Music / operafilm

Falstaff


Reviews (25)


Presto classical

2020

By

2020

"Verdi ... signed with Falstaff his most modern, most ambitious, but also wisest and most ambiguous opera. It was high time that French stage director Laurent Pelly, an eminent specialist of the buffa repertoire, tried out his talents on this whimsical music drama: a task he performs with absolute mastery, highlighting with remarkable subtlety the numerous comic devices invented by Verdi and Boito but also pondering on the equivocal morality of the argument. He is, of course, helped in this endeavour by a wonderful team of singers: from baritone Roberto de Candia to mezzo soprano Daniela Barcellona as Mrs Quickly, without forgetting the exceptional Simone Piazzola as Ford, Rebecca Evans as Alice, or Ruth Iniesta and Joel Prieto as Nannetta and Fenton".


MusicWeb international

2021 September

By

By

Simon Thompson (musikanmelder)

2021 September

"I don't think I'm being too biased in saying that it contains a musically superb performance in the frame of a really interesting production, even if it's one that won't appeal to everyone ... Director Mario Martone is never completely explicit about where he sets the opera ... but every piece of evidence points to modern day Berlin ... Falstaff's graffitied pad bears more than a passing resemblance to an East Berlin squat ... It's also not controversial to say that the musical performances are terrific. Michael Volle, making his debut in the role, is vigorous and energetic ... The orchestra play the score with quicksilver brilliance, never losing sight of the fact that, every bit as much as for the singers, Falstaff is quintessentially an ensemble opera. Barenboim's conducting is laced with energy ... This Berlin production ... is definitely worth checking out for the quality of the performances, and especially if you know and love Berlin".


Politiken

d. 17. Apr. 2007

By

By

Thomas Michelsen

d. 17. Apr. 2007


Politiken

d. 30. Sep. 2007

By

By

Thomas Michelsen

d. 30. Sep. 2007


Jyllands-posten

d. 18. Aug. 2009

By

By

John Christiansen

d. 18. Aug. 2009

"En af de bedste er fra The Met i New York 1995. Den er både scenisk og musikalsk livlig og flot helt efter ønskebogen. Franco Zeffirellis iscenesættelse sprudler, og hans kunstneriske samarbejde med James Levine i orkestergraven er gensidigt inspirerende. Det er ikke blot Levine, som nyder Verdis raffinerede musikalske løjer. Det gør sangerne også ... Helt igennem vellykket".


Politiken

d. 20. Oct. 2010

By

By

Henrik Friis (f. 1978)

d. 20. Oct. 2010


Jyllands-posten

d. 18. Mar. 2009

By

By

John Christiansen

d. 18. Mar. 2009


Kristeligt dagblad

d. 2. Nov. 2005

By

By

Bernhard Lewkovitch

d. 2. Nov. 2005


Jyllands-posten

d. 5. Aug. 2003

By

d. 5. Aug. 2003


Klassisk

2020, nr. 59

By

By

Steen Chr. Steensen

2020, nr. 59

"Det hele er på kanten af det overspillede ... Ideerne er til stede, de stritter blot i mange retninger, og de færreste følger Verdis geniale dramaturgi. Værste anke er dog, at alle sangere uden undtagelse overspiller det komiske og bliver i sig selv parodier ... Hertil kommer et temmeligt maskinelt akkompagnement dirigeret af Daniele Rustioni uden megen sans for smidigheden og finesserne i partituret. På den baggrund er det glædeligt med det vokale overskud hos de fleste solister, Først og fremmest Roberto de Candia som Falstaff og Rebecca Evans som Mrs. Alice Ford".


Diapason

2020 mai

By

By

Emmanuel Dupuy

2020 mai


Klassisk

2016, nr. 40

By

By

Steen Chr. Steensen

2016, nr. 40

"Denne Falstaff er indbegrebet af Metropolitan Operaen, når den er bedst. Fremragende sangere på række, en spektakulær, flot scenografi, en intelligent iscenesættelse og huset egen dirigent til at styre det musikalske ... En udgave, der når hele vejen rundt, den er medrivende, så meget mere kan man ikke forlange".


Operabladet Ascolta

(2016) 34. årgang nr. 4

By

By

Henrik Marcussen

(2016) 34. årgang nr. 4

"Shakespeares og Verdis Falstaff udspiller sig i Tudor-tidens London, men er rykket 350 år frem til et England i 1950'erne, der er godt på vej til at genvinde livsmodet efter 2. verdenskrig ... og der er mange friske og opfindsomme indslag. Persongalleriet er ... perfekt sammensat, smittende veloplagt - både på det solistiske plan og i ensemblerne ... Desuden demonstrerer sangerne, at de også mestrer skuespillets kunst. I spidsen for det hele står James Levine, der i kvikt og levende tempo styrer gennem løjerne".


