Mozart: Le nozze di Figaro
(Glyndebourne, 1973)

Cast: Kurt Skram (Figaro), Ileana Cotrubas (Susanna), Kiri te Kanawa (Rosina), Benjamin Luxon (Conte Almaviva), Frederica von Stade (Cherubino), London Philharmonic Orchestra, Glyndebourne Chorus, John Pritchard (conductor), Peter Hall (director), John Bury (designer), Dave Heatherton (video director)

Recorded at Glyndebourne in 1973

Issued on DVD by Arthaus Musik in 2004 [101 089, NTSC/All regions, menus in German, French, English, Spanish, optional subtitles in Italian, German, French, English, Spanish]

Technical details:
Aspect ratio 4:3
Sound PCM stereo

Running time: 185 minutes

Sung in Italian
It is difficult to write of this recording without comparison to two other classics available on DVD (and reviewed at Opera japonica). Where the Solti performance is grand in scale, this is a miniature; where the Busch is boisterous, this is romantic. Pritchard finds a true, straightforward reading with a modest orchestra and soloists at comfortable volume. Conventional instruments and lack of ornamentation make this recording less than 'historically informed', but the scale is right and the performance is hard to fault. The production is conventional, though somewhat crammed into the small, raked stage; at moments, one thinks an artist or a piece of furniture will slide off into the pit or a singer will be lost in a surfeit of overstuffed furniture. Never mind; every object and every person fits beautifully into the concept.

Skram's Figaro is young, energetic and rather uninteresting. Luxon brings no authority to his rôle, but neither does he stumble; if his bluster in Act II is unconvincing, he is at least fully worthy of the forgiveness he is granted in Act IV. Cotrubas provides a delightful but uninflected Susanna. Von Stade was only 28 and had not yet fleshed out Cherubino, but the voice is fully formed and there is nothing to fault in her use of it. Te Kanawa is a revelation particularly to those who find many later performances wanting inflection and development. Her countess is still young, undeniably beautiful, and truly insightful; she eschews histrionics and achieves a triumph by painting Rosina with that warm, true, delectable voice.

The picture and sound show their age, but the improvement in both over the early tape incarnation is substantial. If a semi-romantic, chamber performance is to your taste, this DVD would be a wise first choice; if you prefer one of the other styles, it will be an enjoyable complement. Regardless, it belongs in your library.
 
Related website:
Arthaus Musik www.arthaus-musik.de
 
Michael Richter, 23 October 2004
mrichter@cpl.net
 
See also Michael Richter's Introduction to the DVD, for a list of other reviews see the DVD Project page.