Our New York operavores, Elizabeth Frayer and Shawn E Milnes, found nothing to fight about in Don Carlo. They loved it. Every little bit.
Especially the big FFs of Ferrucio Furlanetto. They met him backstage. Loved him. Every little bit.
So why the ‘almost’? Maazel dragged it out and Parsifal is still giving Elizabeth castration dreams. Not many operas do that. Read here.
One conductor for Verdi and Puccini that I had always wished had been on the MET roster is Vincent LaSelva, now at least in his 70′s, but who still teaches at Juiliard. His Don Carlo was ‘on the seat of your chair’ riveting, always with momentum and brutally honest, but nuanced nonethless.
Saw Don Carlo Wednesday, the 13th,I think it was.
I was disappointed in everyone but Maestro Furlanetti.
His “Ella giammai m’amo” was a miracle. A plain and simple miracle.
Never in all my years going to the MET have I ever heard or seen anything like it.
Yesterday afternoon, after a concert in Boston, I seriously considered driving down to see and hear him do that one aria.
Sanity prevailed. Perhaps unwisely.
c
This year has been extraordinary at tbe MET; that last scene in Maria Stuarda, and the L’Elisir on February 9th.
But I was honored and so very lucky to be in the audi
ence for Maestro Furlanetti on last Wednesday…
The name of the opera, as presented at the Met, is Don Carlo (Italian), in this Italian version. Verdi wrote a French language version; that is Don Carlos (Spanish).
Neither the tenor, Vargas nor the soprano, Frittoli were very good. But it is one of Verdi’s most glorious operas, and the wonderful Hvorostovsky and the Met chorus were, as always, glorious!
Saw Parsifal twice and the entire cast was fabulous!
Maazel should never be allowed to conduct Verdi again (or indeed any large scale opera which requires decent pacing.
But how can we make sure that won’t happen again? The only solution I see is that henceforth, orchestras and opera houses will be required to ask you for your approval of what repertoire Maazel will be allowed to conduct where.
Laselva should be @ The Met. Maazel did a dreary job w/Tosca yaers ago in DC w/Berlin Opera as well.
Have only seen Met broadcats of Elisir which was quite good, and Falk Staukman and rene in OTELLO who were great—the fat guy as motionless OTELOO was dismal….
The L’Elisir on the 9th was the last performance. I found it full of so much energy and so very different from the other two performances I saw, in the fall and on the Tuesday before the 9th. On the 9th they were doing things they hadn’t done, and having enormous fun. It was quite uninhibited and wild. Performers at the top of their game going for broke. Even the Una Furtiva Lagrima was unlike anything I had heard.
Amazing.
I was so glad I had come down a day early to get there before the highways were closed.
The fat guy was Johan Botha of South Africa, arguably today’s greatest living heldentenor. He’s pretty popular in Vienna. Not saying his Otello rocked my world, but it’s common knowledge that he was suffering from very bad allergies during much of the run and for the Live In HD broadcast. I think they even announced that he was ill.
Did not see it but heard radio broadcast. Mightily impressive to me.
She writes “This was my first time hearing Don Carlo and I’m starting to become a real Verdi fan. I love the warm rich colors in his music, and while the tempo of this performance was a bit slow,…” WAIT, it was her “first time hearing Don Carlo” yet she says the “tempo was a bit slow”!?!? A bit slow in comparison to what?!? She has never even heard this short and lively little operetta! Is this perhaps the authoritative critic who also recently wrote about her first time ever seeing a performance of that rare opera by Bizet: Carmen!?
At least she is “starting to become a real Verdi fan”, so maybe we can hope that she will also discover a few more of his operas …
OMG! I was joking, but now I see that it is the same reviewer:
http://www.artsjournal.com/slippeddisc/2013/02/don-jose-has-a-tucking-problem-in-the-mets-carmen.html
“I am familiar with Carmen but had not seen a full production before. The pace of the music, as conducted by Michele Mariotti, seemed fast at first…” So, will the next review be “I have never heard a Wagner opera before, but this Ring seemed to be a bit long”?
Maybe the title of her blog should be “first impressions from an opera newbie”. I am glad that people are going to the Met to see their “First” ever Carmen and hear their “First” Don Carlos, but please Norman, one should not present their reviews as if this is someone qualified to criticize Maazel’s Tempi!
Oh boy, I was honestly just exaggerating when I made that Wagner comment, but now I found this:
http://schleppynabuccos.blogspot.co.uk/2013/02/a-catholic-school-girls-musings-on.html
“This was my first time seeing Parsifal and Shawn’s first time seeing any Wagner opera …
it was noticeable that the main tenet of screenwriting, “Show Don’t Tell” was not being followed …
Gurnemanz spent a good 30 minutes telling us the backstory to Klingsor—essentially just statically standing on stage and talking/singing to us… there were entire periods throughout the opera where we both felt as if we may have actually dozed off or drifted away from the action”
Maybe the Met should take that expert’s opinion in mind and make judicious cuts or re-write Wagner
It is amusing and entertaining to read these first impressions of operas, but could we please find out what her background and qualifications are before this becomes your primary source for opera reviews from America? Thanks.
Is there a qualification in blog-posting now? I think they are fresh, amusing and fairly informative reviews, I feel no need to instigate any deep vetting background check however!
Tim,
I certainly don’t mean that Elizabeth should need a back-ground check to be allowed to freely post her views on opera. Anyone can write a blog. That’s fine.
But should someone of the stature of Norman Lebrecht (a respected critic) be giving equal weight to an opera newbie’s impressions, particularly when this unknown Elizabeth continually writes that it was her first time seeing or hearing these standard repertoire pieces and yet has the audacity to consistently criticize the pacing or tempi of the conductors and even the composition?
I am sure that Norman can find more qualified reviewers to promote.
I have deliberately and quite carefully chosen neophytes. I am interested in their uncluttered view. I hope you are, too.
Maazel’s Don Carlo has been widely panned for its glacial tempi. I do, however, enjoy Elizabeth and Shawn’s observations. No need to be snobby about opera.
Shame they missed the stellar Otello on Friday, with Cura, Hampson and Stoyanova, led by Alain Altinoglu. Really a superb performance all around. Stoyanova in particular is a very underrated singer.