Rossini - L'Italiana in Algeri

Customer Reviews:

The Best Production of the Opera You will Ever see.......2007-08-18

Without doubt this is a great production of this opera. There will never be a better one done. Just the singing of Marilyn Horne alone is worth it. And Paolo Montarsolo is another great reason to get this. This is a traditional production ( none of this stark modern nonsense) and is true to the libretto. It is a magnificent production and a feast for both the eyes and the ears.

Agree.......2007-08-04

I think there is nothing relevant to say about this DVD. Everything is said. But it is a pity that we do not have the oportunity to see a 1984's production at the Teatro Municipal de Santiago, Chile, sung by Lucia Valentini-Terrani, Enzo Dara, Domenico Trimarchi and the orchestra directed by Bruno Campanella. Even the scenery and costumes are better and more colourfull than this production. The singing and specially the acting far far better than this. Hope that some label could contact Teatro Municipal and bring us the oportunity to listen and see this wonderful and unforgetable production.

Marilyn Horne at Her Best.......2007-07-18

This is one of my favorite operas. One thing you'll find if you follow the Schirmer libretto is that Lindoro sings an alternative second aria in the second act. This disc features Paolo Montarsolo as Mustafa; Marilyn Horne as Isabella, and James Levine conducted. Considering that this one is 20 years old, the sound quality is excellent, with the mikes right above the stage instead of back in the auditorium.

Great performance, Met quality standard.......2007-06-30

"Underrated masterpiece" is a frequently remark about "La Italiana". And I certainly agree. Generally considered inferior to "Il Barbiere de Siviglia" and "La Cenerentola", this early opera buffa contains some of the most charming Rossini music you can imagine, full of beautiful arias and brilliant ensembles. It reminds me Mozart more than the later.

In this 1987 Met recording, Jean Pierre Ponnelle's production shows colourful yet sober, and you can relax on his good taste to resolve every detail, from sets to costumes. No "modern" crap here: Mustafa's palace is Moorish, and we can see moor pirates, nice moor veiled girls from the "seraglio" and funny looking moor eunuchs, who sing at the very start the haunting chorus "Serenate il mesto ciglio", while they are making their usual embroidery.

Horne's voice may not suit everyone ears, partly due to her aggressive low tessitura and resounding chest notes, but she's always musical and accurate, and that's especially important when singing Rossini. Near her 50's in this DVD, she has some (little) trouble with very high notes, but she excels in every other issue, bravura passages included. Add her natural sympathy and easiness on the stage and you get a terrific Isabella. In my opinion, her arriving on Act I and next "Cruda sorte" delivering is just what defines a great opera artist.

Paolo Montarsolo is a full featured basso buffo, and if he can't sing 100% the fioritura Rossini wrote for the role, he compensates the fact by large with a splendid performance, considering both singing and performing. Though he was past his 60 in this recording, he's an agile Mustafa, looking a lot much younger. It's delightful to watch him absolutely overjoyed with his new degree of Pappataci, singing and dancing in the Lindoro-Taddeo-Mustafa trio "Fra gli amori e le belleze". He'll drive more than a good laugh from you, guaranteed.

Alan Monk, which I had never listened before, was quite a surprise for me as Taddeo. He sings in good voice and more than acceptable italianate sound, playing his part undiminished by the bigger-named Isabella and Mustafa.

Douglas Ahlstedt is the weakest link in the chain, mainly because he seems not to be the quick, spicy, Latin light tenor needed for the role. But he does a decent Lindoro, which I consider one of the most difficult tenor roles in Rossini's operas. Lindoro's notes are high, way high, and Ahlstedt gets to sing them all, and right on the pitch. Visually, he looks perhaps a little too thin and boyish besides the other heavier weighted players of the love triangle, Isabella and Taddeo, but all in all, he does the job nicely.

Secondary singers are also good and visually correct, especially graceful Myra Merrit's Elvira, who's moment of glory is of course the tremendous high note in Act I magnificent finale, cheerfully noticed by Horne, who won't let her steal the show and knocks Mustafa out at the very last moment. Prima donna's privileges are well observed here.

