Column inches
La Cieca’s curiosity is always aroused when a journalist probes with really penetrating questions. For example, how long is too long? Is bigger always better? And which is more satisfying: cut or uncut? That’s the thrust of Tony Tommasini‘s hard-hitting column in today’s NYT.
Now, if you’re ejaculating, “This thing looks familiar,” well, that’s about the size of it, because it’s a retooled version of a 2000 piece:
Later in the act, Walther sees Eva and, overcome, sings his song for her straight through. This somewhat spoils the effect of the song in the third act, where it should come upon Eva, and the mastersingers who are judging the contest, as a revelation. You could argue that the first performance is private and the second, more lavishly orchestrated one is public. My guess is that Wagner knew he had a hit tune here and could not help milking it.
Thanks to La Cieca for the discovery that Tommasini’s new piece is a “retooled version of a 2000 piece”! I don’t dislike Tommasini, but it’s fun to have the evidence that he can be as repetitious as some of the operas he writes about.
2000: “as a stage work and a musical score, the opera drags; it could easily lose a half-hour…. the scenes with the oafish Baron Ochs are filled with galumphing Germanic humor.”
2009: “this show certainly drags at times. It could easily lose 20 minutes or more, mostly in the galumphing, strained comic scenes with the oafish Baron Ochs.”
He’s mellowing, though — over the years he’s become less impatient with Ochs, by 10 minutes.
Well, I personally loved Satyagraha with Robert Croft. I listened to it on Amtrak between NY and Washington and never noticed the time passing. It was mesmerizing.
I’m in the midst of discovering an opera I’ve never paid much attention to… Hansel and Gretel. Yesterday, I downloaded the Moffo recording (we knew it would be Moffo, didn’t we?) and I’ve finished all of Act I. It’s absolutely gorgeous. The orchestral writing is beautiful and Fischer-Dieskau is terrific as the father.
Sanford @32: Was the libretto part of the Hansel and Gretel download?
Sanford: RICHARD Croft? The elegant tenor?
One of the most underrated artists around; I dote
on his performances — when I can find him. His
Tito in Santa Fe is still in my head!
Ganford, what you have there is the greatest Gretel and Hexe on recordings, Helen Donath and Christa Ludwig.
And what a fantastic score!
Krunoslav, the greatest Hexe would have to be the one on the EMI mono Schwartzkopf / Von Karajan version. Yes, Ludwig I admit is close, but the one on that previously mentioned EMI is truly the No 1- inside her role – ‘the character’.
But being an avid collector of just about every Hansel& Gretel ‘ generally released…..it is an opera that is probably most fortunate regards continual ‘perfect casting’. I cannot off hand think of one, that could be called ‘sub-standard’.
For mind bobbling luxury top star casting throughout, the Von Stade /Pritchard version on Sony would have to be it.
EMI stereo (Wallberg) is not bad either – it has two real children and a real witch.
On the subject of operas which are (or can seem to be) too long ….. I heard a story about someone who saw an uncut Semiramide which – with intervals – lasted nearly 5 hours. Afterwards they remarked “if that was semi Ramide, I dread to think how long the whole thing is”.
I adore Helen Donath and she and Moffo make a wonderful pair. I was debating between that recording and the one with Barbara Bonney and Anne Sophie von Otter.
Yes, Richard Croft. I goofed.
The score is gorgeous. And Kurt Eichhorn seems like a wonderful conductor. It’s the first time i’ve heard him.
I think Moffo is pretty awful on the otherwise fabulous Eichhorn Hansel; for a fabulous Hansel, look no further than Grummer on the Karajan, which has other problems of course.