Customer Reviews

Verdi - Otello / Plácido Domingo, Scotto, Milnes, Levine

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Otello is arguably the greatest of all operas, but its three lead roles are extremely difficult and the role of the conductor is not easy either. This makes Otello one of the toughest operas to pull off and all of the available recordings have their share of problems. This James Levine recording is the best available because it has the fewest problems.

Let's start with the lead role. Domingo is in wonderfully youthful voice (he was still under 40 when the recording was made). He produces a glowing heroic tone and none of the vocal challenges of the role are beyond him. Whereas other tenors, such as Vickers and McCracken, can't handle the high note in the Second Act recitative with Iago and make an ugly sound as a result, Domingo has no problem with it. His naturally dark voice was perfectly suited to the role and he is almost certainly the best Otello on record. There is nothing wrong with his characterization on this recording either. His dramatic points of emphasis strike the listener as wholly appropriate and he doesn't ham up the two big solos as many other singers do. Perhaps he does not sound as tormented as Vickers, but there is no question which of the two does the better singing.

Renata Scotto's performance as Desdemona is wonderful. It is vocally slightly flawed, but it is intensely characterful. There is probably no other soprano who has so effectively conveyed Desdemona's anguish and fear. She works very effectively with Domingo and their account of the First Act love duet is very beautiful.

Sherrill Milnes is outstanding as Iago. His powerful voice is very well suited to the role and he had a great talent for playing evil characters - Iago being the most evil of all. Many critcize him for not being characterful, but the recording proves otherwise. He is variously menacing and charming and his overall characterization sounds just right.

The minor roles are all reasonably well taken. Frank Little, Jean Kraft and Paul Plishka are all efficient as Cassio, Desdemona and Lodovico respectively. The character-tenor Paul Crook stands out in the tiny role of Roderigo, putting in a very credible performance as Iago's rather dim-witted foil.

Levine himself does a fine job. As so often in his Verdi recordings, he follows Toscanini's example and keeps the level of tension high, often producing some electrifying moments. His is a very direct, perhaps conventional, reading but it is good that he lacks the distracting eccentricities in this work that plague recordings by others, such as Karajan. The London pick-up orchestra, the National Philharmonic, don't sound great in a couple of episodes, but, for the most part, they follow Levine very well.

If you can buy just one recording of Otello, this is the one to get.

Placido Domingo does a terrific job as Otello. His voice is luscious, he has no trouble with the high notes, and his acting is very dramatic. Any criticism of his performance here is unfounded. And Sherrill Milnes does a great job as the evil, sneering Iago. It's true that Renata Scotto is a little past her prime here, but she still sounds pretty good; the Willow Song and Ave Maria are lovely.
The big problem with this recording is that the singers are under-miked and the orchestra is over-miked. You have to turn the sound way up to hear the singers, but when the orchestra plays it blasts you out of the room.

I am well aware that this review may upset many people. Many hold Domingo's final recording on DG as his best, and though it has its great qualities, it cannot compare with the sheer beauty of this one. I am also aware that many do not consider DOmingo the greatest Otello (as there are many other great ones), but while Del Monaco, Vickers, and Vinay have more vocal power than Domingo, his lyricism greatly exceeds theirs. One only needs to listen to love duet at the end of Act One and compare the subtlety beauty of Domingo's voice whereas Del Monaco stumbles with subtle singing. Domingo's Otello is not the fierce beast that Verdi (a racist) had asked from Tamagno. Otello is ultimately a man that lives, thinks, feels. And that is why I love Domingo's Otello over the others. He embodies a human being without ever taking away his dignity. Otello is in fact a tragic hero at the end and not a monster who's stupidity and cruelty has lost the audience's dignity. It is true that Domingo may not sound like the most tormented of Otellos, but his is the most heroic and tragic.

In order for Otello's role to truly shine, there must be two great singers playing beside him and struggling to win him over. In this case, Milnes' Jago and Scotto's Desdemona come through in best way. Scotto's Desdemona is sung purely and wonderfully, giving us a true portrait of the angel that Verdi wrote. The concertante at the end of Act 3 is one of the most beautiful moments of this recording and probably the best recorded. Milnes' Jago is fiery and even comical. Nobody sings the Drinking Song better or the "Credo" with more conviction.

I am aware that many people feel that Levine's conducting is erratic and purposeless, but I beg to differ. While it may not match the scope of Karajan's or angelic force of Kleiber's, Levine gives the singers the effective accompaniment with an orchestra that is not necessarily always on top of things. A great moment for Levine is in Act One during the sword fight between Montano and Cassio. We hear the swords in the background, but eventually they sounds of the battling swords are taken over by the percussions in the Orchestra. The transition is seemless and sounds extremely natrual. Most conductors miss this detail and as a result the intensity of the sword fight is lost, making Otello's powerful entrance with "Abbasso le spade" less effective. Levine's conducting in the love duet that follow takes the music to a sublimity matched only by Karajan. His accompaniment in the Credo adds cynicism to the overall atmosphere of the work. And the ending is simply incredible in every way.

I know many will disagree with my review, but I would like to remind everyone that it is my opinion regarding my favorite opera and what I consider the GREATEST opera ever written.

