Verdi - Alzira / Mescheriakova, Vargas, Gavanelli, L'Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, Fabio Luisi

Editorial Reviews
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Love, jealousy, vengeance, and forgiveness are the core emotions in this, the eighth of Verdi's 28 operas. Alzira is based on a play by Voltaire. What it lacks in fully developed, rounded characters and extended arias, it makes up in swift, sharply focused dramatic power. Some crudities of Verdi's early style are still present, but so is ample evidence of the composer's maturity: orchestral subtleties, glowing lyric moments, and, in the spacious buildup of the finale, a mastery that weaves together complex emotional and musical strands.

In the title role as the Inca princess pursued by the Spanish governor of Peru, Marina Mescheriakova is first-rate. She hones her big voice down to a whisper and also lets loose for the full-voiced, gorgeously phrased moments. Ramon Vargas is as effective, sounding like a young Domingo at times, his light lyric tenor expanding to fit the more muscular role of the rebel leader Zamoro, the heroine's true love. As the bad guy whose change of heart animates the theme of Christian forgiveness, Paulo Gavanelli displays a lean, bright baritone. He's equally effective in the character's obsessive deliriums and in his tender, dying turnaround. Fabio Luisi conducts stylishly, driving the drama along and drawing true Verdian phrasing from singers and orchestra. Even Verdi's lesser-known operas are worth hearing, and this worthy performance convinces that Alzira's neglect has been undeserved. --Dan Davis

Verdi - Alzira / Mescheriakova, Vargas, Gavanelli, L'Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, Fabio Luisi, Music, Giuseppe Verdi, Fabio Luisi, Ramón Vargas, Marina Mescheriakova, L'Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, Choeur du Grand Théâtre de Genève, Jana Iliev, Jovo Reljin, Slobodan Stankovic, Wolfgang Barta Paolo Gavanelli, Classical, Classical Music, Italian Romantic Opera, Opera, Opera / Operetta / Oratorio, Opera/Operetta

Verdi - Alzira / Mescheriakova, Vargas, Gavanelli, L'Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, Fabio Luisi
Average customer rating:

Good performance of neglected Verdi opera

Franca exageración: Verdi nunca vio calidad en Alzira...

This Recording is a good one of this Opera but theres better

Not Verdi's Greatest - but certainly worth hearing

Stick With Ernani

Verdi - Alzira / Mescheriakova, Vargas, Gavanelli, L'Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, Fabio Luisi
Giuseppe Verdi , Fabio Luisi , Ramón Vargas , Marina Mescheriakova , L'Orchestre de la Suisse Romande , Choeur du Grand Théâtre de Genève , and Jana Iliev, Jovo Reljin, Slobodan Stankovic, Wolfgang Barta Paolo Gavanelli
Manufacturer: Philips
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: B00005MG9O
Release Date: 2001-09-18

Tracks:

Sinf - L'Orchestra De La Suisse Romande/Fabio Luisi
Prologo: Muoia, Muoia, Coverto D'insulti - Torsten Kerl/Choeur Du Grand Theatre De Geneve/Guillaume Tourniaire
Prologo: A Costoro Quel Nume Perdoni - Slobodan Stankovic
Prologo: Un Inca... Eccesso Orrible! - Ramon Vargas
Atto Primo, Scena 1: Giunse Or Or, Da Lido Ispano - Choeur Du Grand Theatre De Geneve/Guillaume Tourniaire
Atto Primo, Scena 1: Alta Cagion Qui V'assembrava - Slobodan Stankovic
Atto Primo, Scena 1: Eterna La Memoria - Paolo Gavanelli
Atto Primo, Scena 2: Riposa - Jana Iliev
Atto Primo, Scena 2: Da Gusman, Su Fragil Barca - Marina Mescheriakova
Atto Primo, Scena 2: Figlia!... Padre! - Wolfgang Barta/Marina Mescheriakova
Atto Primo, Scena 2: Chi Fia? - Marina Mescheriakova
Atto Primo, Scena 2: Qual Ardimento! - Paolo Gavanelli
Atto Primo, Scena 2: Teco Sperai Combattere - Ramon Vargas
Atto Primo, Scena 2: Qual Suon? - Paolo Gavanelli
Atto Primo, Scena 2: Trema, Trema - Paolo Gavanelli

