Customer Reviews

Verdi: La Forza del Destino

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After the legendary Florence Festival Forza performances (1953) under the baton of the neglected giant Dimitri Mitropoulos, people at Decca knew they had the perfect artists to create a masterful Forza Del Destino. This set gives us an idea of the kind of voices one could hear in the '50s: Tebaldi, Del Monaco, Bastianini, Simionato, Siepi, Corena. Everyone was at her/his peak in 1955 when this set was recorded. Notice also that they are all Italians and this certainly is a plus when it comes to vibrato and Italian accent.

There are not enough superlatives to compliment Renata Tebaldi's Leonora di Vargas. Even her opponents agree that this was one of her greatest roles in which she was unrivalled. The sheer power and clarity of her singing teaches us how opera is supposed to sound! Verdi (and all opera composers) has injected the drama in the music but you need an opera singer of this calibre to sing the drama. Just listen to "Son giunta!", "Pace, Pace" or any other Tebaldi moment!

Del Monaco is heard here in one of his famous roles. He rarely sings piano on this set but his fierce sound is welcome in this heavy tenor role. He lacks Bergonzi's style but on the other hand, Bergonzi doesn't have Del Monaco's ringing voice. Giulietta Simionato once again proves that she was an excellent Verdi mezzo. As for Bastianini, Siepi and Corena they are everything one could ask for. NO OTHER Forza Del Destino recording has such an ideal group of performers!

Mollinari-Pradelli was not the best conductor of his time but I find his conducting very pleasant; he doesn't try to overpower his singers and allows them to shine. A Serafin or a Mitropoulos would have been ideal but still the result is excellent. And what a great surprise that this '55 set has STEREO sound!

The only other studio Forza Del Destino I warmly recommend is the EMI Gardelli set with Bergonzi, Arroyo, Capuccilli and Raimondi: a less powerful performance with great singing (if not as enchanting as the one heard here). If you are looking for Verdi perfection go for the '53 live Florence Festival Forza Del Destino (Tebaldi, Del Monaco, Barbieri, Protti - Mitropoulos) or get the 1958 DVD Forza with Tebaldi and Corelli.

If I had to name a favorite Verdi opera, it would have to
be his La forza del destino. This opera moves me like no
other among his works. I realize that some others -
Falstaff, Don Carlo, Otello - are considered to have a
greater unity between text and music. But Forza has the
strongest emotional pull. The story may be pure
opera-illogico of the soap variety, but the emotions
expressed within the dilemmas of the characters are
powerful, moving. It is among the gloomiest of Verdi's
operas, tense, brooding, morbid. Classic themes of thwarted
love and revenge. But there's also spirit, quirkiness
(Preziosilla, Melitone), and perhaps most significantly for
me, profound spirituality. The second scene in the second
act is one of the most inspired from Verdi, one I go back
to with eager familiarity. The "Madre, Madre pietosa
Vergine" is a peerless expression of pleading for mercy and
devotional fervor, with the monks' backing chorus creating
a truly haunting effect. Nothing is more beautiful than
that section beginning "Ah! que'sublimi cantici..." (and we
are treated again later to the equally ravishing "La
Vergine degli angeli"). The long duet with Guardiano and
Leonora is an amazing piece of writing, one of the best
musical "dialogues" for soprano and bass; usually these
"father/child" duets are boring, but this scene,
imaginative, urgent and detailed, is powerful drama. One
passage I love in this is the prelude to "Il santo nome di
Dio signore," where there is a long solo for organ; it
achieves pure magic with a lone violin, on high, intoning
the "Deh, non m'abbandonar" melody. The contrast between
the organ and violin produces an ethereal, eerie effect.
This is by far some of the most raptly spiritual music
Verdi ever wrote. And, of course, there's "Pace, pace mio
Dio."

Abetting my enjoyment of the opera is the mid-fifties
recording of it put out by Decca/London, conducted by
Francesco Molinari-Pradelli. It may not be the most "of
the theater" performance of the opera, but it is one of the
greatest overall casts ever assembled on a Verdi recording.
At any time. At least I think so. Here's who we get:
Renata Tebaldi, Giulietta Simoonato, Mario del Monaco,
Ettore Bastianini, Cesare Siepi and Fernando Corena. All
huge voices, all healthy, robust; true Verdi voices,
stylists. All in their resplendent prime. All ITALIAN.
Nothing else like that for ages. And ages.

In my estimation, Leonora was Tebaldi's best Verdi role,
and perhaps the best Leonora of the last several decades.
The voice and manner sound so ineffably, authentically
"right." Don't tell me she's under the pitch in some of
the highest notes: IT DOESN'T MATTER. Pedigreed Verdi
singing of this nature is extinct. The full-bodied
softness, the exquisite diction, the comet-like soaring -
it doesn't get better than this. Her "Madre, madre
pietosa Vergine" is one I listen to the most. The rhythmic
urgency, the fullness of tone - and she sounds as if she's
really talking to God. And I feel; only a devout Roman
Catholic could possibly understand the religious piety of
Leonora, and it's especially important here. With Verdi
and Tebaldi, you Believe. You better believe it.

