Ponchielli: La Gioconda | Amilcare Ponchielli, Bruno Bartoletti, ...

Ponchielli: La Gioconda | Amilcare Ponchielli, Bruno Bartoletti, ... | The Premier Recording of La Gioconda

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Ponchielli: La Gio...

	Ponchielli: La Gioconda Amilcare Ponchielli, Bruno Bartoletti, ... Decca, 2005 average customer review:based on 5 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

One of the Best Recordings of This Work At Midprice!!

LA GIOCONDA is like junk food. People love it but are afraid to admit it. Now one of the best recordings of the work has been re-released at midprice.

I remember first being introduced to the opera when PBS did a mini-series about the famous San Francisco staging of the work. It was at this time that Pavarotti and Scotto had the famous (or is it infamous?) battle royal that became the stuff of opera legend. To this day Lotfi Mansouri, who produced the opera, claims to loath the work, but who can blame him. For the rest of us there is plenty to love of this opera.

It has one of opera's most bizarre plots. Gioconda, a street singer is engaged to Enzo, a prince. Barnaba a spy loves Gioconda who is repulsed by the man. He decides to get even by claiming that Gioconda's poor blind mother is a witch. She is taken to the local official Alvise who is in a loveless marriage with Laura. Gioconda, Enzo, and Barnaba go to the blind woman's trial. Laura notices she is praying a rosary and cannot be a witch and spares the woman's life, however, she can't keep her eyes off of Enzo, her secret love, nor can Enzo keep his eyes off Gioconda. Barnaba notices it and decides to break Gioconda's heart by reuniting the two long lost lovers. Alvise discovers the plans and decides to poison Laura, who is miraculously saved by the selfless Gioconda who happens to appear with an anecdote. Gioconda devises a way for the two to run away together, then when Barnaba thinks he has the woman of his dreams, she kills herself.

Convoluted plot aside, the opera has great musical moments. There are some well known arias as well as the "Dance of the Hours." Pavarotti shines in this recording, and in my opinion is one of his best. Montserrat Caballe gives Gioconda a different interpretation than Callas or Tebaldi, focusing on her combination of strength and vulnerability. Sherrill Milnes handles the role rather well. His Barnaba is smooth which makes him an illusive villain type. The choral groups and orchestra are riveting and Bartoletti keeps the pace of the opera rather well.

Over the years I have owned five sets of this recording with stars such as Renata Tebaldi, Maria Callas, and Eva Marton in the role. Tebaldi is probably my favorite Gioconda, Caballe is close second with Callas in third, which may be due as much to the quality of the recording than anything else. Yet for overall quality, this is the set I would choose if I could only select one. So sit back, enjoy, and if you're embarrassed about loving this opera, ask yourself the question "Is your favorite junk food good for you?" Probably not, but is it good? You bet!

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The Premier Recording of La Gioconda

After just hearing this London/Decca recording of Ponchielli's masterpiece one time, I'm convinced that it's the definative recording of the work. Make this your first Giaconda, if still not convinced or prefer to hear other voices try (inevitably) Maria Callas on the EMI recording, her "rival" Renata Tebaldi on another recording, Eva Marton or Violeta Urmana with Placido Domingo in a more recent recording. But this one is a true gem and you cannot ignore its value. First off all, the casting is inspired and these singers are at the top of their game. It's an all-star cast: Luciano Pavarotti, Montserrat Caballe, Sherill Milnes, Agnes Baltsa and Nicolai Ghiaurov. Each singer has a shining moment in the opera where the power and allure of their natural voices makes one highly excited about this opera, which has gone by the wayside and is no longer in most opera houses' repertoire. Which is sad because if well-performed, it's a powerful opera.

Pavarotti and Caballe sing the lovers. These two were never paired enough on recording, but the few times that they sang together there is genuine chemistry and fire! Caballe as the titular heroine (nickname Gioconda) is truly exceptional. While not singing at the level of Callas or Tebaldi, she holds her own with her unique voice, a superb mixture of ravishing pianissimi, beautiful tone, floating high notes, strong and dramatic chest voice, vertiginous scales, coloratura and dramatic touches. She shades her voice and utilizes her instrument to effectively depict the heroine's torment and she blows you away. Especially striking are the duets. Pavarotti's big, bright, blazing voice is tailor-made for this role. It's semi-heroic but mostly on the lyrical side. And Pavarotti's training in bel canto and Puccini enables him to make the role both thrilling and beautiful to hear. Especially noteworthy are the duets and solo arias for both Caballe and Pavarotti. Pavarotti's final duet is emotional. Caballe gives it her all in the dramatic "Suicidio!" the one aria that is still popular from this "ancient" work. What a voice! Her high register is electrifying and her lower voice is ably used for dramatic effect. Yes, she is primarily a bel canto singer but, like Sutherland, she had a voice that was bigger than the traditional ligh-lyric bel canto voice so she was successful in her portrayals of more dramatic operatic heroines which are heavier for the voice - Tosca, Aida, Norma, Madame Butterfly, etc. Her voice is huge, and I still think of her as a truly worthy interpretor of this role, just like Callas or Tebaldi before her.

