Customer Reviews

Strauss: Rosenkavalier [Blu-ray]

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

 

 

This opera is defined as "Komedie fur Musik", but it is far away from being a comedy, at least not in this production. The plot is a farce and Baron Ochs is a very annoying character and certainly not a funny one. But that is secondary, the two most important characters are Marschallin and Octavian, and in this production they are fabulous. Their development through the plot is what makes this opera great together with great music. The best of all is the last scene with Marschallin, Octavian and Sophie reflecting their souls into music. Far away from a comic situation, it is wonderfully realized with an almost static staging. Simply great!!
The singers are good and act their roles well, but Anne Schwanewilms stands-up from the crowd, a real treat to listen to her and see her act in this introspective role (Marschallin).
The staging is very well done and pleasing to watch. It is supposed to be set after WWII which makes some parts of the libretto seem awkward, but it does not distract from the plot and the music. This Blu-Ray disc is a joy to watch and to listen, although it appears that the sound is weak and you need to increase the volume much more than other similar discs. Strongly recommended.

When I first received this set, I put it on ASAP. My initial reaction was less than positive and before I wrote about my feelings I felt that it deserved a second hearing which it received this afternoon.

There were some negative reactions that were not cleared up. First off, the technical aspect. I should admit that I do not have high definition, blue ray, etc. However, at least 98% of my DVD's sound find, e.g., the sound level is satisfactory and the aural pleasure is usually satisfactory. With this performance, however, it is necessary to boost my sound level way beyond where I usually have it. I don't know whether or not this is a good or a bad thing. I don't think it would have detered me from purchasing the set. The only singer whose presence is less than pleasing is Kurt Rydl' Ochs. Rydl's voice is the right weight and his knowledge of the role beyond question. He is, alas, afflicted with a wobble whenever it is necessary to bring up the volumn. Obviously parlando passages are not affected as much and when he is not aiming for volumn the wobble disappears! The only recording I have with him is also Rosenkavlier from Dresden. Recorded around 1989 there is no problem. He is also Hagen in the Audi Gotterdammerung (dating from 1991,I think). There is evidence of it but the role while pivotal is not large and the rest of the singing in the cast is not of a high caliber so that he doesn't stand out.

As regards the staging, even though we are supposedly circa 1950, Vienna, the director would disappoint the Regie oriented. For the women the skirts are long--the Dior "new look"? Even so they are very chic and flattering. Ocktavian in uniform to present the rose could easily have been cast in a conventional production. The first act set is also one (with a few changes, additions) that would have fit in with the same traditional production. No, for "Konzept" you would have to go to the wretched Zurich production (ghastly) or the Carsen production coming from Salzburg; this production in terms of costuming appear to cover the first fifty years of the twentieth century. I find this produdtion fascinating and well sung. Carsen is consistent in his production. The Zurich set has some relatively good singing going for it but the "konzept" is simply irritating. This set does however boast the worst Italian Tenor; admittedly this is niggling point, but when so much is irritating it ends up being one more log to throw on the fire. Oh yes, the presentation of the rose is set in a kitchen!

But onto the singing in this set. The Marschallin is sung by Anne Schwanenwilms. This artist is indeed fortunate; she is blessed with looking good--an undertatement as she is the most beautiful Marie Theres since Schwarzkopf--but she posseses a voice of geat beauty and an intelligence that enables her to create a character with complexity. She also has an inner radiance--innig(?) that is luminous.Her first act monolgue is touching and radiant. The actual voice itself is one of great beauty, soft grained yet not without power. I would dearly love to hear her in Mozart, the Countess, and the Countess in Capriccio. Oddly she came to international noteriety when it was announced that Deborah Voigt (at ROH) was being replaced by Schwanenwilms: reason? the "little black dress"! This was preop bariatric surgery for Ms. Voigt and even though she knew about it for a year she chose to advertise it just prior to this run of Ariadne auf Naxos. Of course there was an immediate outrage for Voigt fans and I assume that Schwanenwilms knew of as well. I suppose Voigt was looking for some revenge, but this was not the right way.

