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Works:
PROKOFIEV : Betrothal In A Monastery
Artists:
Viascheslav Voynarovskiy Don Jerome
Andrey Breus Ferdinand
Lyubov Petrova Louisa
Alexandra Durseneva The Duenna
Vsevolod Grivnov Don Antonio
Nino Surguladze Clara
Sergei Alexashkin Mendoza
Alan Opie Don Carlos
London Philharmonic Orchestra
The Glyndebourne Chorus
Vladimir Jurowski conductor
Recorded live at Glyndebourne on 12, 15 & 22 August 2006. A recording of a rarely performed work with
consummate Russian conductor and cast.
Luxury 256-page hard-bound book packaging contains
essay by Harlow Robinson, synopsis in English, French and German, and full libretto in Cyrillic, English, French
and German.
Prokofiev composed his last complete opera, Betrothal in a
Monastery, as the Nazis were invading Russia and the country
descended into a period of political repression and terror. However, the opera, a romantic comedy loosely based on Richard Sheridan’s 1775 play, The Duenna, was according to Shostakovich ‘one of Prokofiev’s most radiant and buoyant works’. Betrothal in a
Monastery highlights the cultural divisions between the faded
glamour of the impoverished aristocracy and the new wealth of
the lower classes. Ostensibly the plot concerns the trials of two pairs of lovers, Louisa and Antonio, and Clara and Ferdinand, but ultimately it is the fishmonger, Mendoza, who in the great tradition of the anti-hero, wins our empathy.
The predominantly Russian cast is led by Viacheslav Voynarovskiy, with Sergei Alexashkin as Mendoza. Alexandra Durseneva sings
The Duenna, with the two sets of lovers sung by Vsevolod
Grivnov (Don Antonio), Lyubov Petrova (Louisa), Andrey Breus
(Ferdinand), and Nino Surguladze (Clara) making her notable Glyndebourne debut. Established UK artists Alan Opie (Don
Carlos) and Jonathan Veira (Father Augustine) make up the cast.
‘It’s a score that Vladimir Jurowski plainly loves, and he coaxes and cajoles
a fabulous range of seductive and coquettish and downright bawdy colours
from the London Philharmonic Orchestra. It can never have sounded better.’
The Independent, 2006
‘The performance is first-rate… A flawless cast.’
The Daily Telegraph, 2006
‘The singers all relish Prokofiev’s infectious melodies … but the outstanding performance is Nino Surguladze as Clara, who also has Prokofiev’s finest music to sing.’
The Guardian, 2006
‘Thanks to Jurowski’s rapport with the London Philharmonic, the music sounds not just mercurial but also good enough to listen to without stage pictures…’
Financial Times, 2006
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Works:
MOZART: Le Nozze Di Figaro.
Artists:
Mirella Freni Susanna
Heinz Blankenburg Figaro
Gabriel Bacquier Count Almaviva
Leyla Gencer Countess Almaviva
Edith Mathis Cherubino
Carlo Cava Dr. Bartolo
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
The Glyndebourne Chorus
Silvio Varviso conductor
Recorded live at Glyndebourne on 9 June 1962. A rare
recording of a Glyndebourne signature piece from the 1962 Festival with a vintage cast.
Luxury 320-page hard-bound book packaging contains
essay by David Cairns, synopsis in English, French and
German, and full libretto in Italian, English, French
and German.
Le nozze di Figaro has been Glyndebourne’s ‘signature’ opera
since the company was founded in 1934. To the social satire of Beaumarchais’s original play da Ponte added the sparkling bustle of Italian intrigue, and Mozart a miraculous, fizzing score whose music rings variations on the pains, pleasure and follies of the human heart.
This recording of the 1962 Glyndebourne production features a
vintage cast with Heinz Blankenburg in the title role, Mirella
Freni as Susanna, who had made her international breakthrough at Glyndebourne the previous summer. Silvio Varviso conducts and his ‘elegant touch for opera’ (New York Times) is much in evidence.
‘As ususal with Glyndebourne the cast works brilliantly as a team. A classic.’
Richard Wigmore - The Telegraph, 2008
‘It will surprise no-one who saw her Zerlina here last year or recently at Covent Garden that Miss Freni makes an enchanting Susanna, but Mr Blankenburg’s Figaro is new to English audiences and is entirely worthy of her, concealing a wealth of energy and passion beneath his chubby smile.’
The Times, 1962
‘… In Silvio Varviso, Glyndebourne have found a conductor who can
communicate Mozart’s warmth of heart and amazing complexity of mood
as well as his brilliance and gaiety.’
The Observer, 1962
‘With his [Varviso’s] conducting the listener was not so much conscious of
the music as charmed and consumed by it – and in the end entranced by its
eternal beauty.’
Daily Express, 1962
‘… the performance brought us closer to the spirit of Mozart and of
Glyndebourne than anything else that we can see in this delightful opera
house. … One of the very finest performances of the opera that I have seen.’
Music and Musicians, 1962
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