Customer Reviews

Tchaikovsky: Eugene Onegin ~ Levine

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

 

 

When The Gramophone gave a lukewarm review to Levine's 1989 Eugene Onegin on DG and a stone rave to the 1993 set under Semyon Bychkov on Philips, I felt a healthy skepticism. How a magazine devoted to classical music listening could hire writers with tin ears is beyond me. I decided to investigate for myself. Without a doubt these are the two leading modern versions of Tchaikovsky's most famous opera, at least outside Russia itself. Ironically, considering that he has sniffed out many rarely heard Russian operas, Valery Gergiev wasn't given the chance to record Eugene Onegin, the second most famous Russian opera, after Boris Godunov; Philips gave the nod to Bychkov instead.

Levine/ Dresden: This is a non-Russian reading with a stellar international cast (British, Italian, American), replicating a great night at the Met in the late Eighties, only transferred to Dresden. The advantages of having world-class musicians at every level, from Levine's truly exceptional conducting to the Staatskapelle's gorgeous orchestral sound and the casting of Freni, Allen, and Shicoff, are unmatched by any rivals. And every singer is in fine voice. How anyone could rate this set below the highest is a mystery to me. Even the German chorus sounds totally Slavic, but then, it helps that 999 out of a thousand Western listeners don't know a syllable of Russian (beyond nyet and da). Our willingness to hear unidomatic singers is one of the reasons Onegin has been so often performaed in the West without benefit of Slavic voices.

What really matters is dramatic conviction, and here again the Levine set is unequalled outside Russia. Tchaikovsky's score is musically static compared to Verdi, with many intimate scenes and inward emotions. Melodies are spun out slowly over long stretches. Therefore, it's vital to have a conductor and singers who bring inner vibrancy to every bar. Levine, Freni, Shicoff, and Allen do just that. I couldn't tear myself away, which wasn't the case listening to the Bychkov set. The one minus cited by many critics has to do with Freni's age, but she's in great voice and frankly sounds as young as anyone could wish without being girlish. Her counterpart on the Bychkov set, Nuccia Focile, sounds fresher but is nowhere near the artist that Freni is. In sum, this is one of Levine's real (and surprising) triumphs on disc.

Bychkov/ Paris -- I am an admirer of Semyon Bychkov, particularly in his early days when he shot to prominence conducting the Berlin Phil. and, as here, the Orchestre de Paris, but his skillful management of the score is underpowereed and at times slack compared to Levine. The melodic line is allowed to languish, however prettily, too often. His orchestra is quite good--it's not recorded in the best sound by Philips--yet it lacks the special finesse and glow of the Dresden group.

The main reason that critics swooned over this set comes down to one name: Dmitri Hvorostovsky. Onegin is his signature role, as Boris Godunov was for Christoff, and he makes the most of it. With his matinee-idol looks, DH is a smash onstage; moreover, he bothers to act with his voice here (as he rarely does in Verdi, Mozart, or sometimes in Russian roles). With his perfeclty even vocal production and superb dramatic inflections, no better, more alluring hero can be imagined.

But the superiority of the singing stops there. Focile gives us a fine Tatyana, but her voice is rather edgy, especially as recorded by Philips. Neil Shicoff repeats his excellent Lensky (another signature role) from the Levine set, but he's notably less fresh and ardent. In fact, Shicoff provides a touchstone for comparison. Listen to any passage where he appears, and see if Levine doesn't bring out much the best in him compared to Bychkov.

Much more could be said about both these esteemed sets, yet this is one case where the dark horse wins the race. I plump for the Levine recording on all counts except Hvorostovsky. He has countless fans, and his Onegin proves that he deserves them. For overall musical pleasure, however, the Philips recording comes in second.