The other major voice is the Ocktavian, Anka Vondung: another German beauty with a creamy warm and luscious voice. She is also in the most recent Cosi Fan Tutte from Glyndebourne--a highly recommended set. While I wish the role had not been co-opted by mezzos (my ideal singers in thie role are Jurinac and Seefried) she has a good top and and the "physique du role" that are ideal. She is an entry into an already crowded field; we are lucky to have so many good mezzos around.

The Sophie is (I assume) a Japanese, Maki Mori. Well sung with a bright, if small, voice.

The orchestra is the Dresdenstaatskappele, one of the great opera orchestras. It is interesting that they have chosen an Italian as their conductor and even though he was born in Genoa much of this work has occurred in central Europe. For those lucky enough to have surround sound having this orchestra is a plus. Even with my caveats I still have to give the set five stars on the basis of the Marschallin and Oktavian; others may not feel similarly inclined.

In November 2007 the Dresden State Opera spent several weeks in Japan and among the operas they presented was this production of Strauss's 'Der Rosenkavalier'. Certainly the company has a long association with the work, having given its première in 1911. Presented at NHK Hall in Tokyo, this performance does not stint on scenery or costumes; it is a full production complete with huge chorus and cast as well as the marvelous Semper Opera orchestra -- aka the Dresden Staatskapelle -- under its new music director Fabio Luisi. Most of the cast is not well known in the US, although the Marschallin -- lyric soprano Anne Schwanewilms -- is growing in renown; her first act Monolog is marvelous as is the final act Trio. She brings dignity and nobility to the part. She is perhaps the best Marschallin I've seen since Elisabeth Söderström. The Ochs, Kurt Rydl, has had a long and illustrious career, but he is a bit too crude in his acting and the voice no longer has its former luster. The Italian Singer is Roberto Saccà (I tend to think of him, rather, as Robert Secco); his aria in Act I is not one of the production's highlights. The pants-role of Octavian is portrayed by a mezzo I'd never heard of, Anke Vondung, and she is one of the real stars of this performance. She not only looks the part and has a luscious voice that she uses with musicality, she is also a marvelous actor; there were indeed times when I forgot she was a woman. Sophie is sung by a young and attractive soprano, Maki Mori. She acts well and has a lovely, well-controlled high soprano; she is outstanding both in the Presentation of the Rose Scene and in the final Trio and Duet. The many minor solo parts are nicely done. Special mention needs to be made of Elisabeth Wilke as the Italian schemer, Annina.

The production has lavish sets, props and costumes that are hard to pinpoint as to era. I kept thinking they were meant to be roughly contemporary with the opera's première in 1911, but there are a few anachronisms such as the flash-cube camera which surely can't be from earlier than the 1950s. None of this is distracting, however, and the stage direction by Uwe Eric Laufenberg is effective as well as traditional (a plus in my book). His handling of the huge cast in the levée scene is skillful as well as being hilarious. Lighting is effective without calling attention to itself.

Videography, as directed for this DVD by Eji Yoshida, is clear and ungimmicky. There are many close-ups of singers but they are never awkward or inapt. There is more than the usual amount of stage noise but it is easily ignored. The comedic elements are effectively emphasized, yet the dramatic moments, such as the Marschallin's graceful release of Octavian in the final scene, are done without schmaltz.

For a modern filming of a production of this most popular of Strauss's operas this DVD is, in my judgment, one to consider. There are, of course, classic Rosenkavalier DVDs to be had -- with Marschallins such as Kiri te Kanawa, Gwyneth Jones and Felicity Lott -- but they all begin to show their age.

2 DVDs; Running time: 212mins; Format: NTSC - 16:9; Sound: PCM Stereo, DD 5.1, DTS 5.1; Subtitles: English, German, French, Spanish, Japanese; Region code: 0 (worldwide)

Recommended.