Opinions hugely differ on this Otello set and I am on the admirers' side. To sum up, this is a brutal and untamed performance both vocally and orchestrally. Every scene is treated explicitly. Some might miss the psychological layers other versions offer but it's this recording's very lack of complexity that attracts me to its sheer power. Don't be fooled by the obscurity of National Philharmonic - they are absolutely brilliant in dramatic moments with penetrating brass and stone-grinding lower strings.
I also own another of Domingo's three Otellos (Maazel's - the movie soundtrack). There he is more subtle (or intelligent) but not as gripping as in this Levine set. To make the matter worse, Maazel and the La Scala force sound less than committed in many places though they show absolute brilliance at a few climaxes.
For sheer power and propulsive-ness I score Levine's version very highly.

This was an eagerly expected recording in 1978. Domingo made his sensational Otello debut in La Scala in 1976 with Carlos Kleiber conducting and it was only a matter of time before he recorded the role for RCA. Unfortunately his first recorded Otello seems just a little bit tentative, not nearly as committed as his La Scala performances or his two other commercial recordings, especially the Chung in DG which is a great performance of towering stature. Milnes is fine as Iago, not as interesting as Gobbi, but sound and efficient. But it is the great Renata Scotto who gives a commanding performance, a regal performance as Desdemona. Sure, her voice is not as beautiful or large as Tebaldi's or Margaret Price's, but she gives Desdemona credibility, whereas la Tebaldi for all the beautiful sounds she makes, sings her as a dumb blonde. For her alone this Otello is memorable and worth owning. If you want Domingo at his best, go for the better conducted Myung Whun-Chung version.

Both the cast and the conducting are uniformly excellent. No other commercial recording since Toscanini's historic one combines all the elements of greatness as this performance, yet this RCA set has by far the stronger Desdemona in Scotto, perhaps her greatest recorded perfomance.

Both the cast and the conducting are uniformly excellent. No other commercial recording since Toscanini's historic one combines all the elements of greatness as this performance, yet this RCA set has by far the stronger Desdemona in Scotto, perhaps her greatest recorded perfomance.

Otello is my favorite opera. My very first experience of opera was watching Zeferelli's movie version, and being thrilled. But even more thrilling was purchasing this recording to hear Otello in its full glory. Casting superb, even down to Roderigo who has this lovely nasal whiny quality that's just the perfect touch for that character. I thrill every time i hear the end of Act II Duet between Milnes and Domingo. This is wonderful. Thrilling, painful and beautiful. This is what opera can do.

As somebody noted this recording was made 2 years after Domingo's Scala-debut under Carlos Kleiber. Though Domingo's Otello is always interesting it is here hampered by the uninspired not to say sloppy conducting of James Levine. Has that conductor ever made a recording that showed that he is just remotely inspired by the work he is conducting? RCA should have gone for the genius of Carlos Kleiber instead, though he probably wasn't available.

Sherril Milnes seems quite uninterested in his part as well so the onus is all on the main protagonists. Renata Scotto's Desdemona is excellent, subtle, soft, inspired, emotionally accomplished. She is probably - along with Victoria de los Angeles - the best Desdemona on record.

If you only have one Otello though do not go for this one. Somebody mentioned the Toscanini-recording - also at mid-price - and despite the slightly dated sound I cannot imagine anybody would be disappointed with that one. If you want modern stereo sound I would recommend both Karajan-recordings, both with glorious orchestral playing (Verdi was indeed as good an orchestrator as Wagner - it just takes a Karajan to prove it), and both at mid-price. Karajan's second recording has the best Otello in Jon Vickers. You would have to go back to Martinelli to find an Otello of equal stature; a great and tormented Otello at the same time.

Vicker's performance is less accomplished on my favourite Otello-recording but he is in more youthful voice. On this his first recording - also on RCA - he is amply supported by the fine conducting of Tullio Serafin, and his Iago is of equal calibre, perhaps Tito Gobbi's finest performance on record. The recording is in fine spacious stereo - and at mid-price.

As somebody noted this recording was made 2 years after Domingo's Scala-debut under Carlos Kleiber. Though Domingo's Otello is always interesting it is here hampered by the uninspired not to say sloppy conducting of James Levine. Has that conductor ever made a recording that showed that he is just remotely inspired by the work he is conducting? RCA should have gone for the genius of Carlos Kleiber instead, though he probably wasn't available.

Sherril Milnes seems quite uninterested in his part as well so the onus is all on the main protagonists. Renata Scotto's Desdemona is excellent, subtle, soft, inspired, emotionally accomplished. She is probably - along with Victoria de los Angeles - the best Desdemona on record.

If you only have one Otello though do not go for this one. Somebody mentioned the Toscanini-recording - also at mid-price - and despite the slightly dated sound I cannot imagine anybody would be disappointed with that one. If you want modern stereo sound I would recommend both Karajan-recordings, both with glorious orchestral playing (Verdi was indeed as good an orchestrator as Wagner - it just takes a Karajan to prove it), and both at mid-price. Karajan's second recording has the best Otello in Jon Vickers. You would have to go back to Martinelli to find an Otello of equal stature; a great and tormented Otello at the same time.

Vicker's performance is less accomplished on my favourite Otello-recording but he is in more youthful voice. On this his first recording - also on RCA - he is amply supported by the fine conducting of Tullio Serafin, and his Iago is of equal calibre, perhaps Tito Gobbi's finest performance on record. The recording is in fine spacious stereo - and at mid-price.