RODELINDA:Handel
Bicket; Fleming, Daniels, van Rensburg, Blythe, Mehta, Relyea
Original Air Date: 01/01/2005
MOD Audio
SID.19490744
Fleming is the star in all three seasons of Rodelinda at the Met, and the first two broadcasts from 2005 (this one) and 2006 have a major shift with Bicket handing over to Patrick Summers, and the lead countertenor role from David Daniels to Andreas Scholl. The telecast/moviecast is on Decca DVD and in MOoD comes five years later in 2011 and returns Bicket to the podium, but for my money finds Scholl in considerably diminished form compared to his excellent effort in 2006. I’m not a big fan of Handel, and while several of the individual arias are notable, the absence of ensembles (except for the glorious duet for Blythe with the lead countertenor) and the ABA aria style make for a long afternoon or evening of listening or watching. The comings and goings of Rodelinda at the Met are well documented in MOoD, and this first broadcast is a good place to start.
CARMEN:Bizet
Lewis; Horne, McCracken, Amara, Krause
Original Air Date: 03/10/1973
SID.19490745
I was surprised to find that there is only one other Horne-McCracken Carmen broadcast (from a year later with Reardon for Krause). The loss to the broadcasts is the premiere of the production with them under Bernstein (there is a commercial DG recording, but esp. for McCracken, live is very different). Most of the protagonists in Met broadcast Carmens have been represented back to 1937 with Ponselle. There are three 1950s performances which include two Joses from Mario del Monaco,and one with Giuseppe di Stefano, all with Stevens. I’ve heard excerpts of these, and they should be broadcast. The second Del Monaco from 1957 features Mitropoulos in the pit, so that would be first on my list. The DiStefano has been available on private recordings and features Di Stefano breaking her arm (literally) and her clearly saying Put my arm down. I would put in a word for Borodina’s 2001 Carmen (she has been streamed in recent years) with Richard Leech and snappy conducting from Bertrand de Billy. Vocally she is the most glamorous Carmen in some time, and especially so on this broadcast. Horne was very good when she opened the season under Bernstein, but the performance became steadily less subtle vocally,and by the time Lenny was gone, I found it very vin ordinaire Same cast and conductor (except Reardon for Krause) broadcast it again a year later in a performance available on MOoD. The performers are no better.
ARABELLA:Strauss
Eschenbach; Fleming; Ketelsen, Bonney, Very, Forst, Halfvarson
Original Air Date: 12/15/2001
MOD Audio
SID.19490746
This is Fleming’s only Met broadcast outing as Arabella. Eschenbach was the fly in the ointment when I saw the production prior to the broadcast, and so he remains. Because of the English translation used prior to the new production, Sirius listeners are regularly denied the glories of Steber under Kempe in the premiere season of 1955, and Della Casa from 1957-1965. Della Casa has studio and stage Arabellas in German from other sources, but Kempe is a special Straussian, and Steber is in particularly stunning voice with London from the premiere year. 09/24/2012 – I thought Eschenbach was the real fly in the ointment when this revival came around. Fleming is in very beautiful voice, but the performance as a whole lacks magic. Arabella takes special handling and this doesn’t really get it. 03/27/2012 – I saw an earlier performance in the run, and while OK, Fleming did not have a great deal of personality. The singing was excellent. I prefer Steber or Della Casa. 8/2/2011 – For me, Eschenbach is a bit of the fly in the ointment, but this is still a solid Arabella cast. This does give me a chance to make a plea for the Met premiere broadcast of Arabella (in English — part of the delay I am sure) with Steber, Guden, London, under Rudolf Kempe. What a magnificent performance from all concerned
SIMON BOCCANEGRA:Verdi
Levine; Milnes, Tomowa-Sintow, Moldoveanu, Plishka, Clark
Original Air Date: 12/29/1984
SID.19490747
The main attraction here is Tomowa-Sintow who has only 7 Met broadcasts. This performance is also available on DVD. This performance lacks a certain spark, but the singing is very solid.
DON GIOVANNI:Mozart
Levine; Hampson, James, Cheek, Schuman, Olsen, Swenson
Original Air Date: 01/13/1996
SID.19490748
I’m not a big fan of Hampson’s Giovanni, but in his three broadcasts (all with Levine) he has some interesting supporting casts in 1991 and 2004. I lean toward more encounters with the 2004 broadcast with the elusive (for the Met) Anja Harteros. This is an all-American cast FWIW.
ARIADNE AUF NAXOS:Strauss
Levine; Meier, Kollo, Gruberova, Troyanos, Monk, Duesing
Original Air Date: 03/10/1979
SID.19500101
Even though Kollo is rather hard pressed, Johanna Meier substituting for Leontyne Price is a worthy replacement, and Gruberova and Troyanos among the very best to have ever touched their two roles. It is one of Gruberova’s two Met broadcasts (the other is Puritani), so highly recommended.
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