Mozart - Idomeneo
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Movie Reviews of Mozart - Idomeneo
Movie Review: Gods and Monsters
Summary: 3 Stars
For the best part of an hour, things are not going well. Is it due to the acoustics of the House for Mozart, too huge for its own good? Or the staging, extremely difficult to manage when you are a singer: a very deep stage split in two, with the fist part of it occupied by a big whole...where the orchestra pit plays? In any case, Kozena and Siurina do their job professionally, but nothing more. Ramon Vargas walks his huge body around with little motivation and Sir Roger Norrington imposes a solid routine into this bizarre pit, forcing him to turn around to search for his singers, sometimes behind him, sometimes on the side, sometimes nowhere at all.
But then at the beginning of Act II, Jeffrey Francis, who sings Arbace, delivers a magnificent "Se cola ne' fatti e scritto", and gives a much-needed wake-up call to the party. Ekaterina Siurina displays her superb high notes in "Se il Padre perdei", Vargas brings the house down with "Fuor del Mar", showing the amazing range and strength of his instrument, Magdalena Kozena finds beautiful accents for the ensuing trio (#16: "Pria di partir, oh Dio!"), while Anja Harteros uses her very impressive voice to great effect in the last aria of the opera. Only Sir Roger will remain on the safe side until the end but then considering how the pit is placed, it's a miracle he manages to conduct at all...
The staging of Ursel and Karl-Ernst Herrmann is VERY impressive. The two-part stage is really huge and gives an impression of grandeur. Both stages are separated by a moving wall, which gives beautiful light effects depending on where and how it is lifted or brought down. The mise-en-scene has modern tones but remains loyal to the score and to the libretto all the way: When Mozart and his librettist Varesco say "thunder and lightning", the Herrmanns provide (successfully!) thunder and lightning. The God Neptune is always at the centre of the proceedings (as he should be) and the interaction between characters is generally successful. The stage directors do not try to reinvent the wheel but their pictorial interpretation is innovative and interesting.
How come we are not more enthusiastic then? Bar the fact that the performance takes an awfully long time to take off, and that the stage design (despite being beautiful) is penalising for the music, it is true that this "Idomeneo" lacks the feeling of "team-work" that many other offerings in this M22 collection have. Is it because we have now reached the stage of the last seven operas and that the addition of maybe bigger names and bigger egos make it more difficult for singers, conductors and designers to "jell" together? Is it because it is more difficult for stage designers to reinvent famous pieces that have already been worked to death? In any case, we know that the public and the critics alike have very enthusiastically received this production. I hope I will be forgiven for not quite sharing this enthusiasm, even if there are many qualities in this "Idomeneo".
Movie Review: Fine singing, ugly visuals
Summary: 3 Stars
Before I begin, I want to mention that I don't think there is any problem with the sound in this video, and that occasionally I have put in one of these modern dvds, thought the sound was terribly full of ambience, and then I chose a better sound track for my antique system, and everything sounded much better.
Anyway, the singing in this video is quite good, particularly Kozena as Idamante, Vargas as Idomeneo, and the Ilia was also very good. The Arbace was also quite enjoyable, but I am pretty sure that one of his arias was cut, the way I am used to hearing this opera. I have only watched this once and would have to go back and check to make sure of that. The Elettra was beautiful but the role seemed just a bit bigger than the voice. I thought she really only succeeded on the middle, slower aria.
The sets in this video are very yellow and downright ugly in my opinion. So were some of the costumes. Vargas has to wear a white quilted cape at one point, (white quilt - such a slimming fabric), and he also has to wear a paper crown. Arbace has a sleeve missing on his costume - wonder what that was supposed to symbolize? And Arbace's hair is pretty weird too. Kozena, for such a cute lady, makes the ugliest of young men - the light-colored trousers accentuating her slight figure didn't help. Vargas is extremely chunky, and as I mentioned, no slimming fashions were offered him. The Elettra, however, is a visual breath of fresh air, looking gorgeous the entire opera. The Ilia was pretty cute too.
One thing I really enjoyed about this dvd, was hearing Vargas in this role which seems tailor made for him. I have always been disappointed in his lack of unabashed passion when he sings his regular Italian roles, but for Mozart, he is dead perfect - his manner of restraint with still a pinch of passion is perfect for Mozart, and so is his beautiful voice and his wonderful coloratura technique. I say he should ditch all that Verdi he's been singing and sing more Mozart.
If you just want to hear this recording, they may still have an archive of the live radio performance available for listening at the NPR site.
Movie Review: Lacked Excitement!
Summary: 3 Stars
With regard to one of the points raised in the reviews, I did not find the sound lacking in any respect. However, I limit myself to the simplest set-up so, as in other respects of my review, I am a listener not an audiophile nor expert in music or opera.
I had few specific criticisms, rather I found the whole to lack weightiness, that is, as some like to put it, the production doesn't integrate the parts to provide the energy to lift one out of his seat. Neither the King nor his son electrify or fulfill the need to be regal. The scenic design reinforced the lack of stature and certainly undermined the credibility of the Gods.
Overall, therefore, a routine production, not a failure, not a success.
Movie Review: Wonderful singing but disappointing DVD.
Summary: 2 Stars
The singing on this DVD is phenomenal, however, the costumes and sets are atrocious and some of the performers over act to the point that they are no longer believeable, especially Elektra. Was this opera actually presented at the Salzburg festival? It must have been produced on a really low budget.
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