Sherill Milnes in another great performance here. He was never trained in Europe and proved that Americans can sing just as great as the Europeans. Milnes' basso-cantante voice is darker than usual here, with powerful tones and superb musicality. Not one of his arias is a disappointment. Especially dramatic is his final scene in which he discovers that his love has killed herself. That cry of his! He's never sung better. While in other recordings he tends to sound a bit the same (Scarpia, Don Carlos in Forza Del Destino, Count Di Luna all sound similar to me when he sings them) he is self-conciously dramatic and changing his voice more so than in other performances. So if you're a fan of Sherill Milnes, this one is for you.

Agnes Baltsa fans will love her as La Cieca, the heroines blind mother. Baltsa sings with passion, dramatic declamation and easily adapts to the verisimo music, a welcome change from her bel canto and lyric repertoire. She holds her own and even seems to be trying to outshine Caballe. Baltsa has a rich, dark and huge voice, and I would imagine she could have sung soprano roles if she wanted to. But she is magnificent in her mezzo category, with a flair that is catchy. Look for other recordings of her including Carmen, Eboli in Don Carlos, Queen Elisabetta in Maria Stuarda, Romeo in Bellini's Capuleti E Montechi, La Cenerontola, Dalilah in Saint Saens Samson et Dalilah, Venus in Tannhauser and others. She's perhaps the most flexible and versatile mezzo-soprano of all time.

Bartoletti conducts with clarity, distinct flair, passion, beauty and dramatic pull. The orchestra produces golden moments, rich both in melody and powerful drama. This is no doubt the best played score of La Giaconda. Ultimately, perhaps this opera will not appear on recording or on stage anymore. The vocal demands are too much for today's mostly lyric singers who cant act their parts to save thir lives. So, while you can, get this recording to treasure this bygone opera. Pavarotti is priceless, Caballe is the best Gioconda to my ears, Sherill Milnes is wonderful here and Agnes Baltsa is a mezzo goddess. A wonderful, wonderful opera.

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Good performance, good sound and reasonably priced

Some time ago, I was trying to explain the unlikely plot of Gioconda to a friend who had heard excerpts from the piece and wanted to know more. I concluded that the sheer improbability of the whole business had to be granted, but I have a great affection for the opera. I got a puzzled look and a question about how these goings on are any more improbable than any number of the actions of Wagner's gods, incestuous twins or dukes in the form of swans. I guess you can add Azucena mistakenly throwing her son onto her mother's pyre or Forza's "Carlo One Note's" implacable desire for revenge into the mix. The point is that many repertory operas display less than ideal dramaturgy and are still wildly popular. I suspect one reason Gioconda isn't staged very often is the excessive demands it places upon the vocal and scenic resources of the opera company. This is the sort of extravagance that Lucy and Ethel produced when they attempted to write an operetta. But what fun it is! Ponchielli had a great gift for melody and any good rendering of the Gioconda/Laura/Enzo trio in the last act sends chills down the spine. The music for Barnaba and Alvise doesn't really interest me because the characters themselves aren't in the least appealing. A good mustache twirling is about all I expect. You can't go wrong with this recording. It has good singing from all the principals and they know how to "act" for the microphone. Caballe and Baltsa do particularly well with the vocal challenges. The gentlemen also do well vocally but they don't efface memories of earlier interpreters on disc. The recording is wide ranging and full bodied. While I prefer the earlier Decca efforts with Cerquetti/del Monaco/Simionato and Tebaldi/Bergonzi/Horne, this one is no slouch and definitely worth the price.

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Gold standard

This may not be the platonic ideal of Gioconda, but it is more than good enough for the connoisseur or first-time listener. The cast is all big-name (if you don't have such a lineup, the piece ins't worth listening to) and on their best behavior; one would be hard-pressed to bring together a cast this strong today. The fine orchestra lacks the proper italianità spirit, but you can't have everything.

Nice Singing, Great Sound, Boring Opera!

I bought this recording as I was unfamiliar with this Opera. I am not unfamiliar with the principal singers. The sound quality, and singing was great, however, the Opera (I found) to be downright boring. It just didn't have the Umpffffff of many of the Operas I'm accustomed to. I love the singing of Montserrat Caballe, sadly she doesn't do enough grand singing in this opera, with the exception of "Suicidio!", and her rendition is very weak compared to that of Maria Callas. So, I can't say this opera and this recording did it for me. I'm going to listen to the EMI recording with Maria Callas and see if I somehow can't find some redeeming qualities in this Opera.

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