Leo Janacek (1858 - 1928)
Gabriela Benackova- Leonie Rysanek
Wieslaw Ochman - Peter Kazaras
Opera Orchestra of New York
dir: Eve Queler
Bis ( 1988/89) 449/450 2 CD Stereo DDD (excellent sound)
Recorded live at the Carnegie Hall, March 30, 1988
[flac & cue, cover, inlays, booklet & disc scans]
I can fully understand the reactions described below regarding the effect that Rysanek had on the audience. I was lucky to see her once in my life as Klitemnestra for Hildegard Behrens' Elektra and I will never forget her. The combination of her huge voice with her magnetic scenic presence provoked a visceral reaction of the public where she appeared. I had the same reaction, it was like a catharsis and I was hoarse from yelling brava! like a man possessed.
Reviews
"I was lucky enough to be inside Carnegie Hall for this performance. The final few minutes of Act II have to be heard to be believed. Rysanek's performance was beyond Total Theater. The audience response, the wild roaring, is testament to her achievement. Luckily, the engineers don't cut off the ovation. It just keeps going on and on. Time and time again, the artists return for bows, but then Rysanek gets called back for solo bows. You might think you have heard audience hysteria before, but you have to hear this. Then the end of Act III is also followed by the prolonged audience frenzy. The sound of a packed house roaring over and over and over is something we just don't hear anymore. In case I haven't made my point, the final minutes of Act II and the audience roar that follows is probably the greatest documentation we have of the effect Leonie Rysanek had on an audience live in the house." - Adorian - www.amazon.com
"When I went to hear this Jenufa, I was a little afraid: I didn't know either the conductor or some of the singers, but I tried. What I met was a marvellous performance of this marvellous opera. Eve Queler gives the opera all its dramatic urgency, and I think you can guess that a woman is behind this drama between womans. I think Queler understands the situation between Jenufa and Kostelnicka better than any other conductor. Benackova as Jenufa is impressing too. She has a warmer voice than, for example, Soderstrom, in Mackerras' recording and she understands his role very well (like Queler). All the other singers are very good, especially the two tenors. But what is the most marvellous of this performance is the way Rysanek shows Kostelnicka's feelings about sin, moral, redemption, ... Rysanek IS Kostelnicka. Her voice may be not as sure as others, but her top voice at the end of the second act is frightening. She is really the moral's voice in the first act. She is atormented in the second. And she is a frightened girl in the third. She is, in short, the best Kostelnicka I have heard, and the best I can imagine. My note is five stars, and five more for Rysanek." Jose Carmona Santiago -www-amazon.com