“Pagliacci” is often celebrated as one of the finest examples of verismo, or realist opera. It is even based on a true story: Leoncavallo’s father, a judge, once presided over the trial of an actor who, in a fit of jealousy, murdered his wife immediately following a performance. “Pagliacci” is frequently performed along with Mascagni’s one-acter “Cavalleria Rusticana”. Director and conductor Herbert von Karajan does not simply recreate a standard work; rather, he examines, it, psychoanalyzes its protagonists, lays bare the people behind the masks. In the process, he also makes a magnificent musical statement. Karajan is obsessed with faces – open, shadowed, distorted – suggesting his belief in the adage that eyes are the windows of the mind and the soul. Through elaborate intercutting from four or five cameras, he moves stealthfully from members of the crowd to his principals and back, gradually tightening the dramatic knot which binds them all together in this tale of love, hate and retribution. Joining the superb Jon Vickers is soprano Raina Kabaivanska as Nedda. Hers is a brilliant, multi-faceted performance of fascinating detail. The fine Tonio is Peter Glossop; George Wakhevitch designed the elaborate setting, the square of an Italian village.
Beethoven, Symphony No.7 in A major, op.92
After four years of symphonic silence, Beethoven presented Vienna with his Seventh Symphony in 1813. The first performance of this work was a spectacular event. The long awaited Seventh was completed in May 1812 when the Austrian capital was recovering from the French occupation. The defeat of Napoleon’s armies made the concert an occasion for celebration, and this historical event helped ensure the work’s enormous popularity and the composer’s lasting fame. The Seventh Symphony is essentially rhythmic, rather then thematic, to such a degree that Wagner called it “an apotheosis of the dance”. it is one of the best examples of how Beethoven used simple harmonies and filled them with energetic, repetitive rhythms, which never become monotonous because of the fresh harmonic progressions that accompany them. Karl Böhm rehearses the Wiener Symphoniker in this recording made in the mid 1960s.
Rehearsal for Beethoven, Symphony No.7 in A major, op.92
After four years of symphonic silence, Beethoven presented Vienna with his Seventh Symphony in 1813. The first performance of this work was a spectacular event. The long awaited Seventh was completed in May 1812 when the Austrian capital was recovering from the French occupation. The defeat of Napoleon’s armies made the concert an occasion for celebration, and this historical event helped ensure the work’s enormous popularity and the composer’s lasting fame. The Seventh Symphony is essentially rhythmic, rather then thematic, to such a degree that Wagner called it “an apotheosis of the dance”. it is one of the best examples of how Beethoven used simple harmonies and filled them with energetic, repetitive rhythms, which never become monotonous because of the fresh harmonic progressions that accompany them. Karl Böhm rehearses the Wiener Symphoniker in this recording made in the mid 1960s.
Schubert, Symphony No.7 in C major, D. 944
In the throes of his mortal illness, Franz Schubert (1797-1828) heroically succeeded in putting to paper his splendid last symphony, whose “divine lengths” are truly unique. Composed in 1825/26, Schubert’s largest symphonic work was first discovered after his death by Robert Schumann and first performed one year later, in 1839, by Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy in the Leipzig Gewandhaus. In marked contrast to the equally beloved “Unfinished” Symphony, Schubert devises a labyrinth of harmonies in a piece full of artless directness and joyful dance-like rhythms. Echoes of the visionary secrets of Romanticism surface from the depths of the work, only to be washed away by the inexorable current of the melodies. Never did Schubert write with such a lavish and impetuous hand than in his Ninth Symphony: “…it bears the eternal seed of youth within it.” (Robert Schumann) Karl Böhm conducts the Wiener Symphoniker in this recording made in the mid 1960s.
Schubert, Mass in E flat major No.6, D. 950
Little is known about the origin of the Mass No. 6 other than that Schubert wrote it in 1828, just a few months before his death. He does not seem to have had a specific performance in mind, and the work was only premiered in November 1829, a year after his death. Critics have since given the Mass an honored place among the composer’s great works, many ranking it as his finest church composition. Although Schubert calls for five soloists (soprano, alto, two tenors and bass), the Mass is essentially a choral Mass. The composer calls for a large orchestra, including three trombones, but he omits the flutes and keeps the violins in their lower register, thereby giving the piece a dark, shaded tone. Schubert’s E flat major Mass was recorded at the Court Music Chapel (“Hofmusikkapelle”) in Vienna in June 1976. The eminent conductor Karl Böhm leads the Vienna Philharmonic and the male choir of the Hofmusikkapelle. The upper registers are provided by the world-renowned Vienna Boys’ Choir. The distinguished soloists are Walter Berry, Peter Schreier and Hans Krenn. Schubert’s E flat major Mass was recorded at the Court Music Chapel (“Hofmusikkapelle”) in Vienna in June 1976. The eminent conductor Karl Böhm leads the Vienna Philharmonic and the male choir of the Hofmusikkapelle. The upper registers are provided by the world-renowned Vienna Boys’ Choir. The distinguished soloists are Walter Berry, Peter Schreier and Hans Krenn.
