I was lucky to see Geraint Evans and TeKanawa at her debut at Covent Garden in December 1971 (on my honeymoon). The Susanna was supposed to be Reri Grist but she canceled. I've never been able to track down who sang.
I really don't remember, although if it were Cotrubas I expect I would. It probably was a house singer, although sometimes those turn into stars. I once wrote the Royal Opera, but it was during covid and they didn't have time to research it. It isn't in their online archive and I haven't found a review of that particular performance.
You just made me remember having seen Von Stade as Cherubino in San Francisco in the 70s. Seeing her make her entrance with the energy and gait of an adolescent boy is something I've never forgotten. But I forget the rest of the cast!
Absolutely the same experience. The reviews I read always compared any new Figaro to the Kleiber. The one weakness of the Kleiber was Alfred Poell's not very interesting, wooden Count. One of my favorites and earliest opera recording purchases, though never a reference, was the RCA Vienna recording under Leinsdorf. It's bright and airy and energetic.
It was never Gardiner. There were too many period instrument versions whizzing around within too short a time for much of a consensus to emerge, although I could discuss making an exception for his Don Giovanni.
One of my biggest regrets is that I first learned this opera in German. When I now hear it in Italian, the German text is always rattling around in the back of my mind. This recording also reminds me of Solti learning about the Anschluss during a performance of this work.
When I saw Bergman's Magic Flute it was sung in Swedish with (somewhat erroneous) English subtitles, and the original German text (which I had memorized) getting in the way. Very confusing.
This is a very interesting choice and after listening parts of it I can say that it is VERY fine indeed. There are so many excellent recordings by Solti out there, I am loving his work more and more.
Hard to choose between Solti and the classic Bohm, but I have to go with you. This Le nozze is perhaps the most perfect opera recording ever made. There is just no weak link. I love the old Fricsay for its character, and being on a budget DGG issue when I was in college, it was my first recording, and the Bohm for the amazing Figaro of Hermann Prey. But still....it must be Solti.
I echo the comment of being surprised about Bohm not getting the nod. When I was first getting into Mozart operas about 25 years ago I very much got the impression that the Bohm was the reference and the Solti was, while very well respected, just another acclaimed version along with Levine, Giulini, Gardiner, and Kleiber. I personally always preferred the Solti, but I never got the impression it was the reference... but I'm not complaining!
The vocal cast of this recording is the ultimate example of what xviiith century aesthetic was all about! If I can add a personal choice, I would mention the version for Philips by Colin Davis
One can never have too many Figaros. I have four on CD (Bohm, Davis, Klemperer, Gardiner), and six video versions. I've never been a particular Solti fan, but I'll have to have a listen to this one.
Conductors can be so touchy! Interesting story. I would have thought the. Böhm DG would’ve been the reference: a far earlier recording, equal or greater singers all around, and one of the greatest Mozartians of the time.
That story about Claudia Cassidy is fascinating. I don’t know much about her, but her being balanced seems to check out. I recall that she had her favourites like Callas and Bjorling, but also that she was willing to criticize them when warranted, albeit with empathy.
I have all three and love them all. I prefer the Kleiber and the Giulini a bit more but Solti had that big Brit marketing push and the modern recording so, yeah, you can call it THE "reference recording." The live Gardiner (with Terfel) is also enjoyable, IMO. It's also very easy to believe that Solti's Figaro ensemble work in live performance in the 50's WAS "raggedy." I'm sure that Cassidy wasn't making that up.
I haven't heard Solti's Figaro but feel compelled to do so, presto presto!. My later choices of Neville Marriner and Rene Jacob didn't satisfy me like the Giulini (though I know the Jacob is Dave's favorite.) An amusing thing about the Giulini is that the aristocrats are sung by German singers, and the commoners by Italians--Moffo qualifying as one, IMO. But Wächter's vividly drawn Count Almaviva is one of the unexpected delights of the recording. In "Crudel! Perché finora," he sounds almost completely undone by Susanna's sudden attention. You feel sorry for the guy! 😅
@@dennischiapello7243 You are by no means alone, let alone crazy! Die-hard Waechter fan here. Eberhard Waechter was wonderful in every sense of the word - a fine intelligent artist with a beautiful tone of voice, even and cultivated in all registers with a brilliant ringing top, it was a rich voice in his prime, which sadly did not last long. He loved the comforts of Vienna where he was adored and gave up traveling and all the fuss about the star status he had acquired fairly early on with the release of Giulini's recordings. The two best, liveliest male characters in Mozart, his Don and the Count ( in tandem with the Great Taddei or Walter Berry for real enjoyment ), this is just a personal opinion, of course, but anyone who really knows these operas well understands how lucidly these two characters are portrayed. Waechter possessed enormous charm and appeal. He was also a great Lieder performer.