Hearing del Monaco and Bastianini just effortlessly plunge
their hearts and voices in their music and duets is the
sweetest sound to my ears: they fence as only Italian
uomini can do, and moreover, exhibit not a whiff of stress
doing so. Immense, powerful sounds. Bastianini's "Urna
fatale" is close to being my favorite rendition of the
aria; there is a beautifully imparted bittersweetness to
the voice, a smarting irony that goes right to the heart.
Del Monaco is not all just his usual glorious fire and
brass; "O, tu che in seno agli angeli" has as much
sensitivity as you could want - and are going to get - from
a "confident" Italian tenor.

Simionato rips through an ungrateful killer of a role with
utter nonchalance and great spirit; "Al suon del tamburo"
and "Rataplan"are both a bitch of pieces to sing,
requiring the mezzo to skip up and down nimbly, but
Simionato just laughs merrily through it all. She makes it
sound like a piece of cake.

Siepi delivers the best sung Guardiano of any on record
that I know of. So many magical sections come to mind
immediately: "Venite fidente alla croce...", "Sull'alba il
piede all'eremo", "Il santo nome di Dio signore", "Non
imprecare umiliati" ~~ no other Guardiano has a voice so
beautifully resonant, so well placed, and such consummate
ease with this complex music. So many basses rumble
portentously through this music so that they sound like
gassy, juddering old farts, but Siepi just caresses the ear
constantly, and not just with the sound. He traverses
easily through the difficult writing; listen to how he
manages in the final trio the line `d'ira e furor
sacrilego, non proferir parola; vedi, vedi quest'angiol
vola al trono del Signor.' This section zips up and down
the voice's range, and requires supreme breath control, and
security at either ends of the range. Most basses are
gasping for leverage here, but not Siepi. In fact, he sings
this role with such ease, he's often accused of sounding
uninvolved. Ha. Listen to the way he and Corena, in their
long and legendary partnership, spark each other in the
duet with Melitone and Guardiano.

Others versions I like: the rediscovered 1958 Napoli
performance on video (but Christoff is an unidiomatic major
blot for me). Tebaldi even greater. The young Corelli.
Bastianini. Oralia Dominguez. A priceless document.
(Leontyne is in the 1984 MET performance).

The 1953 Mitropoulos from Firenze. Tebaldi ferociously
intense. Siepi again great. Protti so-so. Barbieri,
Barbieri. Del monaco more sensitive than on Decca.
Mitropoulos - slow tempi, but dramatic.

This magnificent set which comprises of four Italian principles is the best recorded FORZA available. Although the competition is pretty stiff when this opera was not difficult to cast, I always come back to this recording. And if you love Tebaldi, this recording is a must have.

If you assembled Renata Tebaldi, Mario Del Monaco, Ettore Bastianini, Giulietta Simionato, and Cesare Siepi, gave them a telephone book and asked them to sing, it would sound great. Put these five performers together and give them the score of LA FORZA DEL DESTINO, and you have a masterpiece and a set that will have a treasured place in any recording library. Each of the principals is in top voice, with each soloist working together and creating a cast that is a true ensemble. The many choral sections of the opera (the crowds, friars, soldiers, etc.) are mesmerizing and the direction of conductor Francesco Molinari-Pradelli pulls the recording together.

I purchased this recording without hearing it, knowing that the pairing of Del Monaco and Tebaldi nearly guaranteed a performance I would enjoy. I also knew that this recording was made when Decca's quality recordings in opera was just about a guarantee. I was correct on both counts, yet I also found a few surprises when I listened to it, especially in Ettore Bastianini's Don Carlo and Giulietta Simionato (my favorite Verdi mezzo) as Preziosilla.

Other reviewers have said they believe this is the greatest FORZA. One even claims it is the greatest opera recording of all time. While I will not so far as to claim that it is the greatest all time recording, it is a great set. In comparison with other sets available, I would select this set. I only own one other copy of FORZA with Leontyne Price under the direction of Thomas Schippers (another great set), and I have heard the other RCA set with a good performance by Price (which is still great) and a youthful and strong Placido Domingo(who is not so youthful but still quite strong). Fortunately there are many good choices available, but for me, the Decca set is the recording of choice. I will also say it is the most "Italian" of the recordings, recorded at a time when being an Italian in opera meant quality performances of Italian works.

Enjoy!!!