Diapason

2016 fevrier

By

By

Didier van Moere

2016 fevrier


Klassisk

2015, nr. 36

By

By

Steen Chr. Steensen

2015, nr. 36

"Musikken spiller op ... og det er Michielettos gode greb om operaen, at han lader operahandling og livet på plejehjemmet glide ind og ud mellem hinanden ... selv om der skal tænkes kreativt ... Det er et fantastisk godt sammensunget og spillet hold solister, der varetager dette brogede persongalleri ... Wienerfilharmonikerne spiller suverænt unde Mehta ... Alt går op i en højere enhed".


BBC music magazine

2015 January

By

By

Michael Tanner (musikanmelder)

2015 January

"It's not a write-off, but it could easily have been much better".


BBC music magazine

2007 Proms

By

By

George Hall (musikanmelder)

2007 Proms

"Eyre's production is worthy, and the cast effective; but ebullience ois at a premium".


Klassisk

2021, nr. 62

By

By

Steen Chr. Steensen

2021, nr. 62

"Den italienske instruktør Mario Martone har ladet sig inspirere af 50-året for ungdomsoprøret i '68, så her er Falstaff konge i en baggård omgivet af en blanding af bikere, fredsaktivister og en enkelt hippievært, der sælger tjald til sine kunder. Det er morsomt fundet på, og det fungerer ... Michael Volle er et fund af en selvudleverende Falstaff ... der krydser alle grænser for pinlig optræden og blindt tror på sin egen charme ... ligesom han synger rollen ud med bred klanglig variation ... På kvindesiden markerer Barbara Frittoli sig som en livsens farlig fru Alice Ford parat til at udlevere enhver selvindbildsk mand til gabestokken ... Således hele dette persongalleri, der fungerer som tandhjul i Verdis perfekte komedie".


BBC music magazine

2021 August

By

By

Alexandra Wilson (musikanmelder)

2021 August

"Opera choice: Sir John Falstaff, a laid-back boor in leather jacket and jeans, inhabits a grungy world on the fringes of society, hanging out with bikers and tarts on a graffiti-daubed inner-city street corner ... Purists should look away now, but I found this production by Mario Martone tremendous fun ... Volle inhabits the title role with absolute conviction: he is laugh-out-loud funny, his vocal delivery apparently effortless ... Vocally, it seems invidious to single anyone out from such a consistently strong ensemble cast ... A vivid and energetic performance from the Staatskapelle Berlin under Daniel Barenboim rounds off an enjoyable package".


The gramophone

2016 January

By

By

Mark Pullinger

2016 January

"Carsen shunts the action to the new Elizabethan age of the 1950s ... sets are packed with period details ... The whole thing is a riot from start to finish, led by the irrepressible Ambrogio Maestri ... Unfortunately, most of the cast don't quite match their Royal opera counterparts ... but the sense of ensemble is lively under James Levin's shrewd direction".


The gramophone

2015 January

By

By

Hugo Shirley

2015 January

"Ambrogio Maestri is a familiar Falstaff and performs with customary gusto, but Fiorenza Cedolins sounds a little soupy and scoopy ... There's no shortage of classy playing from the pit but Zubin Mehta's conducting, perhaps influenced by the setting, is often rather sedentary".


The gramophone

2007 September

By

By

John Steane

2007 September

"Vurdering: G (Gramophone recommends)" - "The Falstaff ... is a delight from start to finish ... Bruson is a magnificent Falstaff ... All do well, and although there must now be a whole gallery of Falstaffs on film (some of them admirable), this will do very well for me".


International record review

2012 October

By

By

Roger Pines

2012 October

"With more than ten Falstaffs currently available on DVD, there was no great need for Zurich's pleasant 2011 production, unevenly cast and hardly revelatory dramatically ... As usual in a good Falstaff, the heroes are the conductor and the protagonist. Daniele Gatti never lets pacing drag, he's alive to every nuance onstage ... The Zurich players' sound is just about full and sumptuous enough for this work, while maintaining clear textures throughout ... Gatti and Bechtolf are both lucky to be working with a hugely experienced Falstaff. Maestri's voice ideally suits the role".


The gramophone

2012 October

By

By

Mike Ashman

2012 October

"The cast, led by a secure Maestri, can boast a lovable Nannetta in liebau and further clever variations on Quickly's eccentricity from naef ... Excellent sound and picture".


The gramophone

2021 August

By

By

Tim Ashley

2021 August

"Film director Martone has hauled the opera into present and seemingly relocated it from Windsor to Berlin itself. Volle's seedy Falstaff, played without the usual padding, is an ageing hippy, hanging out in a bar in one of the city's graffitied courtyards ... Despite the staging's inconsistencies, there's much to enjoy, in particular Volle's central performance, superbly acted and sung, though some might want a bit more generosity in the tone ... Barcellona sounds terrific ... while Kammerloher makes an excellent, spirited Meg ... In the pit ... Barenboim is magisterial, occasionally adopting slow tempos in ways that recall Karajan ... Gracious, elegant, witty and beautiful, and the playting is simply faultless. It's worth hearing, though you may not always like what you see".