Hi Dave. Thanks for this, as always! By the 1980s I was no longer buying Figaros, so I’m ashamed to say I don’t know the Solti. I started with records very early, as you did, and I seem to remember the Reference of Figaros as Fritz Busch and Glyndebourne (c1934) as reissued by Turnabout/Vox. Critics were always referencing Busch’s Figaro and Don Giovanni. Having just gotten Glyndebourne’s marvelous Barber of Seville with Vittorio Gui, I asked for these. Big mistake. Piano recits , cuts, and poor sound. My next Figaro was the Colin Davis on Phillips, which I remember was praised to the hilt and helped make Jessie Norman an internationally recognized name. At the time I would have thought this a new reference recording. Giulini was generally recommended by the record stores I spent many hours haunting. Sorry about personal memories, but these were the recordings I remember everyone talking about long ago.
Fully understand the choice of Solti as a modern reference,, but for me the Kleiber has that something special that no others have - that special tradition of performance and casting that others don't have. But both are wonderful. And Ramey is SO sexy and dangerous!!
La mejor dirección es sin duda la de Kleiber, pero falla el Conde de Poell y el Bartolo de Corena suena un poco rancio. Siepi es insuperable. Solti es la mejor opción moderna, por encima de Muti o Gardiner. Muti tiene a Allen ejerciendo de Fígaro, soberbio. Pero falla el Conde. Gardiner es la mejor versión historicsta. En resumen, Las Bodas de Solti son modélicas en cuanto a la solidez del canto y una dirección (en la línea ágil de Solti) dramática que deja respirar a los cantantes (Solti fue un gran maestro de ópera). Conviene señalar el Bartolo de Kurt Moll, excepcional cantante. Gran comentario, como siempre, señor David. Un abrazo.
You know what I think what hapenned is that Solti most likely didn't understand what she wrote. I have been in the USA for 34 years and I had to listen 4 times to "surprised me less to see him cut his throat ??" . Maybe she's using an english idiom form I am not familiar with. How good was Solti's english in 1958 ? It happens ... we foreigners with american wives can ask our wives what these idioms mean but poor Solti didn't have that in 1958 yet it's impossible to forget "cut his throat". My take on this story.
He understood English well enough when he wrote his book, and his ghost-writer understood English perfectly. I don't think we need to make excuses for him. He got it wrong. Period.
Dave, have you by any chance made a video about the pros and cons of first seeing an opera as an acted performance (either live or filmed), as it was originally conceived, rather than just listening to the audio? Is it useful or important for someone new to the opera to have the "full" experience, to understand the full intentions of the creators? I would love to hear your thoughts on the topic. PS. the same question could apply to ballets as well.
At the risk of diluting things, I would be very interested in a video comparing listening to the audio with attending a live performance (opera, concert, or ballet). I learned a lot of music from listening to recordings, but all my musical “heureka” moments happened during live performances.
Thank you for the marvelous historical anecdote! Any true recounting of history must consist surely of these little marvels 🙂
My Fav. too--was lucky to see Te Kanawa,Von Stade and Ramey at the MET in this---love this recording!!
I was lucky to see Geraint Evans and TeKanawa at her debut at Covent Garden in December 1971 (on my honeymoon). The Susanna was supposed to be Reri Grist but she canceled. I've never been able to track down who sang.
@@SHawk48 was it Ileana Cotrubas?
I really don't remember, although if it were Cotrubas I expect I would. It probably was a house singer, although sometimes those turn into stars. I once wrote the Royal Opera, but it was during covid and they didn't have time to research it. It isn't in their online archive and I haven't found a review of that particular performance.
