Customer Reviews

Shostakovich - Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk

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

 

 

Following Rostropovich's pioneering effort from the latter days of LP, Shostakovich's second (and last) opera seems to finally reach its deserved status amongst the 20th century's masterpieces in the genre. It is an outstanding work, perhaps among the composer's finest, along with the 1st violin concerto, the Michelangelo Sonnets, the 6th and 10th symphonies, the preludes and fugues for piano, the late quartets or that jewel of an opera, "The Nose". The contrast with his own watered-down version (Katerina Ismailova) which I own on Melodia LP's purchased long ago at Collett's in London's Charing Cross Rd. (they kind of specialised in selling records from the iron courtain countries) is revelatory and would explain Stalin's disgust with this original version (funny to notice how prudish dictators can be, no? no remorse from brutally having people killed or exiled to Siberia, but scandalised at Mme Ismailova's sexual frolics; it is said Hitler was quite prudish too, as is Castro, were said to be Saddam Hussein and Kim il Sung or others of their kind) and later satisfaction with the composer's 5th symphony.

Visually the production is stunning, a winner in all respects and I must congratulate Opus Arte for making it avaliable on DVD. I knew of producer Kusej's work only from reference, as not understanding german I have not attended any of his theatre productions. I haven't seen the work's EMI release on DVD of a Liceu staging, but found Gramophone's review of it rather demolishing (I don't know if they have turned their eyes yet to this Opus Arte Amsterdam version, but I should expect nothing short of a most favourable review from them).

Musically, there are two real "coups de foudre": one is of course the superlative playing of the Amsterdam Concertgebouw Orchestra, and the other the choosing of Mariss Jansons to conduct the work. Janson's key formative years at Leningrad under Mravinsky's wing assure us of a direct link not only to the composer via who was his most conspicuous and trusted collaborator, but also to the actual environment, politically and artistically, that hovered over the composer whilst composing this opera, which not only Mravinsky knew all too well but was a key player as he was able not only to survive it but also to excel within it. Singers-wise, top honours must go of course to Ms Westbroek, who sorts out an enormous task not only in vocal terms but also as an actress and stage presence (and she's also quite an attractive woman, if only she shedded a handful of kilos ...). She fully deserves every single bit of applause she gets in the courtain calls after the work's end. Ventris does not get an especially good comment in Gramophone's review of EMI's Liceu release, but as I haven't seen that one as I mentioned, I can't say if in the Amsterdam production he was better (or worse), I will only say that, from what I saw and heard in this Opus Arte video at least, he makes a powerful impersonation of what must be one of the most lustful characters in the history of opera, and he does so with unquestionable results; he not only does look the part, but sings it remarkably well as well. I did find the other important male singers rather low in volume, perhaps more than they should, the two Ismailovs as well as the drunken priest; they are in a league certainly different from Ms Westbroek's. And let's not leave aside the chorus's outstanding contribution.

So in all, a most remarkable result, with the utterly realistic sound one has come to expect from the house and the very apt and interesting supplementary material that has contributed to place Opus Arte above most other publishers of opera on DVD (and miles away from US publishers such as Image or Kultur, whose in this respect very mediocre products tend to reach our shelves this side of the Atlantic more often than Europe-based ones like Opus Arte, Bel Air Classiques or Arthaus Musik).

This is now my third DVD of Lady Macbeth, an opera which I would rank among the very best of all 20th century operas and of all Russian operas. Its strong points are very strong indeed. The musical performance as led by Mariss Jansons is outstanding and there are no disturbingly weak links among the singers/actors. All leading performers deserve the wild applause they receive at the opera's end. And the sound on this DVD is magnificent. There is only one possible fly in the ointment and that is one's ability (or inability) to go along with Martn Kusej's stage direction. Sex and murder were done well and only in the last act - set in some kind of asylum or jail - did what was going on stage (people wandering around in their underwear) seem at odds with what was going on in the opera itself (prisoners marching off to Siberia). Otherwise I do not think the production gets in the way of the drama. With repeated listening - and this production deserves repeated listening - I think its musical strengths will win out over any questions.

After listening to Rostropovich's EMI rendition I knew I would take an interest in a stage production. The cover of this DVD version is a little misleading and so are some of the critical remarks: This show isn't about a complete sex act so much as it is about the tragedy of the misdirection of a passion. The whole production is startlingly abstract in sets and action; the glass box as the setting for Katerina's home was an outstanding idea; the ghosts walking vertically was a startling addendum; the final scenes realize what I had until then considered an impossible barrier to staging: abjection of the prisoners, the desertion of Katerina by Sergei, the murder of Sonya (and how else could you depict a drowning on stage?), the last lamentations floating over the sentries and their dogs. Really, really cathartic.