Scott Morrison

Here's another case of close (to greatness) but no cigar. This often happens in filmed versions of opera, usually, these days, due to the ridiculousness of the director/producer's konzept. In the case of this Der Rosenkavalier from the forces of the Dresden State Opera on a visit to Japan, it is not the production that defeats greatness but the casting of one of the vital singers. Fortunately that singer is not the Marschallin or Oktavian, but of almost equal importance, the Sophie.

Mori Maki may have been a courteous concession to their Japanese hosts but the Dresden State Opera would have been wiser to have cast a more experienced singer in the part. Ms Maki is charming, however, and she has a pleasant voice with all the notes, alas that they are largely inaudible. She also is no actress. She bounces around the stage with a great big toothy smile on her face alternating with a childishly stagey petulance when Baron Ochs offends her innocent sensibilities, swinging a very large and annoying ponytail around all the while. It's very shallow, elementary stuff and is not satisfying, especially as she is in the presence of 4 great German singers who have made specialties of their roles all over Europe.

Anne Schwanewilms is the best Marschallin on film. Her acting, facial, bodily and vocally, is of a piece and she makes this complicated character come fully to life. She receives little help from the production as it is another one of those Rosenkavalier shows that falls into the category of what I now call 'the little black dress' genre of Straussian opera.

The action has been removed (yet again) from the 18th century Viennese salon, ala the Empress Marie Therese, to another mid-20th century Ruritanian kingdom that exists in an alternative universe; Wernicke did the same thing to the Baden-Baden production conducted by Thielemann and glittered up by Renée Fleming. Uwe Eric Laufenberg, the director, has kept all the relevant bits in but has modernized the society these creatures exist within. The von Faninals live in what appears to be the marble and red velvet lobby of a Ritz Hotel in old Savoy. The staging is excellent and the action during the overtures of each act is humorous and cleverly explanatory; the lighting is spectacular, the costumes are just okay.

There is something of the Chocolate Soldier about Oktavian's powder blue uniform which puts him out of sync with the moderne sets and costumes around him. But he is joined by Baron Och's band of merry morons in their lederhosen in being out of place from the Marschallin's black sheath chic. Sophie is dressed like a 15 year old school girl, not inapposite but not very effective either. Ms Maki's deficiencies (beyond the tossing ponytail and the toothy sunniness of her nature) kills her scenes with Vondung's ardent Oktavian stone dead. Sophie's costuming being the final pall on the situation. Elisabeth Wilke's Annina steals Act two away from everyone, which has to be a first in this opera. In fact, Ms Wilke, a good house mezzo in Dresden who has made recordings in small roles, receives the loudest, wildest ovation of all from the Japanese audience. Odd, really, until I remembered how Japanese homosexuals used to think that Walter Brennan was hot stuff.

All in all Uwe Eric Laufenberg (stage director) has done a credible job with the story. His first act is the most successful. There is also a great deal of wit that will pass you by if you aren't paying attention. Fortunately it's easy to pay attention because the singers in Act 1 are the best of the current lot of filmed singers in this particular opera. Anke Vondung is a superb Oktavian. A very subtle actress, like Schwanewilms, she looks every inch the swaggering young man and is also hilarious as Mariandl staggering around like a guy in high heels, which he is.

Kurt Rydl wobbles but his wobbling is almost an asset to his very funny performance as Ochs. He's got the notes and he's never strained, he just wobbles sometimes, almost to Cowardly Lion dimensions of wobbling. But he's a great comedian and is one of the best Ochses I've seen on film. He's certainly more effective than Franz Hawlata on both the Bychkov and Thielemann films of this work. He can't compete with Kurt Moll for Kleiber 2 (who can?) but he's the most convincing Ochs after Moll's.