You just made me remember having seen Von Stade as Cherubino in San Francisco in the 70s. Seeing her make her entrance with the energy and gait of an adolescent boy is something I've never forgotten. But I forget the rest of the cast!
Pre-Solti the reference WAS Kleiber - it was recommended by the guy in my shop when I was a kid, fifty years ago!
yup, and post-Solti it was Gardiner.
Absolutely the same experience. The reviews I read always compared any new Figaro to the Kleiber. The one weakness of the Kleiber was Alfred Poell's not very interesting, wooden Count.
One of my favorites and earliest opera recording purchases, though never a reference, was the RCA Vienna recording under Leinsdorf. It's bright and airy and energetic.
It was never Gardiner. There were too many period instrument versions whizzing around within too short a time for much of a consensus to emerge, although I could discuss making an exception for his Don Giovanni.
The Solti is personally my favorite recording. I absolutely love listening to Samuel Ramey as Figaro.
One of my biggest regrets is that I first learned this opera in German. When I now hear it in Italian, the German text is always rattling around in the back of my mind. This recording also reminds me of Solti learning about the Anschluss during a performance of this work.
When I saw Bergman's Magic Flute it was sung in Swedish with (somewhat erroneous) English subtitles, and the original German text (which I had memorized) getting in the way. Very confusing.
This is a very interesting choice and after listening parts of it I can say that it is VERY fine indeed. There are so many excellent recordings by Solti out there, I am loving his work more and more.
Thanks for the story about Claudia Cassidy. I learned much from her reviews over the years when I was growing up into a real opera nut.
Hard to choose between Solti and the classic Bohm, but I have to go with you. This Le nozze is perhaps the most perfect opera recording ever made. There is just no weak link.
I love the old Fricsay for its character, and being on a budget DGG issue when I was in college, it was my first recording, and the Bohm for the amazing Figaro of Hermann Prey. But still....it must be Solti.
Oh wonderful! I love this version; the first version I purchased back in 1984.
I echo the comment of being surprised about Bohm not getting the nod. When I was first getting into Mozart operas about 25 years ago I very much got the impression that the Bohm was the reference and the Solti was, while very well respected, just another acclaimed version along with Levine, Giulini, Gardiner, and Kleiber. I personally always preferred the Solti, but I never got the impression it was the reference... but I'm not complaining!
The vocal cast of this recording is the ultimate example of what xviiith century aesthetic was all about! If I can add a personal choice, I would mention the version for Philips by Colin Davis
Definitely the reference. Decca/London has three potential references in its catalogue: Kleiber, Solti and Östman.
One can never have too many Figaros. I have four on CD (Bohm, Davis, Klemperer, Gardiner), and six video versions. I've never been a particular Solti fan, but I'll have to have a listen to this one.
Conductors can be so touchy! Interesting story. I would have thought the. Böhm DG would’ve been the reference: a far earlier recording, equal or greater singers all around, and one of the greatest Mozartians of the time.
Well, it didn't turn out that way.
@@DavesClassicalGuideRobert Levine considers it a reference on Classics Today. Giulini , Jacobs are also mentioned as references... Never Solti. 😢
That story about Claudia Cassidy is fascinating. I don’t know much about her, but her being balanced seems to check out. I recall that she had her favourites like Callas and Bjorling, but also that she was willing to criticize them when warranted, albeit with empathy.
I have all three and love them all. I prefer the Kleiber and the Giulini a bit more but Solti had that big Brit marketing push and the modern recording so, yeah, you can call it THE "reference recording." The live Gardiner (with Terfel) is also enjoyable, IMO.
It's also very easy to believe that Solti's Figaro ensemble work in live performance in the 50's WAS "raggedy." I'm sure that Cassidy wasn't making that up.
I haven't heard Solti's Figaro but feel compelled to do so, presto presto!. My later choices of Neville Marriner and Rene Jacob didn't satisfy me like the Giulini (though I know the Jacob is Dave's favorite.) An amusing thing about the Giulini is that the aristocrats are sung by German singers, and the commoners by Italians--Moffo qualifying as one, IMO. But Wächter's vividly drawn Count Almaviva is one of the unexpected delights of the recording. In "Crudel! Perché finora," he sounds almost completely undone by Susanna's sudden attention. You feel sorry for the guy! 😅
He is one of my favourite Conte Almaviva.