There are many reasons to purchase this DVD of Shostakovitch's masterpiece opera, not the least of which is the astonishing performance by Eva-Maria Westbroek as Katerina. Katerina is a truly punishing role in it's vocal and dramatic demands, and Westbroek sails through them with unparalled virtuosity. She is a beautiful woman with an enormous voice of glorious range and color, capable of anything she asks of it. The part of Katerina is often taken by sopranos who can only scream their way through the part, ie, Nadine Secunde, Maria Ewing. I saw Malfitano at the Met several years ago, and she was quite good, but one feared for her vocal resources. Westbroek never resorts to screaming, and indeed, she truly sings this terribly difficult score with consumate ease, and tremendous passion. She is on an equal par with Vishneskaya in this role, and Westbroek certainly has the finer instrument. Westbroek makes Katerina a truly sympathetic character, and her demise is enormously poignant, with the closeups of Westbroek's tear stained face. I am eager to see her career advance, because she is truly a major, major talent. If I had unlimited resources I would follow her around the globe to hear her sing. The rest of the cast is quite good too. Christopher Ventris is a fine Sergey, singing the taxing role especially well. He is, however, not quite the "stud" visually that the libretto paints him to be. The secondary princpals acquit themselves well enough, and special mention must be given to Carole Wilson's extremely brave effort in the rape scene. The Concertgebouw, under Marris Jansons is superb, and the orchestral colors and textures he draws from the orchestra, particularly in the interludes are wonderful. The documentary feature illuminates his approach to the score, and the parallels to the operas of Berg, ie, the compositional devices Shostakovitch and Berg both utilize (passacaglia, fugue, etc) remind us that these were composers of extraordinary skill. My reservations for the production have to do with the direction, and especially the choice of the director to revise the ending, as is so typical of the current trend of "regie-theater" today. Much of the direction does work, and the glass house in which Katerina is encaged is used to good effect for the most part, but it does pose its limitations in its lack of basic furnishings essential to a complete staging. This is a lurid opera, and this production certainly captures that aspect of the libretto. As the director states in the documentary, it's all about "sex and power." However, the repetition of princiapls, secondaries and chorus in various states of undress becomes gimmicky and distracting, especially in the final prison scene, which should depict utter bleakness. The final act was simply too busy in its ideas and actions, and the liberties taken with the libretto. All in all, this is an incredible realization of Shostakovitch's brilliant score.

This is one of my favourite productions. Not only is it a fabulous opera containing a lot of interesting, psychological material, but Martin Kusej knows how to put it on stage and focus the spotlight on the dark side of human nature, so that it almost hurts. This DVD also contains a lot of additional features including extensive interviews and pictured synopsis, which justifies the price.

One of my problems with this production is the revisionist ending.
Now that there are no longer satellite countries, I guess since this is updated to modern times, the treck to Siberia in the last scene would be unbelievable but the ending is jarring for all the wrong reasons.

The staging is effective but odd. The first half taking place within a glass enclosed box obviously representing Katerina's entrapment as the bride of a impotent man. Wooden walls line the back of the stage and the wings. The production is stark. A huge wow for Eva-Marie Westbroek as Katerina. She has a voice similar to the young Eva Marton, which is saying a lot. It's a huge sound and beautiful too. Ventris repeats his Sergei here. His voice is growing darker but he's looking bloated and fat. What is a sexy and dangerous looking performance in the other DVD version, becomes seedy here.

The orchestra and chorus dominate this performance. I wanted to love this, the opera is one of my favorites, but it's too odd and gimickey for my tastes.

There's also a tracking problem on the second DVD. It's not my player because this does not happen with the other DVDs that were apart of my order.

One has to admire the courage of Shostakovich ( or wonder at his folly ) for creating such a damning indictment of Stalin's police state just as the purges were reaching their climax. This lends a historical dimension to what is without doubt one of the richest operas in the literary and musical domains in the entire repertoire, modern or ancient. Other reviewers have done justice to the plot and the large cast of ( mostly ) sleazy characters around whom it is built to display the greed, envy and lust that pervade the core of the human spirit. It is a bleak commentary on humanity, as deserved in our day as in the time of the Great Dictator, and no one emerges with their reputation untarnished ( that is, if they are still alive at the end ), yet the impact upon the receptive listener and viewer is of exhiliration rather than despair. This excitement is largely the product of the magnificent orchestral work performed by Jansons and the Concertgebouw, backed up by the powerful chorus and the fine camera work that captures these extended moments in all their ugly majesty. Think of Francis Bacon's geatest canvasses and you will understand where I am coming from. Director Martin Kusej has cleverly updated the decor to our own times, and set the action in a series of spare cubes and rectangles that pare down the action to its essentials, and except for the dying moments, lends piercing clarity to the compex and busy activity on stage. This comment leads, in fact, to the finale itself, for Kusej has been accused of changing the ending. I do not see it that way. Katrina's preceding soliloquy expresses her wish for death by drowning, and nothing that follows rules out the fulfillment of that wish. Nor does the libretto. It seems that Kusej is trying to convey the image of rising water as the stage clears to reveal the dead, so that the drowning is suggested surrealistically as it has to be, given the fact that the constraints of this set allow no room for the river that one can imagine borders their temporary stopping place. It is how Salvador Dali might have done it if he had landed the job of building the sets.

Back to the music. I consider this the finest orchestral writing that the composer ever produced, his major symphonies notwithstanding. No one who is timid about modern opera need be terrified by anything in this work. They will not find much to hum about, but the intense congruity of words with music pushes the plot forward and exposes the characters down to their very skeletons. Nothing so revealing is to be found in the superficially more entertaining pre- 20th Century operas, although late Wagner and Verdi come close. Its model is Berg's Wozzeck, that other towering musical drama of our time (no, I am not forgetting Peter Grimes, number 3 on my list ). The singing and acting are hardly distinguishable and could not have been better overall. Ventris' sexy performance has elicited some harsh words, but for me he gives a convincing interpretation of the role: after all, he is not singing Parsifal here as he has done with great distinction elsewhere. Westerbroek, as all seem to agree, dominates the cast. She compellingly projects the unsavoury appetites of the heroine, as well as the remorse that they bring. Visually and vocally she has an Olympian quality that doubtless accounts for her success in Wagnerian roles. Five cheers and five stars for a remarkable DVD, that stimulates, satisfies, and provokes in equal measures.