Puccini - La Fanciulla del West / Zampieri, Domingo, Pons, Bertocchi, Maazel, La Scala Opera

The editorial review on these pages doesn't do La Fanciulla Del West justice. This is an opera on the same scale of achievement as La Boheme or Tosca. In many ways it contains the best elements of both those operas: the tenderness and human frailty of Boheme, and the dramatic pulse of Tosca. Furthermore, it was Puccini's most innovative and daring score to date, and listening to it today one is struck by how "modern" this 1910 opera sounds.The opera's Wild West setting is often sneered at, but it is no more ridiculous than the locale of the vast majority of operas. All that is required to enjoy this opera is a full-blooded sense of romanticism. Some listeners are disappointed at the lack of saccharine in Puccini's music (especially compared to the Big Three of Boheme, Tosca and Madama Butterfly), but in many ways La Fanciulla is all the more satisfying for its sparer melodic invention, and emphasis on music that underlines the dramatic goings-on rather than overdosing on the more "commercial tunes" of Puccini's earlier work. That's not to say there aren't crowd-pleasers in this opera - the tenor's Ch'ella Mi Creda is proof of that. But for the most part, the arias in this opera are so thoroughly integrated into the action that they don't stand out as discrete numbers to the first-time listener.Don't get me wrong, though - this IS a highly melodic opera, with scenes and arias as memorable as anything Puccini ever wrote. Jack Rance's Minnie Dalla Mia Casa, and Dick Johnson's dramatic Or Son Sei Mesi (which brings down the house in this performance) represent Puccini at his best. But often it is a phrase or a reflective moment in the score that leaves the greatest impression, such as when Dick Johnson looks at Minnie and sings almost conversationally: "When I look at you, I realise what I might have been." In such moments Puccini achieves the kind of musical "truth" that makes the listener say: "Yes, this is real life, or at least, life as it should be." As always with Puccini, his characterisations are fully three-dimensional, and indeed, the only thing preventing this opera from enjoying wider acclaim is that so little of its music can be readily "lifted" from the score in excerpt form.I have loved La Fanciulla since the age of 20, when I was lucky enough to see (and meet) Domingo at Covent Garden in November 1982. I saw two performances of the opera; on alternate nights Domingo was partnered by Carol Neblett and Marilyn Zschau. Unfortunately it was the lesser Neblett version that was first released on video - good though she was, her poor diction and whitish timbre grated, and the performance lacked fire in the orchestral and choral departments. This is an opera that requires in the role of Minnie a soprano with stentorian power, great top notes AND a beautiful timbre. A tall order, perhaps, but one which Mara Zampieri comes close to achieving in this 1991 production from La Scala.Zampieri has an unusual voice. Her timbre will not be to all tastes, I suspect, but I enjoyed her singing very much, notwithstanding several moments of suspect intonation. She doesn't QUITE reach the standard set by Barbara Daniel in the latter's definitive 1992 portrayal at the Met (also with Domingo, and available on video), but this is pretty satisfying nonetheless.Domingo, at the age of fifty, sounds almost as fresh as he did in the Covent Garden production, and if anything his high B Flats are freer in the celebrated Ch'ella Mi Creda than they were nine years earlier. He acts extremely well, and for my money this is his defining role (much more so than Otello), and his well-documented love for the role is abundantly obvious.Juan Pons is the most sympathetic Sheriff Rance that I have yet seen. His voice lends itself towards sympathy with its warm timbre reminiscent of a well-aged port. It's not an overly resonant voice - nor even a particularly large and powerful instrument - but I found his Jack Rance a thoroughly believable characterisation. (Interested viewers will no doubt want to compare Pons' performance with the much more malevolent Sherill Milnes interpretation in the 1992 Met production. Both have a lot going for them.)The chorus act well, but vocally need more cohesion and fire at several crucial moments - the capture of Dick Johnson's henchman in Act 1, and the capture of Johnson himself in Act 3, for example - and were noticeably off-key on a couple of occasions. Having said that, they certainly look the part of tough miners, and ultimately their lapses are relatively minor.Among the supporting cast, special praise should go to Antonio Salvadori in the role of Sonora. His baritone voice gives Juan Pons a run for his money, and furthermore he acts brilliantly, giving an often overlooked role genuine significance and pathos. Great stuff.Conductor Lorin Maazel employs unusually slow tempi throughout. I had mixed feelings about his approach, though he does bring out beautiful aspects of the score that I had never detected before. The card scene in Act 2 is riveting in its intensity, and Johnson's walk to the scaffold in Act 3 has never sounded more dramatic.The DVD has excellent sound and visuals. True, Act 2 is rather dark, but this only adds to the atmosphere. Besides, log cabins in the Wild West should look dark!Highly recommended.

This is the best DVD version of this opera. The NY Met, James Levine version is also very good, but this one is better. All the principal as well as the secondary performers are great. The orchestra and conductor are equally good. There are no weaknesses at any level from the sets to the costumes on up. This is rare when things jell at all levels and creates a sort of synergy in which the whole is greater then the sum of it's parts. Highly recommended.