Tracks:

Atto Secondo, Scena 1: Mesci, Mesci! - Choeur Du Grand Theatre De Geneve/Guillaume Tourniaire
Atto Secondo, Scena 1: Guerrieri, Al Nuovo Di - Paolo Gavanelli
Atto Secondo, Scena 1: Il Pianto... L'angoscia - Marina Mescheriakova
Atto Secondo, Scena 1: Ei Mora! - Paolo Gavanelli
Atto Secondo, Scena 1: Colma Di Gioia Ho L'anima! - Paolo Gavanelli
Atto Secondo, Scena 2: Amici!... Ebben? - Torsten Kerl/Choeur Du Grand Theatre De Geneve/Guillaume Tourniaire/Jovo Reljin/Paolo Gavanelli...
Atto Secondo, Scena 2: Irne Lungi Ancor - Ramon Vargas
Atto Secondo, Scena 3: Tergi Del Pianto America - Choeur Du Grand Theatre De Geneve/Guillaume Tourniaire/Paolo Gavanelli/Marina Mescheriakova
Atto Secondo, Scena 3: Prodi Figli D'Iberia - Paolo Gavanelli
Atto Secondo, Scena 3: E' Dolce La Tromba - Paolo Gavanelli
Atto Secondo, Scena 3: Altre Virtudi, Insano - Paolo Gavanelli

Amazon.com

Love, jealousy, vengeance, and forgiveness are the core emotions in this, the eighth of Verdi's 28 operas. Alzira is based on a play by Voltaire. What it lacks in fully developed, rounded characters and extended arias, it makes up in swift, sharply focused dramatic power. Some crudities of Verdi's early style are still present, but so is ample evidence of the composer's maturity: orchestral subtleties, glowing lyric moments, and, in the spacious buildup of the finale, a mastery that weaves together complex emotional and musical strands.

Customer Reviews:

Good performance of neglected Verdi opera.......2004-08-09

Source: Studio recording made at Victoria Hall, Geneva, June 29-July 2, 1999.

Sound: Contemporary DDD standard.

Documentation: Libretto in German, Italian, English and French. Timed track listings. Summary of plot by act, keyed to recorded tracks. Portrait of Verdi at about the time of the premier of the opera. Photographs of the conductor and three most important principal singers. Essay on the circumstances of the opera's composition, its early performance history and status within Verdi's canon. No biographical information on cast or conductor. Nothing on the origin of this recording, save that it was done with the support of the Ville de Geneve.

Format: Two discs of 14 and 7 tracks, respectively. Total timing: 91:38.

"Alzira" is a much-maligned opera. It's most formidable critic was Giuseppe Verdi, who used the word "bruta"--ugly--to describe it. Unlike other ugly ducklings of his hatching, he disdained even to attempt to make improvements to it. "Alzira" dates from what Verdi called his years in the galley. It is one of three operas he composed and staged in a twelve-month period.

Verdi was the first composer to take up the practice of composing operas for a publisher rather than an impresario. "Alzira" came at a time when Verdi was temporarily on the outs with his publisher, Ricordi, so it was given to a rival publisher.

"Alzira" is based on a work by Voltaire. In 1845, that was a bold choice for an Italian composer. (When Verdi's hero, the great Manzoni, was reconciled to the Church, not many years later, his spiritual advisor forced him to burn his set of the collected works of Voltaire.) The librettist, Salvatore Cammarano, who had written the text of Lucia di Lammermoor ten years earlier, made a pre-emptive strike on the censors by ruthlessly casting out all vestiges of philosophy and wit, leaving a plot that was hot-headed but dumb-as-a-post.

The plot, for what it is worth, revolves around the follies of Zamoro, a tenor so bone-headed that he makes that prize chump, Manrico, look positively canny by comparison. Zamoro is the heir to the throne of the Incas. Captured and tortured by the Spanish conquerors prior to the beginning of the opera, he has escaped and made his way back to the free remnants of his people in time for the prologue. Not wanting his happy homecoming spoiled by bloodshed, he pardons Alvaro, the captured governor of Peru and sends him home. On being informed that his betrothed, Alzira, is a guest/prisoner of the Spanish government in Lima, he rouses his tribe and their allies for an attack on the town.