This opera is certainly not Boring, as one reviewer stated!
Eugene Onegin contains (in my mind) the most breathtaking flow of absolutely glorious melody in all of Opera. Perhaps Tschaikovsky only matched this in his ballet, The Nutcracker.
The performance here is quite fine. Especially notable is the exciting orchestral playing under the baton of James Levine, wonderfully Slavic and dramatic! Freni, as usual, is the most intelligent of lyrico-spinto sopranos, lightening her voice successfully as she does for all her "young" roles such as Manon Lescaut and Madama Butterfly. Hers may not be the most authentic sounding Russian accent, but it is so nice to have a beautiful Italian voice in such a role. Kudos to her for singing in so many different languages, very rare for an Italian soprano (like Tebaldi). Her voice has an appropriately more mature sound for the thrilling and heart breaking final scene, though I do slightly prefer the role sung by the excellent Kubiak on the Solti disc, with a better Russian accent.
Thomas Allen is a very fine Onegin, aptly dispassionate in the first two acts, rising in operatic passion and drama in the final scene with Tatyana. One oddity is that he omits the not-so-high final note of his act 1 arioso. E strano!
Neil Shicoff is wonderful in the heroic moments of Lensky's music, notably in the final outcry at the end of the act two party scene. He holds that high note forever! In the more intimate moments, the poetic and introverted Lenski is not as well displayed by Shicoff's voice. He cannot match the gorgeously sung performance of Stuart Burrows on the Solti set, even if Burrows is not as exciting in Lenski's outbursts in the party scene.
The rest of the cast is very well sung with Senechal beautifully caught, as he was many years earlier for Solti.
An excellent recording, but I still prefer the Solti set a bit more.... though it was my first love, and it's said that one's first love is always the most special. :)

Levine conducts a wonderful performance of Tschaikowsky's [this is the spelling on the cover of the CD album] greatest stage work. Freni is moving, believable and in beautiful voice. But the real kudos fall to the three mail leads. Burchuladze sings with all the feelings of an older man who cherishes the love of his younger wife; his aria sung as superbly as he does it says more than some complete operas. Thomas Allen sings with the ego of a foolish young man wise in the ways of the world but ignorant of what it's all about. His bitter regret in Act III sends chills up the spine. His rich tone just adds to the foolishness of his actions. Not since a Met matinee performance of this opera many years ago wilth Gedda as Lenksy has Kenky's" lament been so movingly sung, conveying the sad results of foolish pride and cultural madness. Never has his cries of "Kuda, kuda, kuda" made more imprint than Shicoff does it. To my western ears, this is a nonpareil Eugen Onegin. For a while it was hard to find. It deserves to be included in the DG "Originals" legendary recordings from the DG catalogue. The recording is too young for this I guess but it should be there anyway. A recording to cherish.

This is one the the very rare recordings of our days ,which will be one of your all time favorites.Everything in this recording is at its best:orchestra,singers,audio quality.Freni is one of the most passionate singers for that role,so is Allen.Not to mention the side roles,which has been set brilliant.The power and passion which strikes you in almost any scene is overwhelming.The finale scene in the last act is a sitting- on- the- edge -of -your -chair piece,brilliant,emotional.Levine has recorded one of his very finest interpretation ever.

This studio recording made in the early to mid 90's is a stunning account of Tchaikovsky's popular opera Eugene Onegin, despite several critics' comments regarding how this is not the right way to sing Onegin. The beauty of this recording lies in the marriage of both dramatic and beautiful singing. The men, in particular, are executing marvelous arias and dramatic scenas. True, the cast is not Russian and therefore may not have command of Russian diction, but this is alright with me, having never considered the Russian/Slavic accent a beautiful one. It's harsh, invective-style and plain ugly. However, in the hands of a few singers, such as these ones, Russian opera can sound wonderful. The only other truly grand Russian opera singer who sung with beauty and dramatic power was Galina Vishnevskaya, and if she sang Tatiana, it's a loss to us that she didn't record it. Mirella Freni as Tatiana is a revelation. Though she doesn't have the assets she had as a young singer- in the heady days of her career she could sing great Susannas, Violettas, Nanettas, Micaelas, Juliettes and even Queen Elisabeth Di Valois in Don Carlo- she sings with enormous passion. She boils over with ardor and yearning for Onegin. Never a more dramatic Tatiana are you ever to find. Freni sang this difficult, demanding role in the final days of her career. She learned to sing Tchaikovsky opera (other than Tatiana she also sang the heroine in Queen of Spades) from none other than the great Russian bass Nicolai Ghiurov, who was her husband prior to his death of cancer a few years ago. Mirella Freni's voice is an example of lyrico-spinto, eventhough in this recording, as in her 1991 Tosca with Domingo and Ramey, she sounds forced and the role evidently took a strain on her. However, the fact she had the guts to take on this role is evidence of her versatility as an artist.

