Bizet: Carmen (Vienna, 1967)

Cast: Grace Bumbry (Carmen), Jon Vickers (Don Jose), Mirella Freni (Micaëla), Justino Diaz (Escamillo), Olivera Miljakovic (Frasquita), Julia Hamari (Mercédès), Robert Kerns (Moralès), Anton Diakov (Zuniga), Kurt Equiluz (Dancaïre), Milen Paunov (Remendado); Wiener Philharmoniker, Herbert von Karajan (conductor, director)

Recorded in Vienna in 1967

Issued on DVD by Deutsche Grammophon in 2005 [B000452-09, NTSC/all regions, menus in English, subtitles in English, German, Spanish, Chinese]

Technical details
Aspect ratio 4:3
Sound PCM Stereo, DTS 5.1

Running Time 163 minutes

Sung in French

This DVD release is welcome for the advantages of the format over tape and LaserDisc, both of which have been available for years. Picture and sound quality are fully up to those of the original film (though surround is inaudible in DTS). Subtitle options are welcome, chapter stops are well placed, and neither the fragility of tape nor 'laser rot' threatens.

Production and performance can be faulted only for lack of imagination. Bumbry is correct and attractive without offering excitement; Vickers's dry instrument is used with skill; Freni lacks only charm; Diaz substitutes athleticism for character. Add a literal set, inconsistent sound/picture synchronization and a dutiful chorus to find a classic film only slightly related to a performance.

Nevertheless, the disc belongs in a well-stocked library of opera. Each of its numbers - and Carmen has many such - is of high order; conducting and orchestral sound are filled with color. But one familiar with modern production and dramatic performance will find the whole much less than the sum of the parts.
 
Related websites:
Universal Classics www.universalclassics.com
Deutsche Grammophon www.deutschegrammophon.com/dvd
 
Michael Richter, 3 December 2005
 
See also Michael Richter's Introduction to the DVD, for a list of other reviews see the DVD Project page.