Bellini: I Puritani
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Movie Reviews of Bellini: I Puritani
Movie Review: Superb Performance of Bellini Jewel
Summary: 5 Stars
This performance which I saw in HD broadcast, is superb in all respects. Puritani, though quite beautiful, is quite a static opera. Musically, what creates momentum is the profligacy and haunting quality of its melodic content, and the underlying rhythmic diversity present throughout the work. Thus much depends on the conductor. He has to let the melodies soar but keep taut control of the rhythms, flexibility without slackness. How Bellini came to use so much polonaise in dealing with Scottish Puritans is a puzzlement, but it works very well. Mr. Summers, whom I had never heard of before, is very good and he succeeds admirably in not letting matters wilt while never rushing anything. Besides its admirable set pieces, Puritani is full of little musical moments, almost throwaway beautiful two- or three-bar melodic phrases that make one comprehend the great respect with which Bellini was regarded by both Chopin and Wagner. A conductor cannot underline all of these, otherwise the performance becomes one of fits and starts, but they need to be noticed, with subtlety. Mr. Summers understands this very well and executes accordingly. It is ironic how much this opera, considered pre-eminently a singers' work, depends, to be truly effective, on the person silently wielding the baton.
Of course, there is the very dramatic "mad" scene Bellini provided for Elvira, pretty much out of nowhere, but even that is anchored by one of the most beautiful melodies ever written. Anna Netrebko is marvelous throughout, and excels in Qui La Voce and its aftermath. It's quite a haunting, dramatic performance that will long be remembered. You will gasp. The rest of the cast performs admirably, Mr. Cutler providing solid technique, poise and feeling in one of the highest tessitura tenor roles around.
The production is handsome and simple. The direction is smart, and in the case of Netrebko, brilliant. This is a DVD I will get and I'm sure I'll return to several times.
Movie Review: We might as well change the title to "I Netrebko!"
Summary: 5 Stars
I first saw this Met's production of I Puritani on HD screening at the movies. The video quality wasn't very good and rather dark, and there were a few technical glitches like the end of the last scene was cut off. I was amazed, in comparison, that this DVD is sharp with excellent video and audio quality. If your intent, watching this production, is to hear the 'Elvira' of this or that soprano, forget it and turn it off. If you want to see and hear Netrebko's Elvira, keep it going and you'll be in heaven. As with her other DVDs, Netrebko steals the show, theatrically and vocally. In her duet after the mad scene, she outsings Cutler, as she's been doing all along with all the other tenors. Netrebko's voice size is getting larger without affecting her lyricism, legato, flexibility and color. Netrebko's mad scene is a case in point what grand opera is all about: theater using music to convey drama. Without theater, historically, there would be no opera. Opera was conceptualized by the opera founding fathers as the means to serve the theater. Greeks invented the theater with its chorus, etc., and the Florentines added music for dramatic effect. That's why, thematically, the first operas, like Daphne and Orfeo and many others later, were based on Greek dramaturgy. All opera aficionados talk about the voice, the Goddess of opera, and that's true. On the other hand, if the voice is expressed with body language- theater, acting- the dramatic effect can be profound. That's where Netrebko comes in. Some said that lying on her back, with her hair flowing over the orchestra pit was a cheap trick. I'm sure she didn't ask for it, but stage directors use her unique physicallity and athleticism to enhance drama that we haven't seen in a long time. On the strength of Nerebko's merging theatricality and vocalism in the mad scene, this DVD deserves five stars and is highly recommended.
Constantine A. Papas
El Paso, Texas
Movie Review: Adorable, breath-taking and tenderly performed.
Summary: 5 Stars
This MET production is an adorable performance of Bellini's I Puritani. Anna Netrebko plays Elvira in the most tender fashion possible. Her mad scene in Act 2 is breath-taking and outstanding. Her performance of the aria "Ah vieni al tempio, fidele Arturo" towards the end of Act 1 is so tenderly performed, its articulations so moving that it impresses me each time I listen to it again. I rated this DVD FIVE STARS because the MET with Anna Netrebko truly outperformed this time. Even if one has other performances of this opera the present one is a valuable addition to the collection of any opera lover. As to the criticism of others on this item, it may very well that Anna Netrebko lacks a good coloratura but (mainly because I am not a PRO) I fail to see where in this opera is coloratura so much required. Elvira is not Mozart's Queen of the Night and it would be useful when the PRO's are commenting about the coloratura to indicate which parts in this opera require the latter so one may compare with other performances and get a more balanced conclusion. Based on my amateurish view I could not identify any less than perfect performance because of lack of coloratura.Movie Review: Incredible
Summary: 5 Stars
Ha sido un placer ver y escuchar esta gran producción. Antes de comprarla había visto aquí mismo críticas hacia el decorado y cosas así...el decorado es más que suficiente, pero me parece extraviarse de lo que realmente es sobrecogedor, que es el arte de Anna Netrebko, que aquí alcanza uno de los cúlmenes del belcanto. Están inmensos ella y Franco Vassallo, y no tan bien Eric Cutler, que tiene una voz un poco nasal de más, aunque las escenas con Anna están cargadas de emotividad y de buen hacer, que quizás supla un poco ese déficit que a mí me parece sentir. Por otra parte, el bajo es también muy bueno, y la complicidad con Franco Vassallo es total. Así que es una obra muy recomendable y más todavía con la impresionante soprano de este plantel...sólo por el aria de la locura, vale la pena pagarla...sólo les digo que la Netrebko canta en un momento boca arriba, colgando sobre el foso, y su potencia y timbre es el mismo!Movie Review: Stunning performance
Summary: 5 Stars
I missed the high definition telecast almost one year ago to the day but thanks to modern technology and my home theater, the dvd in dts sound on a big screen brings into my home a tremendous performance by Anna Netrebko with outstanding support from Eric Cutler, Relyea , and others. According to other reviewers, her trills arent the trilliest, and her fioriture(?) isnt the best, but my goodness, are we lucky to have such a talent performing for us. Thanks to the Met for these telecasts and DG for releasing them. And may I add that Ms Flemings interviews with the late Beverly Sills and with Ms Netrebko put a human-face and touch on the opera telecasts that no operaquiz ever did or ever will.