Paschal Allen sings Eugene Onegin. His portrayal is at once that of a tragic, romantic figure. Enough has already been said about how he masterfully hits that sustained high note at the end of the Part Scene/Act. The great Neil Shicoff sings an expressive and dramatic Lensky. This is one of his best roles, and if you want to hear another superb performance of his check out his Eleazar from Halevy's La Juive. Paata Burchuladze was a versatile bass artist who could sing Verdi and, as you can plainly see, Russian opera. What a fine modern recording of Eugene Onegin this is. A more dramatic and beautiful one you are hard-pressed to find.

This excellently produced 1987 DG recording, conducted by James Levine with an energetic chorus and orchestra, can be recommended without hesitation to the newcomer to Tchaikovsky's Romantic EUGENE ONEGIN. The cast's principals were all leading exponents onstage of their roles in the opera. As heard here they have many virtues, few faults, and make a fine company.

Mirella Freni, fifty-three years old in 1987, is not always ideally steady. However, her voice had retained its radiance, and this quality goes a long way toward suggesting Tatiana's youth, innocence, and sensitivity. In the last act, Freni's mature artistry translates into Tatiana's newfound poise and self-assurance as the wife of Prince Gremin. Thomas Allen here lives up to his reputation for making difficult characters, like Eugene Onegin, interesting and ultimately sympathetic; and though his Onegin can be cold indeed - just listen to his interaction with Freni's Tatiana in Act I, scene three (end of CD #1) -- the voice itself is always warm, beautifully balanced, and easy on the ear. (Allen's Count Almaviva in the classic Solti LE NOZZE DI FIGARO is very like this Onegin: a cold characterization warmly sung.) Neil Schicoff, with his "nervy" but attractive tenor, embodies the hypersensitive Lensky. Though it is possible to imagine a more elegant or a more quietly melancholic interpretation of the poet, Schicoff's portrayal here is superb; he has made the role his own. This was an early recording for Anne Sofie von Otter. Her singing as Olga is a joy, her high mezzo completely devoid of the lugubriousness unsuitable for, yet too often heard in, the role of Tatiana's flighty sister. Paata Burchulaadze is an above-average Gremin with a full, resonant low F-sharp at the end of his aria. The wonderful French character tenor Michel Senechal sings Monsieur Triquet's couplets with charm and sweet tone. James Levine conducts a "big," weighty performance. While this approach is arguably inappropriate for such a delicate work as EUGENE ONEGIN, the results are undeniably exciting and emotional - reflecting, perhaps, Tchaikovsky's own suffering at the time of the opera's composition. (See Mark Swed's review in THE METROPOLITAN OPERA GUIDE TO RECORDED OPERA for more on Levine's approach.)

Based on Pushkin's poem Eugen Onegin inspired Tchaikovsky to write some of his best music and certainly his best opera,his own personal life became affected by his passion for this work leading him into a disastrous marriage and further depression. In Levine's glorious version the Dresden Staatskapelle play with wild Slavonic abandon,passionate and exciting,more so than in any other ,while it's true there are too few Russian singers on this recording which to my ears gives some cause for concern,the quality of singing is excellent,Thomas Allen's dark,virile baritone captures magnificently the cadishness of Onegin while Mirella Freni late in her career sings yearningly with beautiful golden tone,credibly girlish and passionate,Shicoff conveys admirably the nervous dreamy quality of Lenski and its good to hear the firm dark voice of the Georgian bass Paata Burchuladze in the part of Prince Gremin,all the other singers give great performances on this superlative CD.Very recommendable!!