This recording of "La Forza del Destino" is good as far as it goes. The 1955 stereo sound is clear and vivid (London/Decca championed the use of stereo very early in the game), and the cast of singers is legendary. For many years, this was the "Forza del Destino" recording of choice prior to the subsequent versions on RCA Victor starring Leontyne Price. Even today, there are many who continue to cling to this extremely well prepared recording of Verdi's long and involved opera. The problem, for me anyway, regarding this recording is that the conductor, Molinari-Pradelli, completely fails to generate the real excitement (as Tullio Serafin does on the 1954 EMI recording with Maria Callas, whose contribution is also legendary) which should ignite this particular opera. Thus the real satisfaction comes from the singers. Tebaldi, a few blasting top B's apart, sings reasonably well (easily surpassing anyone who would try to attempt this role today) ---- but she is a pale imitation of herself when compared to her work two years earlier on the live Dimitri Mitropolous version (which explodes with passion) from the 1953 Florence May Festival (available right here at Amazon), where her singing is possibly the greatest she ever preserved on any recorded document. Mario del Monaco, also in the Mitropolous cast, can be heard to better advantage there than here, where he sounds loud, unsubtle, and occasionally unpleasant. Plainly, their singing on the Mitropoulos set spoils one with respect to their work here. The other singers here are all excellent - Ettore Bastianini on this recording is probably better than Aldo Protti is on the Mitropoulos set, and Simionato and Siepi are also excellent. Yes, this is a good representation of this opera, but it's not the ultimate. For that you need to acquire the Mitropoulos live performance. And for anyone who REALLY enjoys hunting, there's a live 1952 Metropolitan Opera broadcast with the legendary prime Zinka Milanov (to my ears the only equal of Tebaldi on the Mitropoulos set) partnered by Richard Tucker and Leonard Warren.

It rarely gets more golden than this. Despite the legendary status of a 1953 La Forza from Florence conducted by the great Dmitri Mitropoulos, when Decca assembled the same cast in Rome in 1955, they produced a treasure. This is clearly one of a kind, almost on the order of Callas's Tosca from about the same time, but unlike EMI, which was late to record in stereo, by 1955 Decca had ahcieved vivid, clear sonics without any distortion and only the slightest metallic edge to Tebaldi's soprano when she sang at her loudest and highest.

Leonora was one of her best roles, and Del Monaco her greatest partner. His voice is huge, steely, and unsubtle, but he's thrilling and more the artist than Corelli, another blaster. Siminato, Bastianini, Siepi, and Corena fill out the cast splendidly, excelling as an ensemble any rival cast on CD. As others point out, it's a shame that the conductor here was the uninspired Mollinari-Pradelli, but he's no hack, and the score proceeds proficiently, sometimes better than that. (I prefer him to Muti or Schippers in this opera.)

Overall, we get the earthy smell and taste of Italian opera in the great tradition, a pre-war production that happened to be caught ten years after the war ended. Until I came across this La Forza, rather late in the game, I thought this opera was cursed on CD. Every other rival is marred by at least one truly bad singer (except for the often recommended set on RCA under James Levine, where the big problem is Leontyne Price's aging voice and Levine's brisk, superficial conducting). In any event, this set is a joy, and if it has its blemishes (e.g., Del Moncao, after being shot on the battlefield, still sounds as robust as a lion in heat) we'd all pass out in our seats if a cast half this good appeared at the Met today.

P.S. - Be forewarned if you seek out the legendary live La Forzo -- i'ts in rock-bottom AM-radio sound.

...although the earlier of Leontyne Price's two recordings runs it close.This is one of the three or four most satisfying recordings of this great, sprawling opera - and two of the others also feature Tebaldi. To hear her at her very best, you need to go to the legendary 1953 live set, thrillingly conducted by Mitropoulos - Del Monaco also is stunning here - but the sound is pretty rough and Aldo Protti merely adequate compared with the burnished, nut-brown tones of Bastianini. This 1955 Decca studio recording, in excellent stereo sound, is very good - I cannot believe how snooty some critics (especially my compatriot British ones who rave about weedy, effete voices like those of Pears, Bostridge and their like) are about Del Monaco in this, probably his best role after Otello; to me he is tremendous, but it has to be said that for sheer glamour, Corelli tops him in the 1958 Hardy recording with the same conductor (also available on black & white DVD) which is in good, live sound but obviously not as pleasant a listening experience as this. The cast assembled is without peer even if Molinari-Pradelli's conducting is nothing special and Tebaldi is certainly in fresher voice than in 1958. We are spoilt for choice with recordings of this opera, as, in addition to the earlier Price set, there is also the Callas version with a good, if not quite so spectacular, cast let down by Rossi-Lemeni's woolly Padre Guardiano and a baritone past his best. After over 50 years, this remains the best bet, in many ways, and it is now available on DG Originals.

Tebaldi's singing in this live performance from 1953 at the La Teatro Comunale di Firenze is simply beyond compare but then Tebaldi at her peak was always beyond compare. I've had a copy for many years and go back to it again and again to remind myself how Verdi should be sung. It is only when it is sung and played at this level that one can see what a masterpiece this opera is. There was not a weak moment from the first urgent notes to last. The collection of artists assembled at that time is unparalleled at any time in the history of opera. del Monaco, not my favorite tenor is in great form here delivering huge notes with amazing power - just what's needed in the role. Siepi could hardly have been bettered except possibly by Gobbi. Such a collection of singers, Tebaldi, del Monaco, Barbieri, Protti, Siepi, Capecchi, Maionica, Vercelli, Giorgetti De Palama, Finessi, conducted by the great underrated maestro Dmitri Mitropoulos can only be dreamed about. It would be impossible today to come anywhere close to the kind of magnificence on display in this performance. I would give 10 years of my life to be able to have seen this live. I'm glad there is at least an audio record of this greatest of all Forzas.
AC