!

This Hoffman is my favorite French opera. It features two of the greatest singers in their divine prime, Sutherland and Domingo. Wow, what a glorious sound they make. And what a tour de force they manage to accomplish.
The Sill's version is also very good. But it is tame next to this one. The singing is just not nearly as glorious. Compare Sill's Olympia especially is evidence that she is not nearly the quintessential coloratura as Sutherland. Sutherland's "Doll Song" is amazing. Its display of coloratura is unprecedented and incomparable. Domingo's vocal splendor is equally phenomenal.
This is an essential recording. No opera collection is complete without it.

This recording was wonderful - Crystal clear sound and lovely soloists. It really brought out the flavor and humor of the opera.

First, I'd like to correct something said by a previous reviewer. This recording was made in August 1971, not 1976. Joan Sutherland is in at least as good of voice as she was in her 1971 recordings of Lucia di Lammermoor and Rigoletto. Domingo is in glorious, luscious voice. Any criticism of his work here is ridiculous. Bacquier does a fine job as the bass, though his high note in the "Diamond Aria" is less than first-rate. Sutherland is in her best vocal and dramatic form as the third heroine, Antonia. I would recommend this over the Sills recording because, even though the sopranos are evenly matched, Domingo is a far better tenor than Burrows, and the overrall "sound" of the recording is also much better.

I first saw Les Contes d'Hoffmann (The Tales of Hoffmann) at the Metropolitan Opera in NYC. It was sensational. The score is elegant, pleasant, and beautifully written. The performances were excellent, Alan Glassman, George Cordes, and 3 different actresses playing the 3 heroines. Shortly after I bought this recording and was amazed. This is now my favorite operetta and I think Domingo, Sutherland, and Bacquier do complete justice to Offenbach's full-bodied songs I prize this CD above all my other Operas and Musicals and consider it the finest recording in existence.

This recording of Offenbach's masterpiece is a delight from start to finish. The role of Hoffmann has been a Placido Domingo specialty for decades. This recording came early in his career, and it is interesting to hear how, even at this early stage, his characteristic approach to the role was already in place. It is also a great pleasure to be able to hear Domingo's voice at its absolute freshest. (For his definitive Hoffmann, however, check out the Covent Garden video that was recorded in 1981.) I completely disagree with the previous reviewer who finds Joan Sutherland's singing undramatic. In Olympia's song, Sutherland is not just "showing off vocally," she is using her extraordinary coloratura ability to depict a doll that keeps winding down. Listen attentively and you'll hear this. Listen also to how sensuous Sutherland's tone is in the Giulietta act, and how, as Antonia, her voice "dazzles" as she sings "Quelle flamme eblouit mes yeux?" -- What fire is dazzling my eyes?". On the evidence of this recording (and of many others, I might add), Sutherland was a singer who knew how to convey drama through the sound of her voice. (And she is at her most dramatic in the dialogue here!). Gabriel Bacquier characterizes well as the four villians, although I could imagine a more vocally brilliant rendition of Dappertutto's "Diamond Aria." Richard Bonynge leads the excellent orchestra with a light and humorous touch. The recorded sound is spacious, detailed, and crystal-clear, creating a very theatrical atmostphere.

This is a good recording of The Tales of Hoffman. Domingo gives a very good performance in this recording, his French much finer than in his Bizet Carmen recording. Still, his dictions suffers slightly. However, Joan Sutherland succeeds in giving a good performance as some of Hoffman's heroines. Very recommended for an opera library, but if you want the greatest Hoffman on record, look for Elisabeth Schwarzkopf's version with Nicolai Gedda as her partner tenor. That is the supreme record of Hoffman. The next one would be Sill's version