Tuesday, July 17, 2012

The Second Post: In which the author discusses the purpose of his blog


Welcome Back!

I would like to mention a few things about my blog and me. 

1.      I am not here to argue REGIE: Pro or Con. (Well, OK. I may be preaching some tolerance, at least!)  Although, it might be interesting to argue whether a particular production is Regie or just interesting (edit 10/03/12: Or just bad).

2.      I am not here (usually) to bust the divas and divos for messing up.  I am here to chat about opera productions I have enjoyed (or hated.)  And to find out what my readers (if there are any) think about it.  



3.      Occasional fluffed notes or skipped optional high notes do not count here. Well, they do if it’s a fluffed optional note and they would have been better off singing come scritto (like poor Natalie Dessay in the Decker Traviata at the Met. Oops I already broke "rule" 2.) People rag on Anna Netrebko for not singing high notes in the same production (caught in Salzburg on DVD). I would rather have the drama without the fireworks. (Both is better, but I admire a soprano who knows herself well enough to make a choice when necessary.)

4.      The word “Eurotrash” will never appear again in this blog. I don’t know who coined it, but it must have been someone who just didn’t get the production. Many of us will put down or make fun of something we don’t understand, rather than just admitting we don’t get it.  If you don’t get it, or don’t like it, that’s fine. Let's talk about why, but save your superior dance for someone else’s blog.

Well, that’s enough for now. Next time I will actually start talking about some operas. But for now, I leave you with this excerpt from La Clemenza di Tito. The first time I heard (or heard of) both Dorothea Röschmann and Luca Pisaroni (or Elina Garanca, for that matter).

Regie, or not Regie?



2 comments:

  1. Looks like an interesting production but is Harnoncourt's conducting like that all the way through? zzzzzzzzzzzzzz...............

    Good luck in your operablogospherical endeavors!

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  2. Yes, he takes a slow overall approach. Much like his Salzburg/Guth Figaro. However, in the long run (pun intended) one gets drawn into the pace of the production.

    While I enjoy the excerpts on YouTube it IS difficult to get a sense of the whole opera from one number. So please don't let Herr Harnoncourt's tempi deter you. Tito himself (Michael Schade) is pretty insane in this production, and sings beautifully, too.

    For ultimate speed, I recommend the first complete Tito I ever heard: Julia Varady with John Eliot Gardiner(audio only).

    http://youtu.be/vRt46QunKe8

    In addition to the frenetic tempo, I like the way Varady practically screams those high notes. (They are so boring when they are "pretty") She really sounds truly panicked!


    Thanks for stopping by; I appreciate your comments!

    ReplyDelete

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