Levine guides the Met forces at the best Rossini pace you can imagine, delivering a precise, swift performance since the Overture's first notes to the happy ending. Perhaps in Act I finale he goes a little too fast, turning the original singing intringulis in a rather undistinguishable mumbling, but this is a minor complaint.

Sound quality is good in all 3 modes (2ch, Dolby 5.1 and DTS), 4:3 format picture is bright and clear. Subtitles in spanish are OK.

If you love Rossini masterful blending of humor and music, you can't go wrong with this DVD. Just enjoy it. And don't forget your limoncello.

ROSSINI SINGING LIKE THIS IS NO LONGER AROUND.......2007-05-07

GET THIS RECORDING OF "L'ITALIANA IN ALGERI" SIMPLY TO SEE AND HEAR MARILYN HORNE IN HER PRIME. WITH A TECHNIQUE AND COLORATURA THAT DEFIES DESCRIPTION YOU MUST SEE AND HEAR THIS LIVE PERFORMANCE FROM THE METROPOLITAN. THE OTHER SINGERS ARE GOOD AND THE RECORDING AND PICTURE QUALITY ARE FIRST RATE.
I FIRST SAW MARILYN HORNE LIVE IN BRISBANE/AUSTRALIA IN CONCERT AND WILL NEVER FORGET THE EXPERIENCE OF HEARING THIS REMARKABLE ARTIST LIVE. THIS IS A FINE TRIBUTE TO HER ARTISTRY.

Average customer rating:

Amusing and generally well Sung Italian Girl

Rossini - L'Italiana in Algeri
Starring: Jennifer Larmore , Bruce Ford , Simone Alaimo , Alessandro Corbelli , and Jeannette Fischer
Director: Andrei Serban
Manufacturer: TDK
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B000NOIWVM
Release Date: 2007-04-24

Customer Reviews:

Amusing and generally well Sung Italian Girl.......2007-08-05

This was my second Italiana, the first being the performance from Germany with Doris Soffel. The production (originating in Zurich) is stylish, conventional and effective. Vocally the only flaw is the Mustafa, a singer more at home with Alberich. In the performance under consideration that is hardly the case with the wonderful Simone Alaimo. Jennifer Larimore is a glamorous Isabella, vocally agile, witty and quite delightful. Bruce Ford is an experienced Rossinian, looks good and act well, but he really is not at home with the coluratura and his top tends to tighten up and overall the voice is uneven.

The production is a mix of whimsy, the silly, the extraneous and occasionally awful. Serban, the director had some good ideas but apparently when they hire someone with his reputation isn't there anyone who can question the antics that he requires of the singers? It isn't truly awful (Dario Fo can take that credit on the new Italian from Pesaro; at least is can boast the superb Lindoro of Maxim Mironov who leaves all the rest in the dust) but one does wonder how a production can veer from being witty and delightful to highly questionable. It isn't a deal breaker for someone considering this DVD, and I would hate to hand the prize for direction to Michael Hampe (the Soffel DVD) inasmuch as he is working on a stage probably no larger than the Teatro Verdi, but he certainly trumps Fo who surely doesn't much more space in Pesaro.

It's obvious I have three performances and enjoy all three, but alas to attain the "ideal" I have to indulge in cast shifting, a fantasy that opera lovers have to do all the time.

Average customer rating:

Rossini - L'Italiana in Algeri
Starring: Marianna Pizzolato , Marco Vinco , Maxim Mironov , Barbara Bargnesi , and Jose Maria Lo Monaco
Director: Dario Fo
Manufacturer: Dynamic Italy
ProductGroup: DVD
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ASIN: B000SQJ2D2
Release Date: 2007-07-24

Rossini - L'Italiana in Algeri (The Italian Girl in Algiers) / Weikert, Soffel, Kannen, Gambill, Schwetzinger Festspiele

Average customer rating:

Charming in Every Way
Funny with decent singing
Intimate production, very well performed
SHUFFLING FEET
Perhaps the best Rossini DVD available