La Cenerentola
The popularity of Rossini’s delightful fairy-tale opera is, to a great extent, due to Jean-Pierre Ponnelle’s now legendary production, first seen at La Scala of Milan in 1971. Claudio Abbado, who was then the artistic director of La Scala, has put together for this production a cast – including Frederica von Stade, Francisco Araiza and Paolo Montarsolo – that boasts an outstanding affinity for Rossini’s humor in addition to peerless musicality.
Il Barbiere di Siviglia (The Barber of Seville)
Based on Jean-Pierre Ponnelle’s highly acclaimed Salzburg production, the action was filmed in a Munich studio, while the voices and music were taped in Milan, using the Scala orchestra and chorus. The brilliant cast includes Teresa Berganza, Hermann Prey, Luigi Alva and Enzo Dara, all great names in the international operatic world.
Beethoven, Symphony No.9 in D minor, op.125
Recorded live at the Berlin “Philharmonie” on New Year’s Eve 1977, this rousing interpretation of Beethoven’s most popular symphony with the Berlin Philharmonic under Herbert von Karajan weaves a rich tapestry of emotional contrasts. The Ninth is an affirmation of optimism and beauty, written when Beethoven was almost completely deaf. The final movement is considered by many to be the composer’s crowning glory. It had been Beethoven’s lifelong dream to set Schiller’s “Ode to Joy” to music, for the poem put into words Beethoven’s most impassioned desire: peace and brotherhood in the world. Giving eloquent voice to this plea are the world-renowned soloists Anna Tomowa-Sintow, Agnes Baltsa, René Kollo and José van Dam.
Beethoven, Symphony No.9 in D minor, op.125 “Choral”
When, in the mid 1960s, Herbert von Karajan decided to record on film all nine Beethoven symphonies with the Berlin Philharmonic, he began with the “Fifth” and asked the famous French movie director Henri-Georges Clouzot (Quai des Orfèvres) to direct. Recognizing in the music-loving director a kindred soul and master of the symbolic image, Karajan found an inspired partner. In another of Karajan’s first efforts, he asked six directors to “stage” one movement each of a Beethoven symphony. For a full week, the directors had the Berlin Philharmonic and Herbert von Karajan – all in full dress – at their disposal, with all the 35mm film, cameras, lighting and technical assistance they needed. Karajan’s most controversial production was Hugo Niebeling’s highly personal interpretation of the “Pastorale”, with its abstract shots of instruments, rapid rhythms, fade-ins and symbolically arranged colors.
Le Nozze di Figaro (The Marriage of Figaro)
Few conductors have mastered the fluidity of melodic control, the rhythmic drive and the dramatic characterization of Mozart’s operas to the extent of Karl Böhm. This production, filmed in London in 1976, abounds in splendid singers, all of whom give performances of the highest vocal and dramatic distinction: Hermann Prey is the definitive Figaro, charming in his vigorous self-confidence; Mirella Freni’s Susanna is a personification of innocence and beauty; Kiri Te Kanawa’s Countess is a touching portrait of wronged womanhood; Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau’s Count is a deceitfully flirtatious despot; and Maria Ewing’s Cherubino is a passionate study of adolescent naivety. Böhm’s wonderfully supple conducting reflects his lifelong devotion to Mozart. Jean-Pierre Ponnelle’s direction perfectly translates the polished stylishness and the beauty and warmth of Böhm’s musical direction into scenes and character portrayals of luminous naturalness. “And what a gloriously photogenic and euphonious cast led by the uniquely differentiated quartet of Fischer-Dieskau’s subtle Count Almaviva versus Hermann Prey’s defiant Figaro, and Kiri Te Kanawa’s honeyed Countess versus Mirella Freni’s not at all playful Susanna. Great singers all, they were guided by Ponnelle in a production without a moment of cliché¿ The playing of the Vienna Philharmonic under Böhm couldn’t have been more Mozartian.” (The Daily Telegraph, 9.3.77) “A million-dollar TV Figaro that improves on the original… Productions of this caliber have been televised from stages before, but never has the dramatic and visual potential of opera freed from such constraints been so ambitiously addressed. The result is eye-opening, and despite an occasional overuse of the new tools, the production establishes beyond doubt that the TV screen can add an important new dimension to the operatic experience.” (The Washington Post, 5.10.77)