Fabio Luisi has been quietly doing wonderful, steady work for almost 15 years. He's just finishing a notably successful stint with the Dresden Staatskapelle and this film is a testament to his outstanding years there. He is a great conductor and he is showing more and more how adept he is at 19th century German romanticism. He gets more out of the great moments in this film than does Thielemann at Baden-Baden and Bychkov with his Viennese forces. Only Kleiber, on film, surpasses Luisi in his Way with this difficult to conduct score.

There is no comparison between Anne Schwanewilmses Marschallin and the vain, smug effort turned in by Renée Fleming for Thielemann. There was much that was good about that film but Fleming is so fake and annoying that I gave the film away to a friend who is a die-hard Flemming; he loves it. I'm glad. I'll take this deeply moving performance by Schwanewilms and Vondung any time, in spite of the inferior Sophie, who isn't exactly bad, she is just way out of her league.

I place this film behind both traditional Carlos Kleiber productions and the slightly modernized Bychkov/Robert Carsen production. But I will watch this Der Rosenkavalier again and again for Schwanewilms, Vondung and Luisi.

Highly recommended to all lovers of Strauss and especially 'Der Rosenkavalier'.

This is a somewhat revised version of a review I posted at Amazon.uk. Musically this is a five star performance. My problem is the wholesale transfer of the production into the 20th century. It was simply unsuccessful (necessarily so) in my opinion. I give it only one star for that and hence my "average" is three stars.

It is hard to pinpoint the precise period that the production is trying to evoke. Another reviewer, Mr. Morrison (who is also cross-posted at amazon.uk) suggests 1911 (the date of the first performance) but admits that the use of modern cameras in a couple of scenes suggests a later date. For what it is worth, it clearly is set at a later date. My best guess is it is set no earlier than the 1950s. In addition to the 35mm cameras (invented in the mid-1930s, but surely the opera wasn't intended to be in the time of Hitler), the servant girls in the first act (including "Mirandel") are wearing black dresses with white aprons and hemlines at or above the knee-reminiscent of waitresses in tea shops in 1950s. Certainly Baron Ochs' servants dressed in lederhosen (looking like escapees from a yodeling school) would not have been imaginable in 1911.

The opera makes absolutely no sense set in the mid-20th century. After 1918 there was no Empress of Austria. Girls weren't banished to convents for disobeying their fathers (Faninal's threat to Sophie). Arranged marriages where neither the bride nor groom had ever seen each other no longer occurred (at least not in upper-class western society). The rigid hierarchy and perks of nobility had been severely degraded after World War I. Secret lovers of women of rank didn't show up for assignations in the 1950s carrying their swords. A Marschallin of the 1950s wouldn't go riding in the Prater in a horse drawn carriage let alone ask her lover to ride alongside on his horse. The concept of a "rosenkavalier" (if it ever existed) had certainly been abandoned in the post-World War II world. This is only a partial list of the incongruities attendant on setting this opera in near-modern times.

Aside from the severe mistake (in my view) of trying to update the time of the opera, I had problems with some other aspects of the production. Having Octavian disguise himself as Mirandel by wearing the aforementioned form-fitting knee-length waitress outfit made no sense. Did "he" shave his legs? "He" was in high heels and for the first few seconds "stumbled" in them but shortly thereafter "he" was walking around like he had worn them all "his" life! (In Act 3 "he" at least did wear a longer peasant outfit as Mirandel).

Act 3 I thought was the most problematic. It opened in almost complete darkness and one could not see very much at all of the preparations to trap Baron Ochs. Much of the stage was in the dark for most of the act with spotlighting on where only some of the action was. The entrance of the Marschallin (surely one of the most dramatic moments in all opera) was awkward--she came down a poorly lit stairway wearing a wide-brimmed hat which, part of the time, obscured her face and, but for the music, it could have been some stranger arriving in the room.