Rossini - L'Italiana in Algeri (The Italian Girl in Algiers) / Weikert, Soffel, Kannen, Gambill, Schwetzinger Festspiele
Starring: Doris Soffel , Robert Gambill , Günter von Kannen , Enric Serra , and Nuccia Focile
Director: Claus Viller
Manufacturer: Arthaus Musik
ProductGroup: DVD
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ASIN: B000056PPF
Release Date: 2001-02-20

Amazon.com

L'Italiana in Algeri (The Italian Girl in Algiers), Rossini's first real hit as a writer of comic opera, is one of those almost unsinkable works difficult to get entirely right. Michael Hampe's production for the 1987 Schwetzinger festival captures both its charm and its sense of menace--the court of the Bey is both a setting for farce and a place in which the Italian characters are at the mercy of a despot who will not necessarily find things funny. Gunther von Kannen's Mustafa is a convincing Bey of Algiers, while his adversary, the tough, witty proto-feminist Isabella, is given real presence in Doris Soffel's performance. The slightly effete tenor of Robert Gambill as her lover Lindoro makes him a perfect partner in intrigue for her. Conductor Ralf Weikert is particularly fine in the complicated finale of Act One with its imitations of bells and drums and its complicated vocal lines. --Roz Kaveney

Customer Reviews:

Charming in Every Way.......2006-03-29

This is a small, beautifully designed, lovingly executed production, helmed by two talented young singers. No expense has been spared (particularly with the costumes) and director Michael Hampe obviously has a great affection for and understanding of the material. His command of the stage action is perfectly matched by conductor Ralf Weikert's jaunty conducting. Doris Soffel makes a spirited Isabella, and one can certainly understand why she's pining for Lindoro, as played by the boyish, slightly goofy Robert Gambill. They both sing beautifully, although now and then I did worry that Gambill's delicate voice wouldn't make it through the performance. (Watching young singers such as these struggle a bit really makes you appreciate the power and skills of true opera stars.) Gunther von Kannen is amusing enough as Mustafa, although the voice, unfortunately, is all bellow. You may want to wait to see if a starrier "L'Italiana" comes out in future, but for now this a charming, more than professional example of a small company at its very, very best.

Funny with decent singing.......2005-12-26

This is a pretty nice video of this opera. There is only one real disappointment: The Mustafa has very little coloratura capabilities. His voice is a pleasant deep bass. The other singers all do fine with the coloratura requirements. The Isabella has a strong edgy mezzo with nicely blended registers. The Lindoro has a nice bright sound with easy high notes. The Taddeo and Haly have pleasant voices. The Elvira has a strong bright edgy soprano. The sets are nice with realistic looking ocean in the background. The costumes are nice. My only qualm about the directing is the little guy dressed in a chimpanzee costume supposedly as a pet of the Mustafa - seemed a little distracting. All in all, this is a good representation of the opera, notwithstanding some of the Mustafa's singing.

Intimate production, very well performed.......2005-07-05

The smallness of the theater and set accentuate Rossini's delicate music. The singers are all very good, committed and believable in this crazy story. The conducting and orchestral sound are outstanding. A delightful DVD.

SHUFFLING FEET.......2002-05-07

I suppose what the other reader reviews have said is true, BUT:

I was unimpressed by the small stage, scenery, and the acting.

If you turn off the video to just hear the music, you will be treated to an inordinate amount of foot shuffling and strange bangings from the chorus.

I've watched it three times and my opinion remains the same.

Perhaps the best Rossini DVD available.......2001-08-26

L'Italiana in Algeri is Rossini at his very best. First performed in Venice in 1813 when Rossini was but 21 years old, this most enchanting opera buffa soon took Europe by storm. Arthaus offers a production conducted by Ralf Weikert that captures magnificently the hilarity and madness of Rossini's first comic masterpiece. The singers and orchestra are magnificent, as are the costumes, sets and props--the live monkey adds a most comical touch! Watching the act 1 finale alone is worth the price of this DVD. Without doubt this would be a terrific first opera for the opera curioius, especially for anyone thinking that opera is always tragic and deadly serious. This production is a real treat, and only gets better with repeated viewings. A bubbling performance all around!

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