Act I opens in Lima where old Alvaro is handing over power to his son, his newly appointed successor as governor of Peru. The son, Gusmanno, is--of course!--in love with the unresponsive Alzira. Zamoro, alone and unarmed sneaks into Alzira's chamber and even manages to exchange a few loving words with her before he is captured for the second time. Gusmanno turns up and trades hot words with Zamoro, who manages to spill the beans about the forthcoming attack. The saintly Alvaro begs his son for Zamoro's life in repayment for the Inca's sparing of his own. Freed for the second time, Zamoro departs for his army, vowing all manner of bodily harm on Gusmanno.

At the beginning of Act II, Spanish soldiers are whooping it up with a jolly drinking song. And why shouldn't they? They have steam-rollered Zamoro's little rebellion and are watching the chain-laden survivors among their enemies stagger by. Zamoro, captured for the third time, has been condemned by the Spanish council and is awaiting the chop. Just as Gusmanno is about to sign the death warrant, Alzira offers her hand in exchange for Zamoro's life. Meanwhile, back in the jungle, the war leader of the Incas reveals how he has used gold, so beloved by the Spaniards, as a bribe for Zamoro's release. Free for the third time, Zamoro turns up. On learning that Alzira is about to marry Gusmanno, Zamoro decides that he has been ill-used and betrayed. The only thing he can think to do is abandon his people and run off to Lima--again. In Lima, Gusmanno is just about to marry Alzira when a man leaps out of the crowd and stabs him. It's Zamora, of course. He is promptly captured for the fourth time. Gusmanno, dying, hears Zamoro denounce Alzira for unfaithfulness. Fading away but still game, Gusmanno, explains to his homicidal rival that Alzira was just marrying to save Zamoro's life. He joins to two lovers, blesses them and expires while seeking his own blessing from the saintly Alvaro.

(A speculative question: could Don Alvaro of "La forza del destino" be the son of Alzira and Zamora, and named after the aforesaid saintly individual?)

Musically, "Alzira" rises above its beef-witted plot. Although there is not sign of a hit tune anywhere in it, its choruses rollick and its finales roll on triumphantly. The texture of the piece is fully Verdian and surprisingly enjoyable, provided one pays no attention to the silly story.

Ramon Vargas does very well as Zamora, although the role cries out for Mario del Monaco at his most leather-lunged. Paolo Gavanelli, the Gusmanno, sings the lyric portions of his part with considerable elegance, although he tends to fade a bit in the more excited passages. Marina Mescheriakova has a thankless part as Alzira. She sings well-enough to make me want to hear her sing something offering more opportunity. The rest of the cast sings well. Both chorus and orchestra are in good form. Fabio Luisi's conducting is intelligent and propulsive.

A good performance of a Verdian semi-clunker is still worth five stars.

Franca exageración: Verdi nunca vio calidad en Alzira..........2003-11-23

Dentro de la gran producción lírica del maestro Verdi, conformada por 28 óperas, ciertamente hay un grupo de títulos que conforman una faceta muy poco divulgada. En oposición a muchas óperas donde se sustenta la gran popularidad verdiana, figura otro pequeño grupo integrado principalmente por: "Oberto", "Jerusalem", "La batalla de Legnano", "El corsario", "Aroldo" y "Alzira".

Hablemos de "Alzira, entonces...

El tema de esta ópera - no elegido por Verdi - era un drama de Voltaire, estrenado en 1736, titulado "Alzira o Los Americanos".

"Alzira" posee la particularidad de emplazarse en América, concretamente en el Perú, a mediados del Siglo 16, esto es en pleno período de las conquistas españolas. Tiene también la especial característica de ser una ópera inusualmente breve dentro del repertorio verdiano. Su duración es de sólo 1 hora y media.

Por documentos y testigos se tiene constancia de que, sin dudas pecando de lo que hoy puede calificarse de franca exageración, Giuseppe Verdi nunca vio calidad en "Alzira" e incluso llego a despreciarla.

Se dice que años más tarde Verdi se habría referido a "Alzira" con la dura sentencia "Quella e proprio bruta" ("Es verdaderamente horrible"). No obstante la oscuridad en que se sumió "Alzira" por mucho tiempo, el siglo 20 sería generoso con ella.