Although Tchaikovsky is most famous for his orchestral music, he wrote a number of operas -- of which Eugene Onegin is probably the best known in the west. Eugene Onegin is a brilliant, vibrant opera which contains much beautiful music -- as one would expect from Tchaikovsky. The performances of both the singers and conductor on this set are quite good. If you like Tchaikovsky but are not familiar with his operas you should definitely give Eugene Onegin a hearing. The same is true if you like opera but are unfamiliar with Russian opera. Eugene Onegin should be in every opera lover's collection.

For years I thought I had good reasons for neglecting this set. True, I was always very happy with the old international Solti recording on Decca that introduced me to this most engaging of operas and I then acquired two other sets which I found equally satisfying: the classic 1955 Bolshoi version with Vishnevskaya (see my review) and the later (1984) Bolshoi recording with Mazurok, a favourite singer - but neither of these, although wholly authentic in a way that it would be unreasonable to expect Levine and co to achieve, is great sonically, and there is a always a case for hearing an opera in best sound - which this DG set most certainly is. That is just as well, as the Staatskapelle's playing is sensational. Levine makes Solti, of all conductors, sound almost tame by comparison; key moments such as the duel and the last scene of desperate farewell crackle with intensity and every singer is profoundly immersed in his character. It is the dramatic intensity of this recording which most attracts me; I started to listen, felt myself ineluctably drawn into the narrative and then listened straight through. "Eugene Onegin" is the most literate, wise and adult of operas, thanks to Tchaikovsky's highly intelligent and sensitive adaptation of Pushkin's verse; for once a composer did not find himself hobbled by limp couplets, absurd coincidences and tired conventions - it really is an opera for grown-ups.

Levine's cast really appreciates the psychological complexities of the tale and give it pathos and verismilitude. I had imagined that Freni would be too old for Tatyana, yet there is scarcely a trace of a beat in her voice despite her being 52 at the time of this recording; she is extraordinarily steady, expressive and vibrant, top notes never flap and that homogeneity and beauty of tone are as striking as ever. She was always good at portraying quiet desperation and is even finer here than she is in the even later (1991) "Pique Dame" with Hvorostovsky (see my review), where there are some incipient signs of wear in her voice - but not here. I have not always enjoyed Neil Schicoff's tight tenor, but I have never heard him sing with with more freedom and passion than he does here as Lensky; he is not as elegant as Stuart Burrows but certainly more involved. Likewise, Thomas Allen has never sounded better; his baritone is steadier and more beautiful than Weikl (who always had something of a bleat) and very much the equal of Hvosrostovsky - perhaps with a tad more elegance and disdain, too. (I wonder why he omits the climactic top F on "mechti" at the end of his Act One aria "Kogda bi zhizn domashnim krugom", however? Disappointing!) I have in the past found Anne Sofie von Otter bland; not so here as Pauline, although I have nonetheless heard more characterful assumptions of the role. The supporting cast is strong - amusing to hear Michel Sénéchal reprising Monsieur Triquet with just the same wit and elegance - and voice! - that he did for Solti so many years earlier. The chorus is wholly committed and Paata Burchuladze is in his element singing Russian in a role perfectly suited to his grave, sonorous tones.

Russian speakers might object to the internationally accented Russian here. I can't hear it; the singers enunciate very clearly and some, particularly Allen, sound exceptionally Slavonic to me - but what do I know? Freni was married to Russian speaking Bulgarian Nicolai Ghiaurov so must have had some intensive help and modern opera singers generally have to be at least competent linguists. The same objection can be levelled at the Solti set, but most of us don't care or know any better.

So I find my longstanding loyalty to Solti challenged - not before time - and recommend that you own at least one Russian performance and either this or the Solti set to get the best of both worlds.

Convincing and passionate the conducting of Levine. Surprising the goog russian of the non-russian singers: wonderful voices. Intense amd pefectly sung the air of Lensky and the air of the Tatiana's letter. Raccamanded to better appreciate the best Ciaikowsky.