As noted at the outset the singing (and even the acting, within the limitations of the setting) was excellent. Anke Vondung--new to me at the time I first watched this DVD--was wonderfully boyish looking, perhaps the most so of any Octavian I have seen (though his uniform was ridiculous-a left-over from some obscure operetta production?). I recently saw Vondung as Julius Caesar in the Handel opera in Dresden and she was superb. (She will sing Octavian in San Diego in April 2010 with a wonderful cast. I'll be there.) Anne Schwanewilms is also excellent--she of fame (or notoriety) for being able to fit in the "little black dress" to be a replacement Ariadne for Deborah Voigt at Covent Garden a few years ago.

Dresden Semperoper recently produced an extraordinarily successful Ariadne auf Naxos set at the end of the 20th century. I gave it a five star review in part because nothing central to the plot depends on the period in which it is set; there are mega-rich boors today. (My favorable review was also, in part, because Sophie Koch is the best "Composer" I've ever seen). But, Semperoper's effort to "update" Der Rosenkavalier (where, alas, Rosenkavalier was first performed) is not of the same quality. The Dresden Julius Caesar that I refer to above was also updated to the 20th century, not entirely to my liking but invasions and dynastic struggles can occur in any century. There are other quite successful updatings of other operas, such as the Munich Rinaldo (which I've reviewed with praise).

A technical comment (and I didn't consider this in assigning the number of stars) I had to turn my TV volume to the max in order to enjoy the music--even then it was barely enough sound--I would have liked it louder. I don't know if it was my particular DVD or whether all of them have this defect. (With most DVDs, my TV is usually extremely loud even at half volume.) Apparently some other reviewers have had the same problem.

When the Americans interviewed Richard Strauss in 1945, about his Nazi affliations, he stated" I am the composer of Der Rosenkavalier".He knew that this work was truely great and surely everyone knew this to be so.Also,he thought, surely art was above politics? Most of the American troops in Germany probably prefered Bing Crosby.This recording is nearly as great as the Traditional Carlos Kleiber version, starring the soprano Gwyneth Jones.The scenery is modern and set in the period after the Second World war.It is faithful in its own manner to the usual stage settings. No doubt the traditionalists where opera is concerned, will find something to moan about. Without what they term " Eurotrash", opera would be a dying art. It is very much alive and causes arguments. That is what art is about, asking you to question, not be lazy and sit in an arm chair and not think.

The conductor Fabio Luisi, is the general music director of both the Semper opera and the Staatskapelle, Dresden. It was in the city that der Rosenkavalier was premiered in 1911. He is passionate and faithful to the now restored parts first used in 1911. He is Dresdens best kept secret. His DVDs of Verdi's Rigoletto and Beethoven Missa Solemnis, with Dresdens orchestras are among the best. His tempos in these two operas are often quick and passionate. The singers Anne Schwanewilms, who has a distinctive voice, right for this opera.She is probably, the best singer today able to truely bring alive this difficult role. I refuse to go down the road of comparing singers of yesteryear, like Lotte Lehmann et al,infering that there are no great singers today. The opera singers now, are as good as those in the past, even better, they can act. The Octavian Anke Vondung, fits the role like a silken glove, and as Sophie, Maki Mori is suited to the part. Not simply put there as has been suggested, because she is Japanese. For this recording was filmed at the NHK hall Tokyo, November 2007. Kurt Rydl as Baron Ochs, takes a modern look at the part and his voice is a strong as ever.The minor parts make up the opera and are well done. The truth of a recording of Der Rosenkavalier, is how you react to the great act three trio. I can truely say it is sublime.Richard Strauss sometimes was a composer like Puccini and Massenet,who could make you weep when the stage production works. This one surely does. Rush and buy it now.