En 2001, con motivo de conmemorarse los 100 años de la muerte de Verdi, el sello Philips editó una grabación de "Alzira".

Esta obra tiene méritos considerables, sobre todo en los finales. Les recomiendo que escuchen de esta obra ---> Scena e cavatina: "Riposa. Tutte in sour, dolor vegliante... Da Gusman", además del "aria e cabaletta" de Zamoro del Acto I.

Marina Mescheriakova refulge (acompañada por la orquesta: La Suisse Romande)como la princesa Inca (Alzira), pero es La soprano Monserrat Caballé la que la canta magistralmente!!...

This Recording is a good one of this Opera but theres better.......2002-06-27

This is a good recording of this opera. Vargas has a lovely voice, as does Mescheriakova. There are definitely some gems in this otherwise strange opera. The scene which opens with Alzira is beatiful. And while this is a good recording the best recording of this opera remains the Gardelli conducted Alzira, featuring Vargas fellow mexican Araiza, with the incomparable Cotrubas, Rootering, and Bruson. The recording is in good sound, and while it may not be packaged as pretty. It is by far superior.

Not Verdi's Greatest - but certainly worth hearing.......2002-03-27

I confess it - I love early Verdi. I am always drawn to new recordings of works like this because with a fine cast and conductor they usually give great pleasure. So it is here in the much maligned "Alzira". The main drawbacks of the piece are dramatic, not musical - the plot is very thin, and the characters don't develop to any significant extent. We are left with stock situations in a rather exotic location, and I'm sure that the opera would be a total headache to bring to the stage.

Luckily, it clearly can be made to work in the recording studio. The music is middling Verdi with patches of excellence. For example, Alzira's Act 1 reverie, her duet with Gusman in Act 2 (echoes of Leonora and di Luna, anyone?), Zamoro's aria and cabaletta in the same act and the finale - a really fine ensemble which tells us that this composer will eventually write Act 3 of Otello. Certainly much of the music is rather formulaic and it lacks the genius and inventiveness of later works, but I'd rather hear middle-of-the-road Verdi than a lot of what we encounter.

The recording is excellent - La Suisse Romande, under Fabio Luisi, give real verve and drive to the score. Mescheriakova has a gorgeously rich, bright soprano over which she has ample control of dynamics and enough agility to sketch in the occasional coloratura flights. She make as much as she can of the title role which must be a frustrating sing, as her music and character are just too limited for her performance truly to take flight. Vargas, too, has some really heroic moments in the context of an attractive, lyrical vocal performance, the best I have yet heard from this valuable young tenor, and Gavanelli (though his fast vibrato and slender tone limit his dramatic effectiveness) turns in a creditable performance. Smaller roles are unexceptionable.

A find, then - it's not a masterpiece, but there's plenty to keep Verdi-curious or Verdi-loving listeners occupied, and the performance is very good indeed.

Stick With Ernani.......2002-02-21

This Opera is a good try by Verdi and by Philips. The story and music match Ernani. One could say Alzira is an Ernani mock-up. In fact, as you listen to ALzira you will keep expecting Ernani. Every aria, ensemble, cabaletta starts off like the equivalent in Ernani and then goes nowhere. The orchestra, conducting and singing except for Gavanelli are very good. Gavanelli's nasal baritone and extreme tremolo will drive you to extraction. You will enjoy any of the Ernani's far more. I have three---Muti's being my favorite. If you must have something new from early Verdi, and you already have Ernani, go with Giovanna d'Arco, I Due Foscari, I Lombardi, Louisa Miller, I Masnadieri, Macbetto and Nabucco. Those with Monserrat Caballe
are outstanding.

Track Listings:

Track Listings

track listings

Track Listings

Left to His Own Devices

Partita in a Minor / Capriccio / My Lagan Love

Ragtime Jug Stompers [Import]

Jazz Music: "NIGHT OF THE CORAL"

Live [Import]

Random [Import]

Poet in New York

Peter Frankl Plays Chopin

Music Is Magic

Same

Remain in Light

Night in Havana [Import]

Quiero Decirte

Complete Recorded Works, Vol. 9: (1934-1951)

At the Opera House