I love opera, and have done for well over a decade now. Il Trovatore is one of Verdi's best, not quite top 5 Verdi for me, but definitely top 10. Some of the story is on the convoluted side, that said the music is magnificent and perhaps Verdi's most melodically rich score.
As much as I loved the 1978 and 1988(that gets a lot of maligning but I personally loved it) productions, I feel this 1957 performance is the best one on DVD. True, the black and white picture quality is grainy, the lip synching excepting Bastianini and Del Monaco is sub-par, some of the sets are artificial(especially the painted clouds) and the audio drifts in and out making some of the crescendos not as powerful as they should have been.
But despite all this, dramatically and musically this Trovatore is fantastic. The prologue sung by Ferrando is very rousing, the Anvil Chorus has a lot of joy and amused me somewhat and the ending was incredibly brutal and stomach-churning, exactly what it should be like.
The orchestra are superb, the legato and pathos are there in D'Amor Sull'Alli Rosee, Stride La Vampa is stylish with the ornamentations never clunky and the whole fourth act is done with so much power. The ensembles are truly thrilling, especially the end of act 1. The conducting brings out the drama of the score perfectly.
Once you get past the sets and picture quality, I thought the costumes were quite good, especially DiLuna's, which made him look noble as he should do. Likewise with the make-up, Barbieri in particular looks the part of Azucena. The staging makes the performance even more powerful than it already is, the standouts for me were Misere and the Convent Scene.
You couldn't have asked for five more perfect lead performances. Plinio Clabassi lends his firm bass voice to Ferrando, and his performance is very rousing both vocally and dramatically.
After seeing Mario Del Monaco as Manrico, I've actually changed my mind on Franco Bonisolli being the most thrilling Manrico. Monaco is simply brilliant in the role, he is handsome and incredibly powerful vocally. Di Quella Pira has all the ping it should do, and you can tell he is feeling every word and note he's singing in Ah So Ben Mio. He is also so into it in terms of acting, that you actually forgive that in act 4 with all the flashing eyes and Lugosi poses that the acting occasionally is on the heavy side.
Ettore Bastianini couldn't have been a more commanding DiLuna. As much as I did love Cappuccilli, Milnes and Zancanaro in the role, I consider Bastianini the finest DiLuna. As well as acting quite menacing in the end of act 1 and in the act 4 duet between him and Gencer's Leonora, he shows a human and sympathetic side which is perfectly shown in Il Balen. Vocally, he is rich and velvety as well, Il Balen shows beauty of tone as well as ringing pianissimos and controlled legato.
Fedora Barbieri is alongside Cossotto and Arkhipova one of the best Azucenas I know of. Stride Le Vampa is outstandingly good in dramatic delivery and style, and she not only has the fierce chest notes but her high notes also have beauty and resonance as shown in the trio towards the end.
I thought the star was Leyla Gencer. Of the seven Trovatore productions I've seen(1978, 1988, 1983, 1985, 1972, 2002 and this), Gencer is the most consistent Leonora by a country mile(Caballe took that prize before I saw this performance). She is very believable in showing her pain and desperation in act 4 and her chemistry with Monaco is definitely evident. When it comes to the singing, she shows the chest notes of a mezzo and has the floating high notes of a true Verdi soprano, especially in Tacea La Notte. She also deserves credit for her musicianship, there are some exquisite soft singing and Tacea La Notte and D'Amor Sull'Alli Rosee shows a lot of pathos and elegance.
All in all, not absolutely perfect, but it is a must see for fans of these singers or Verdi's opera. 10/10 Bethany Cox
As much as I loved the 1978 and 1988(that gets a lot of maligning but I personally loved it) productions, I feel this 1957 performance is the best one on DVD. True, the black and white picture quality is grainy, the lip synching excepting Bastianini and Del Monaco is sub-par, some of the sets are artificial(especially the painted clouds) and the audio drifts in and out making some of the crescendos not as powerful as they should have been.
But despite all this, dramatically and musically this Trovatore is fantastic. The prologue sung by Ferrando is very rousing, the Anvil Chorus has a lot of joy and amused me somewhat and the ending was incredibly brutal and stomach-churning, exactly what it should be like.
The orchestra are superb, the legato and pathos are there in D'Amor Sull'Alli Rosee, Stride La Vampa is stylish with the ornamentations never clunky and the whole fourth act is done with so much power. The ensembles are truly thrilling, especially the end of act 1. The conducting brings out the drama of the score perfectly.
Once you get past the sets and picture quality, I thought the costumes were quite good, especially DiLuna's, which made him look noble as he should do. Likewise with the make-up, Barbieri in particular looks the part of Azucena. The staging makes the performance even more powerful than it already is, the standouts for me were Misere and the Convent Scene.
You couldn't have asked for five more perfect lead performances. Plinio Clabassi lends his firm bass voice to Ferrando, and his performance is very rousing both vocally and dramatically.
After seeing Mario Del Monaco as Manrico, I've actually changed my mind on Franco Bonisolli being the most thrilling Manrico. Monaco is simply brilliant in the role, he is handsome and incredibly powerful vocally. Di Quella Pira has all the ping it should do, and you can tell he is feeling every word and note he's singing in Ah So Ben Mio. He is also so into it in terms of acting, that you actually forgive that in act 4 with all the flashing eyes and Lugosi poses that the acting occasionally is on the heavy side.
Ettore Bastianini couldn't have been a more commanding DiLuna. As much as I did love Cappuccilli, Milnes and Zancanaro in the role, I consider Bastianini the finest DiLuna. As well as acting quite menacing in the end of act 1 and in the act 4 duet between him and Gencer's Leonora, he shows a human and sympathetic side which is perfectly shown in Il Balen. Vocally, he is rich and velvety as well, Il Balen shows beauty of tone as well as ringing pianissimos and controlled legato.
Fedora Barbieri is alongside Cossotto and Arkhipova one of the best Azucenas I know of. Stride Le Vampa is outstandingly good in dramatic delivery and style, and she not only has the fierce chest notes but her high notes also have beauty and resonance as shown in the trio towards the end.
I thought the star was Leyla Gencer. Of the seven Trovatore productions I've seen(1978, 1988, 1983, 1985, 1972, 2002 and this), Gencer is the most consistent Leonora by a country mile(Caballe took that prize before I saw this performance). She is very believable in showing her pain and desperation in act 4 and her chemistry with Monaco is definitely evident. When it comes to the singing, she shows the chest notes of a mezzo and has the floating high notes of a true Verdi soprano, especially in Tacea La Notte. She also deserves credit for her musicianship, there are some exquisite soft singing and Tacea La Notte and D'Amor Sull'Alli Rosee shows a lot of pathos and elegance.
All in all, not absolutely perfect, but it is a must see for fans of these singers or Verdi's opera. 10/10 Bethany Cox
