Gaetano Donizetti (1797 -1848)
Lucia di Lammermoor (1835)
Lucia – Lisette Oropesa (soprano); Edgardo – Stefan Pop (tenor); Enrico – Mattia Olivieri (baritone); Raimondo – Riccardo Zanellato (bass)
Orchestra and Chorus of the Teatro Massimo Bellini di Catania/Fabrizio Maria Carminati
rec. 2024, Teatro Sangiorgi, Catania, Italy
EuroArts 8024211175 SACD [2 discs: 141]
There have been several fine recordings of Lucia di Lammermoor over the decades. Opera lovers have much to divide themselves over when it comes to choosing a complete recording of this opera. There have been versions featuring Lily Pons, Maria Callas, Joan Sutherland, Beverly Sills, Monserrat Caballé, Renata Scotto, Roberta Peters, Anna Moffo, Edita Gruberova and Cheryl Studer. This new release from EuroArts captures the performance of current star soprano Lisette Oropesa (she leads in a new production of I Puritani in New York as I write this). Donizetti’s 1835 Gothic drama already has a pretty well stocked stable of thoroughbreds to choose from. Sadly, this newcomer simply can’t compete with the any of the above named versions in almost every regard.
The main reason for acquiring this recording is to sample the lustrous warbling of Oropesa portraying the title role. Her voice gleams and shimmers throughout. This voice is simply fascinating and she presents a deeply fragile heroine whose gradual descent into madness is quite believable. On the plus side of things she also uses a unique and unusually lengthy cadenza with which to conclude the mad scene. She also opts for not inserting the high note so often encountered at the end of the cadenza. This is absolutely correct for the dramatic momentum at this point, especially in conjunction with the music that comes after it. Oropesa does conclude her final cabaletta with a lengthy high E flat (which she curiously holds onto much longer than any other soprano I’ve ever heard before). Rather more to my taste is the gorgeous chiaroscuro quality of her lowest register which features regularly throughout the opera. Also a highlight is the refreshing rhythmic accuracy she gives to the value of each note in her florid music. This is very reminiscent of the same quality in Beverly Sills’ assumption of Lucia on the Schippers recording.
Stefan Pop’s Edgardo is really rather disappointing. He can produce attractive tone at times but too often he pushes, and dry-sounding tones will creep into the voice. He could also attempt more sensitivity in the phrasing of his lines than he does here.
Mattia Olivieri’s Enrico also has a tendency to wear down the listener; too often his sound is throaty and parched, with occasional resorting to bluster. He does attempt to energize his music dramatically but there is little in the way of smooth phrasing of the vocal line which is so essential when playing the villain. Some of the fault here may lie in the recording itself, which has a harshly lit quality, potentially overemphasizing the problems with both Olivieri and Popp.
Riccardo Zanellato’s Raimondo Bidebent is an authoritative portrait of the old cleric but his lack of firm low notes is a distinct liability, and alas he has to take a back seat to basses from the past, including Cesare Siepi and Samuel Ramey.
Didier Pieri makes a real attempt to sing the ill-fated Arturo sensitively (rather more so than most of the other gentlemen in this cast); however, even he disappoints as he has to lunge to attain the few top notes that he is granted by the composer.
Fabrizio Maria Carminati leads the Orchestra and Chorus of the Teatro Massimo Bellini di Catania in a stop-and-go rendition of Donizetti’s most atmospherically moody score. Sometimes things seem hurried and at others things seem to drag on painfully. A good example is the prelude to Act Two, which is presented in a very limp fashion indeed – yet every now and then flashes of insight will intrude in Carminati’s reading. This is the first recording I have ever come across which properly transmits the eerie effect of the little shivers in the strings that precede Lucia’s arrival onstage for the Mad Scene in Act Three. It is a pity that more such details were not observed during the recording sessions. The over-bright and shallow recording quality that emerged from these sessions does not help matters any, especially in the orchestral sound. Possibly the small auditorium used is as much the culprit as is the team of recording engineers.
Euroarts has not provided any libretto with this recording, and it is worth mentioning that this is a very complete version of the score, without many of the traditional cuts that were observed in the versions by Pons, Callas, Peters and Scotto. This set is likely to appeal only to those fans of Oropesa who want a souvenir of her performance in the title role. It is certainly the best single feature of this release; however, I would recommend turning to Sutherland’s or Sills’ classic sets among complete recordings. For something closer to today, Cheryl Studer’s version has many merits that outpace this new version. For many lovers of bel-canto, the recordings by Maria Callas and Renata Scotto are quite unforgettable although they suffer from standard performance cuts. Any of the above mentioned recordings are a much more enthralling experience overall than this new EuroArts version.
Mike Parr
Buying this recording via the link below generates revenue for MWI, which helps the site remain free
Other cast
Arturo – Didier Pieri (tenor)
Alisa – Irene Savignano (mezzo)
Normanno – Dean Power (tenor)
Alternate versions cited
Anna Moffo: (review)
Maria Callas: (review), (review)
Renata Scotto: (review)
Joan Sutherland: (review)
