Giuseppe Verdi (1813-1901)
Walter Berry, Pilar Lorengar, Patricia Wise
Christa Ludwig, Giorgio Zancanaro, Francisco Araiza
Chor und Orchester der Wiener Staatsoper
dir: Lorin Maazel
Orfeo d'Or C78392I 2 CD ADD Stereo (Excellent sound)
Live recording February, 2 1983 , Wiener Staatsoper
[dlac & cue; cover, inlays, booklet & disc scans]
Review
"I don't know why I haven't noticed this recording before now. Verdi's FALSTAFF is in my top five of favorite operas and the cast here, if not quite the final word in Italian singing, is just about up to the best you can find on their recorded rivals...
...Now here is the latest FALSTAFF to join my collection. It stars the wonderful Walter Berry, a superb German bass-baritone. He's not at all known for singing Italian opera beyond the Mozart-Da Ponte works. His Sir John is a little leaner than Geraint Evans, Taddei, or Terfel, but he is a verbally nimble in the role, relishing each rolled "r", and sounds spry and in vocal command. The legendary Christa Ludwig (and ex-Mrs. Berry), sings Mistress Quickly. She recorded the role with less vocal ease on the Karajan II set on DG a few years later. In 1983, she's in nimble vocal command and makes a delicious Quickly, able to summon all her guile to snooker Falstaff not once but twice. Mrs. Ford is the delightful Pilar Lorengar, who was superb in the role back in 1966 during the Met's first season at Lincoln Center (and yes I have it on CD). Seventeen years later, Lorengar is still in marvelous vocal shape, dominating the ensembles with her bright, shimmering tone, excellent diction, and sympathetic manner. Ford, her husband, is the outstanding Italian baritone, Giorgio Zancanaro, a deeply musical singer with a gorgeous buzzy baritone. Nanetta, their daughter, gets an ethereal reading from American soprano, Patricia Wise, and in no way does she suffer in comparison to the very best in this part on record. I didn't pay a lot of attention to the career of Francisco Araiza, unfair perhaps, but my ears woke up here to his romantic and sweetly sung Fenton. Also good, Alexandrina Milcheva rounds out the top casting as Meg Page, but I don't want to overlook the excellence of Heinz Zednick's prickly Dr. Caijus.
Lorin Maazel presides over the Vienna State Opera's orchestra and chorus. His tempi are a little more leisurely (like Giulini's are on his DG set), but his technical command of the orchestra is magisterial and he just highlights every superb idea Verdi pours into this eternally vernal score--his very last.
The sound is pretty good for a live performance. I still choose Karajan's first set on EMI or the Solti on Decca. But this might be a good theatrical second choice if you've got room in your library."
Gregory B. Mowery - www.amazon.co.uk