The way he sings the "guir" in "languir così" is fascinating.
@@holgadoencinasraul2820 Thanks. So either I'm not crazy, or not alone! 😅
@@dennischiapello7243 You are by no means alone, let alone crazy! Die-hard Waechter fan here. Eberhard Waechter was wonderful in every sense of the word - a fine intelligent artist with a beautiful tone of voice, even and cultivated in all registers with a brilliant ringing top, it was a rich voice in his prime, which sadly did not last long. He loved the comforts of Vienna where he was adored and gave up traveling and all the fuss about the star status he had acquired fairly early on with the release of Giulini's recordings.
The two best, liveliest male characters in Mozart, his Don and the Count ( in tandem with the Great Taddei or Walter Berry for real enjoyment ), this is just a personal opinion, of course, but anyone who really knows these operas well understands how lucidly these two characters are portrayed. Waechter possessed enormous charm and appeal.
He was also a great Lieder performer.
Hi Dave. Thanks for this, as always! By the 1980s I was no longer buying Figaros, so I’m ashamed to say I don’t know the Solti. I started with records very early, as you did, and I seem to remember the Reference of Figaros as Fritz Busch and Glyndebourne (c1934) as reissued by Turnabout/Vox. Critics were always referencing Busch’s Figaro and Don Giovanni. Having just gotten Glyndebourne’s marvelous Barber of Seville with Vittorio Gui, I asked for these. Big mistake. Piano recits , cuts, and poor sound. My next Figaro was the Colin Davis on Phillips, which I remember was praised to the hilt and helped make Jessie Norman an internationally recognized name. At the time I would have thought this a new reference recording. Giulini was generally recommended by the record stores I spent many hours haunting. Sorry about personal memories, but these were the recordings I remember everyone talking about long ago.
Fully understand the choice of Solti as a modern reference,, but for me the Kleiber has that something special that no others have - that special tradition of performance and casting that others don't have. But both are wonderful. And Ramey is SO sexy and dangerous!!
Absolutely the reference. 100%
Bingo! My choice too!
La mejor dirección es sin duda la de Kleiber, pero falla el Conde de Poell y el Bartolo de Corena suena un poco rancio. Siepi es insuperable. Solti es la mejor opción moderna, por encima de Muti o Gardiner. Muti tiene a Allen ejerciendo de Fígaro, soberbio. Pero falla el Conde. Gardiner es la mejor versión historicsta. En resumen, Las Bodas de Solti son modélicas en cuanto a la solidez del canto y una dirección (en la línea ágil de Solti) dramática que deja respirar a los cantantes (Solti fue un gran maestro de ópera). Conviene señalar el Bartolo de Kurt Moll, excepcional cantante. Gran comentario, como siempre, señor David. Un abrazo.
Verdad,
You know what I think what hapenned is that Solti most likely didn't understand what she wrote. I have been in the USA for 34 years and I had to listen 4 times to "surprised me less to see him cut his throat ??" . Maybe she's using an english idiom form I am not familiar with. How good was Solti's english in 1958 ? It happens ... we foreigners with american wives can ask our wives what these idioms mean but poor Solti didn't have that in 1958 yet it's impossible to forget "cut his throat". My take on this story.
He understood English well enough when he wrote his book, and his ghost-writer understood English perfectly. I don't think we need to make excuses for him. He got it wrong. Period.
ooooh interesting, I'd have gone for the Böhm with Prey, Troyanos and Gundula Jannowitz...
Yeah, I thought for sure it would have been this one. Solti? Really?
Yeah, really. I like Bohm better too, actually, but my personal preference has nothing to do with it.
Dave, have you by any chance made a video about the pros and cons of first seeing an opera as an acted performance (either live or filmed), as it was originally conceived, rather than just listening to the audio? Is it useful or important for someone new to the opera to have the "full" experience, to understand the full intentions of the creators? I would love to hear your thoughts on the topic.
PS. the same question could apply to ballets as well.
Thank you. I will think about it.
At the risk of diluting things, I would be very interested in a video comparing listening to the audio with attending a live performance (opera, concert, or ballet). I learned a lot of music from listening to recordings, but all my musical “heureka” moments happened during live performances.