L'italiana in Algeri

"This recording is taken from performances in the BPA Palais of staged performances of Dario Fo’s 1994 hyper-activity production that featured the bravura American mezzo Jennifer Larmore in the eponymous role. I stress the hyper-activity. Fo’s productions do not do things by half measures. If it is possible to have movement or extraneous stage activity or props, then Fo will include it ... This production is shared with the Teatro Communale, Bologna, whose orchestra play superbly under the direction of Donato Renzetti who conveys a natural feel for the idiom".

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"Recording of the week: Moshe Leiser and Patrice Caurier's witty, well-intentioned production does what it can to diffuse the work's irreverent attitude to Islam ... Bartoli negotiates the title-role with canny panache, judiciously ornamenting upwards where possible and deploying her chest register to great dramatic and often comic effect. She's aided by the transparent, pleasantly astringent playing of Ensemble Matheus under Jean-Christophe Spinosi, who provide a whippy springboard for Bartoli's many flights of coloratura".

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"Aside from Ms Bartoli there are many other pleasures to be found here ... Ensemble Matheus under conductor Jean-Christophe Spinosi, are splendid performers throughout ... Another wonderful achievement is the Mustafa of Bass Ildar Abdrazakov ... It is a true pleasure to encounter the yards of rich tone that he brings to the role ... And what of La Bartoli herself? Well ... there is no loss of flexibility or security ... She is always in complete command of her voice giving us a lesson in phrasing and nuance ... All in all, the pleasures of this live occasion far outweigh any minor quibbles I might have regarding the production".

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"Marylin Horne som en lidt utroværdig italienerinde, hendes aldersklasse taget i betragtning, men som sanger storartet ... Og naturligvis er orkestret og ikke mindst James Levine et kapitel for sig i disse omgivelser, hvor alligevel, når alt kommer til alt, intet af det forekommende just sprudler af den velkendte italienske glød og charme".

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"This New York Met performance from 1986 is so excellent that there isn't much need to do anything except recommend it to admirers of L'Italiana. The two strongews point are the superbly sprung and idiomatic conducting of James Levine and the incomparable Isabella of Marilyn Horne".

"Editor's choice: If this was, indeed, Bartoli's first Isabella, it was worth the wait ... Nowadays she's a consummate comedienne whose work looks especially well on film. As for her singing, one would be hard-pressed to find a better-sung Isabella ... Abdrazakov is a thoroughly schooled bass who shows deftness of touch in passages of quick-fire coloratura ... Olvera gives a performance in the Julie Walters class as the excruciatingly unattractive Elvira".

"Koloraturknusprig tiriliert sich hingegen Cecilia Bartoli als Rossinis nicht mehr knusperfrische, dafür selbstironische Italiana in Algeri durch die auf sie als patente Praktikerin zugeschnittene Inszenierung ihrer Lieblingsregisseure Moshe Leiser und Patrice Caurier. Mal thront sie auf dem Plüschdromedar, mal als Schaumgeborene in der Badewanne ... Leise, ausbalanciert und mit erstaunlichen Zwischentönen wird das als kulinarischer, nie fettlebriger Rossini-Spass von Jean-Christophe Spinosi und seinem Ensemble Matheus begleitet".

"Italienerinden i Algier er et mesterværk. Og den får her en mesterlig udformning. Selv iscenesættelsen, der er en blanding af det autentiske og et forkølet forsøg på at være moderne ... kan ikke ødelægge humoren, og solisterne er simpelt hen fantastiske ... Se og, især, hør denne Italienerinde og bliv forelsket".

"Aix-en-Provence is generally a guarantor of musical excellence and this performance is no exception ... A single set does service throughout: an empty stage dominated by a three-story ziggurat that can be transformed into the prow of a three-deck ocean liner ... As stage comedy L'italiana must seem pretty thin stuff to modern audiences, yet the various elements in the Rossini cuisine come together most agreeably".

"This Aix-en-Provence Festival staging repeats all the clichés of provincial tradition, with big moustaches and oversized turbans ... In the title rol, the young Dutch mezzo Christianne Stojtin confirms her rising reputation".

Vurdering (performance): 2/5.

Vurdeing (presentation): 2/5.