Before buying this blu ray disc, I went through plenty of reviews written before this, and also commented on one. Yes, I too have the problem about updating the period to a time wherein the core of the plot becomes totally ridiculous. This one too suffers from that problem. One may not notice if the period is updated from say, the 17th century to the 19th or even 21st century if politics, traditions and general environment in which the opera is conceived is preserved. But imagine if, in a Mozart opera, you introduce steam engines or machine guns.... a not so ridiculous effort has been put into one Die Entfuhrung aus dem Serail blu ray disc is concerned, but even then it looks and seems ridiculous.

I had a peek at a trailer of this and fell for the singing and the orchestra. I bought it anyway, and do not really regret it now. Yes, there are those scenes where there are cameras on stage with flashes going off ... and if it had indeed been upped to just after the World War, then, I guess they should have had Marschallin ride on a Daimler Benz rather than in a horse carriage. Such incongruousness does jar.

BUT

WHAT A GREAT RENDITION - What a wonderful production musically and yes, visually too. Each and every character in the production just shone. This is my first Anke Vondung visual. She makes for one of the best Octavians I have ever seen, although she (he) could have been dressed a little more convincingly. The correct period costume would definitely have hidden her curves - unless of course she wanted to show them off anyway.

Anne Schwnewilms has done more than justice to her role as well as the music. Brilliant, Period.

I have always thought that Kurt Rydl would make an excellent Baron Ochs and he sure did... Reviewer Mr. Scott Morrison has accused him of being a little crude, but HEY!!!! Isn't that what he is supposed to be? Yes sir, his voice is not exactly as refined as it was say, a decade ago, but that only increases the aptness for this role even more. He achieves the boorish rustic touch this role is famous for, without his trying too hard...

Maki Mori... well, she sings Sophie to controlled perfection, but seems a little out of place. Maybe her being a star of Japan doing this role as a full blooded German among a bevy of European stars and a Star European Orchestra beaming and attracting a huge world audience could have made her a little self-conscious... and therefore I think she tried just too hard... Let me hasten to add here that Japanese Orchestras today are just as brilliant, and in a local environment, Mori would have been far more relaxed and natural. But I guess, a Japanese soloist performing before a Japanese audience in Tokyo would be looked forward to by the Japanese. I am quite certain that a newly established European or even an African star would feel the same when doing a role with an all Japanese or all Chinese cast in a production aimed at that market or country. All the same, her acting lets her down. There is no hint of sadness or revulsion when Ochs and Fanninal reprimand her... she seems pretty cool about how she is treated with a big smile most of the time. Sorry. Not my idea of what Sophie should be like.

Comparisons will be drawn with this production with countless others. But if one looks at only the recent releases with good clarity of sound and picture, perhaps the Renee Flemming/Koch/Damrau/Thieleman is the one to see. In spite of incongruities in the timeline and setting in both the productions, I like both of them and there is not much to choose from either as a matter of merit.

One star less for the needless updating of the Opera by 60 years.

This opera differs from earlier compositions by Verdi. Puccini etc in that, like Wagnerian works, the music flows without being truncated by spectacular arias. The success of the musical flow depends very much on the artistry and that is very very good in this production without reaching the heights of some others. Anne Schwanewilms performed nicely in the very long first act but was not as convincing to me as others have been in that role. However Kurt Rydl gave an outstanding performance acting and singing the pompous Baron, injecting great humour into this Strauss work. The other female roles were more successfully filled by Anke Vondung and Maki Mori with some beautiful duets and trios. The orchestra came through strongly, a little too much so relative to the singers making their efforts less impressive. In common with most of the Dresden Staatsopernchor productions the settings have been modernized and this does not seriously detract from the atmosphere although I did miss the more sumptuous costumes usually associated with this work. Having a woman play the role of a man is always challenging to the imagination but this is overcome, to some extent, in this opera when such beautiful music results. However it is not a work that is likely to be appreciated by those first dipping their toes into opera. The waltz is well known but otherwise the music would be unfamiliar and it is only past the long first act that the action and music become more appealing. In summary, a very enjoyable production I would not class this among the greats so recommended with caution.