ITEM DESCRIPTION:
This beautiful MINT condition 3CD set
from Deutsche Grammophone (449 580-2, made in Germany, ADD stereo, out-of-print)
features Eugen Jochum's inspired presentation of Mozart's opera Così fan tutte
K. 588, recorded in the warm acoustics of the Jesus-Christus-Kirche, Berlin in
December 1962 with the Berliner Philharmoniker, the RIAS-Kammerchor (Chorus
Master: Günter Arndt), Wilhelm Schutz at the harpsichord, and a wonderful
line-up of vocalists:
Irmgard
Seefried (Soprano): Fiordiligi
Nan Merriman (Mezzo Soprano): Dorabella
Hermann
Prey (Baritone): Guglielmo
Ernst
Haefliger (Tenor): Ferrando
Erika
Köth (Soprano): Despina
Dietrich
Fischer-Dieskau (Baritone): Don Alfonso
Wrote
the eminent critic Alan Blyth in his August 1996 review for The Gramophone: "When this set was first
reviewed, it was compared unfavourably by Alec Robertson with the exactly
contemporaneous Bohm version on EMI. It was all too soon lost to view. In the
meantime it has received various encomiums, the most recent and most
unqualified from Kenneth Furie in The Metropolitan Guide to Recorded Opera
(Thames and Hudson: 1993), who declared it his favourite among all the versions
then available. While not going all the way with that slightly eccentric view,
I can understand Furie’s enthusiasm, particularly as regards Jochum’s
contribution, when listening to this, its first appearance on CD. Perhaps no
other version shows all at once such a deep understanding of the inner workings
of the score and the sensuous beauty of the instrumentation, or such a command
of forward movement and such an exceptional awareness that rhythmic precision
is of the essence in achieving that momentum.
"We often speak
or write, maybe in too facile a way, about ideal ensemble. Well, here it is
really true: singers and players alike have been trained into phrasing with
amazing unanimity of phrase and note, most notably so in the Act 1 finale. Yet,
astonishingly enough, this emphasis on exact execution doesn’t preclude a sense
of fun or spontaneity. Jochum revels in his co-operation with a vintage Berlin
Philharmonic, caught in a mellow and natural sound ambience, seconded by an
easy balance with the singers.
"They are far
from being the most winning interpreters individually of their roles, but here
the whole is undoubtedly greater than the parts. Haefliger’s tenor, if not
honeyed, is attractively reedy and his feeling for Mozartian style is
impeccable. Prey is a lively, mellifluous-sounding Guglielmo, but one who never
overplays his hand. Fischer-Dieskau is the most urbane and cynical of Alfonsos,
one who greatly benefits from the recitatives being given complete (they are
foreshortened on the Bohm/EMI set which, like Jochum’s, also excludes “Al fato
dan legge” and “Ah! lo veggio”). He plans and intrigues closely with Erika
Koth’s quicksilver Despina, not by any means the most pleasing in tone among
her breed but ready with her wit.
"Merriman
repeats and improves on her Dorabella on the old Karajan/EMI set, the slight
vibrancy in her tone lending it character. Yes, as you may have guessed,
Seefried is, for once, left to the end because her performance, her voice
somewhat declined in tone and flexibility by 1962, is not quite the equal of
her assumption on the live 1954 Salzburg recording with Bohm on Orfeo. She
manages the recitatives and ensembles with even greater confidence than before,
and she knows, from innumerable performances in the part on stage just how it
should go, but in the arias and the duet, “Fra gli amplessi”, the flesh is no
longer willing to obey the spirit’s will, resulting in discoloured tone and
some snatched-at high notes. Against this there is her still-wonderful phrasing
and diction to console us.
"Even her
weaknesses do not preclude this from being high in contention among mid-price
versions. Bohm’s famous EMI reading may be the more intimate and possibly the
more loving interpretation, the live DG/Bohm is the most enjoyable and is the
best cast of all in this category (the cuts are grievous, but that enables the
work to be contained on two CDs), yet in many ways Jochum catches the drama of
the piece – poised between comedy and tragedy – the most successfully, and his
reading bowls along with an eager movement that I found, on reacquaintance,
irresistible."
The thick booklet (@
230 pages) contains notes on the music, a plot synopsis, photos of the singers,
and a full libretto – all provided in Italian, German, French, and English.
CONDITION:
The gradations of condition
I use are as follows: MINT, Near-Mint, Excellent, Very Good, Good, Fair, Poor.
This 3CD box set is in MINT
condition. It is an unplayed copy and the shrinkwrap is still largely intact. Unless
already sealed, all CDs are provided with a new jewel case. These are not cut-out or club copies.
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Casals Classical L...