After repeated viewings of this production, I also find it may be the one (out of my six versions!) that I return to the most.I'm very sorry that many others have been so hard on Ms. Zampieri. She really does manage to sing the hair off this thing! It's one of the most punishing roles in the soprano repertoire, calling for lyric sweetness, spinto grit, and quite a few dramatic soprano outbursts. I'll be a namedropper now: I remember Leonard Bernstein once over dinner (yes!) refer to the role as a "****ing bitch for ANY soprano to take on!" Turandot is almost a walk in the park compared to Minnie!Miller has put together a very workman-like production, which is beautifully conducted and sung. Domingo is at his peak, and Pons far more sonorous than Milnes.This by far Puccini's most complex score, and this production is far more than the sum of its parts!

I've had this dvd for several years and tried to watch it a couple of times. The sound quality in Act I is very poor, with the miners' heavy boots a major distraction, and I was so irritated I never watched the whole performance. I'd suggest turning your subwoofer way down. However, my wife and I saw the recent production at the Met and loved it, despite the interminable intermissions needed to strike the elaborate sets. When I got home I looked at Acts II and II on this and found them quite good, with Domingo (of course) doing a wonderful job. I don't have the quarrel with Zampieri that others do, and Pons was excellent.

This production was a real disappointment. First, I am just tired of singers who are 30 years or more older than the people they are protraying. There really is excellent young talent out there.I love the opera, but it takes a great director and great acting to save the libretto from seeming ridiculous. The acting here would not have passed muster in a high school play.The sound quality was part of the problem, but Zampieri was harsh and shrill. Domingo did not impress - especially with the acting. The Rance character did the best job both in singing and acting - and that was only good, not excellent.

A very good DVD of this famous opera.

was good

Beautiful music, great voices. The original American opera,set in the wild west!

great

Great performance of Vienna Opera, great performers, but several computers refused to play this DVD because of "wrong region". Despite that DVD description says "any region".

Dies ist nach langer Zeit, die dritte Inszenierung von Fanciulla del West, die ich gesehen habe (die ersten beiden waren live). Dieser Mitschnitt der Scala del Milano vereint alle Vorzüge, meiner bisherigen Erlebnisse mit dieser Oper.Das Orchester spielt unter Lorin Maazel die differenzierteste Werkinterpretation, die ich bislang live und auf Platte gehört habe!!! Allein deshalb, ist diese DVD empfehlenswert.Mara Zampieri ist als Minnie für mich eine Idealbesetzung - wie es durch diese DVD belegt wird - sie ist damit Maßstab für alle Nachfolgerinnen in dieser Rolle.Domingo und Pons sind gleichwertige Partner - ebenso die Besetzung der anderen Rollen.Ich denke, so wie auf diesem Mitschnitt sollte eine Fanciulla-Aufführung schon aussehen.

Superb performances in a beautiful production. Great chorus and orchestra.

Diese DVD bietet eine Aufzeichnung einer luxuriösen Aufführung der "Fanciulla del West" an der Mailänder Scala im Jahre 1991, dennoch wird man nicht recht froh damit.Puccinis Oper aus dem Jahre 1910 ist die Reverenz des Komponisten vor dem Land der unbegrenzten Möglichkeiten, in dem seine Werke große Erfolge gefeiert hatten. Das Libretto basiert auf einem Theaterstück von Belasco, das eine Liebesgeschichte im Cowboymilieu auf die Bühne stellt. Zum Unterschied zu Puccinis früheren Meisterwerken ist die Story aber nie wirklich mitreißend oder gar zu Herzen gehend: im Zentrum steht eine dürre Dreiecksgeschichte (die Konstellation ähnlich wie in der "Tosca"), die sich hier auf sentimentale Art löst. Rundherum gibt es reichlich Füllwerk - Genreszenen mit Cowboys, die raufen, tanzen oder Heimweh haben. Egal, wie das inszeniert ist, so etwas wirkt auf einer Opernbühne doch in erster Linie unfreiwillig komisch. Puccinis Partitur zeigt selbstverständlich in allen Details ausgereifte Meisterschaft und eine souveräne Instrumentation. Liegt's aber am Sujet, dass die Grenze zum Kitsch doch einige Male schmerzhaft überschritten wird ?Viel besser als hier kann das Werk wohl kaum dargeboten werden: Mara Zampieri in der Titelrolle ist eine veritable Sing-Schauspielerin mit großem darstellerischen Elan. Das Timbre ihrer Stimme und die unscharfe Intonation in den Höhen sind bekanntermaßen Geschmackssache. Placido Domingo präsentiert sich unangefochten in einer seiner (vielen) Glanzpartien; Juan Pons gefällt als der böse Sheriff Rance. Lorin Maazel holt das Maximum aus dem Scala-Orchester - und das ist in diesem Fall recht viel.Der Regisseur Jonathan Miller ist ein Meister des psychologischen Bühnenrealismus, im zweiten Akt wird es sogar ein wenig spannend. Die unsäglichen Cowboyszenen sind wahrscheinlich überhaupt nicht zu inszenieren.Die DVD basiert auf dem RAI-Mitschnitt und ist sonst sehr spartanisch gehalten: keine Extras, die Untertitel gibt es nur in Englisch. Immerhin liegt das Original-Textbuch in Italienisch bei.Zusammenfassend ist es also kein Wunder, wenn sich Puccinis "Fanciulla del West" nie so richtig an den Bühnen der Welt durchgesetzt hat. Nicht einmal in einer solchen aufwändigen und seriös gearbeiteten Aufführung kann das Werk überzeugen.