Customer Reviews

Verdi - Jerusalem / Plasson, Fondary, Villarroel, Colombara, Momirov, Bragaglia, Casciarri, Teatro Carlo Felice Genova

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

 

 

The Teatro Carlo Felice in Genoa gives a dependable production of 'Jerusalem' a rifacimento 'en francais' of his earlier opera 'I Lombardi'. Like Rossini and Donizetti before him Verdi chose to debut at the Paris opera with a revision of an earlier italian work. The result is an opera that in some respects improves on the original but in other respects lacks its spontenaiety .Compared to 'I Lombardi',the plot is simplified, the orchestration is refined and new numbers such as a duettino for Gaston and Helene and a grand scene et air for Gaston to conclude Act III. The chief advantage of the production is the french conductor Michel Plasson who guarantees a french flavour.There is also a francophone Comte de Toulouse Alain Fondary whose role {helas!) is all too short. However bass Carlo Colombara is a superb Roger. The make up artists are to be taken to task for not changing his appearancein Act II particular when he states that he has now become unrecognisable! Veronica Villaroel as Helene and Ivan Mamirov as Gaston provide strong singing even if their french is at times what the French would call 'approximatif'. In particular, Mamirov's performance grows in stature as the opera progresses and he gives a deeply impassioned account of Gaston's Grand Scene in Act III. The chorus sings admirably and the sets and costumes are in the traditional mode.This production is the best advocate this opera could have

What Phillips did for the lesser known Verdi operas on CD, TDK is doing on DVD; producing high quality operatic experiences. This latest opera has an interesting history. It is a re-write, with major additions, of Verdi's 4th opera, "I Lombardi alla Prima Crociata", and many critics, and this Verdi fan believe that it is a major improvement, both dramatically and musically. The plot has to do with a nobleman, mistakenly accused of murder, who seeks to prove his innocence. While, in general, operatic plots seem somewhat silly these days, this one ain't too bad. The role of the accused Gaston is sung well by tenor Ivan Momirov; Helene, is sung nicely by Veronica Villarroel, but the most convincing singer is bass Carlo Colombara as the real murderer, Roger. Since this work was written for the Paris Opera, it is sung here in French. The available translation, which appears at the bottom of the screen is pretty accurate, and a nice, unobtrusive feature. Michel Plasson conducts the chorus and orchestra of the Teatro Carlo Felice with an experienced baton. The picture is excellent, and the sound options include Dolby 5.1 and DTS, so warn the neighbors. I like this performance a lot and recommend it to any lover of Verdi's music, or anyone who is interested in experiencing a fine operatic performance. TDK seems to be committed to releasing good DVDs of European performances, so the opera lovers' future looks pretty good.

I purchased this DVD with some misgivings, but accepted the earlier, favourable reviews.
Am happy with the stage settings and the music. Columbara, as Roger, is the pick of the cast, but the other males are all very acceptable without being great.
Unfortunately, Veronica Villaroel does not appeal to me. Her higher range is tentative, unsteady and I wondered at times if she was confident that she had hit the right note.
Despite this I give the performance four stars as everything else was enjoyable.

Having just watched this dvd version (Apparently the only DVD availble) and I was very disappoinbted in the picture quality. In fact, it is the worst I have every encountered on a DVD opera. It appears that the theatre production people were unaware that a video recording requires a great deal more lighting than usual. Most of the scenes were so dark that it was almost impossible to make out who was singing unless you were aware of the voices.

I have over 100 0pera DVDs in my collection and this one is by far, the worst one I have wasted my money on.