Fidelio

Fidelio mayn't be one of my favourite operas, but I am quite fond of it for its demanding but amazing music(not a surprise, it is Beethoven after all). O Welche Lust, O Nameleuse Freude and Mir Ist So Wunderbar are my favourites from the score. Abscheulischer is also thrilling. This Deutsch Oper production from 1963 is a truly splendid production with a great cast. The 1970, 1978 and 2002 versions are also outstanding productions.

The sets are very minimalist, but considering the nature of the opera the starkness did work. As did the lighting, the black and white was like contrasting light and dark, almost symbolic of the predicaments of the two main characters and their sense of threat. The costumes are also simple but at least I got the sense looking at them that they were from a time and place that fitted within the setting. The camera direction is clear with a little murkiness on occasions, likewise with the picture.

From a musical point of view, it is exemplary. The orchestral playing is sensitive and powerful. Only the cracked- though not badly so- trumpet note hit a false note. Artur Rother's conducting is a pleasant surprise, true it doesn't have Klemperer's grandeur nor did it need to. The tempos are moderate, with no hurrying or plodding in sight. The textures and stylistic touches are finely balanced, there is a lot of energy as well as lyricism. He is especially good with the triplet idea in the Overture, instead of having a metronomic feel it feels relaxed yet done with precision. The chorus give a poignant rendition of O Welche Lust.

Likewise with the performances. The two standouts were Christa Ludwig and Walter Berry. Ludwig is one of the finest Leonores I know of. Her tone is beautiful and firm with no squalliness in the high register- her high B natural in Ich Folg' Dem Inner'n Triebe is hit spot on after hearing others in the role singing it flat- and she copes with the runs with no sense of awkwardness at all. Her stage presence makes a huge impact, she is forceful and moving in equal measure and she is one of the few Leonores who actually convinces as a boy visually. Berry is for me the best Don Pizarro of all time, on record under Klemperer and here. He is the embodiment of evil while not doing it in a clichéd way(ie. use of a Dracula's cape movement in the 2006 Valencia production), and this is a Pizarro who sings his music, and with great ring, in alternative to shouting. Ha! welch ein Augenblick is genuinely scary.

James King is wonderful also as Florestan. He does have stiff competition(ie. Jon Vickers), but that does not stop me from immensely enjoying his performance and considering him one of the better Florestans there has been. His voice is in golden condition, and used with great intelligence. Florestan's anguish is conveyed very movingly, and he looks like a broken prisoner. Lisa Otto is a charming Marzelline and sings angelically, fully deserving of her reputation as one of the outstanding soubrette singers of her time. Martin Vantin's Jaquino is also well sung. Barry McDaniel and Manfred Rohrl are affecting in small prisoner roles.

William Dooley is a dignified Don Fernando and sings resonantly. Definitive he is not, Talvela in the 1970 performance I can't get enough of, but he is hardly forgettable in the role either. A slight disappointment is the Rocco of Josef Greindl. There is nothing wrong actually with the acting, he was known as a brilliant interpreter and you can see that in his sympathetic portrayal as the kindly if morally compromised jailer. But I never really warmed to his voice in this production, it did seem rather dry and flat with a tendency to aspirate a little too much. The sound quality is generally good if a bit glassy with the strings.

All in all though, a splendid performance. 9/10 Bethany Cox