Vivaldi L'Incoronazione di Dario
View record and artist detailsRecord and Artist Details
Composer or Director: Antonio Vivaldi
Genre:
Opera
Label: Harmonia Mundi
Magazine Review Date: 12/1986
Media Format: CD or Download
Media Runtime: 0
Catalogue Number: HMC90 1235/7
Tracks:
| Composition | Artist Credit |
|---|---|
| (L')Incoronazione di Dario |
Antonio Vivaldi, Composer
Agnès Mellon, Oronte, Soprano Antonio Vivaldi, Composer Dominique Visse, Flora, Countertenor Gérard Lesne, Statira, Alto Gilbert Bezzina, Conductor Henri Ledroit, Argene, Mezzo soprano Isabelle Poulenard, Alinda; Arpago John Elwes, Dario, Tenor Michel Verschaeve, Niceno Nice Baroque Ensemble |
Composer or Director: Antonio Vivaldi
Genre:
Opera
Label: Harmonia Mundi
Magazine Review Date: 12/1986
Media Format: Vinyl
Media Runtime: 0
Catalogue Number: HMC1235/7
Tracks:
| Composition | Artist Credit |
|---|---|
| (L')Incoronazione di Dario |
Antonio Vivaldi, Composer
Agnès Mellon, Oronte, Soprano Antonio Vivaldi, Composer Dominique Visse, Flora, Countertenor Gérard Lesne, Statira, Alto Gilbert Bezzina, Conductor Henri Ledroit, Argene, Mezzo soprano Isabelle Poulenard, Alinda; Arpago John Elwes, Dario, Tenor Michel Verschaeve, Niceno Nice Baroque Ensemble |
Composer or Director: Antonio Vivaldi
Genre:
Opera
Label: Harmonia Mundi
Magazine Review Date: 12/1986
Media Format: Cassette
Media Runtime: 0
Catalogue Number: HMC40 1235/7
Tracks:
| Composition | Artist Credit |
|---|---|
| (L')Incoronazione di Dario |
Antonio Vivaldi, Composer
Agnès Mellon, Oronte, Soprano Antonio Vivaldi, Composer Dominique Visse, Flora, Countertenor Gérard Lesne, Statira, Alto Gilbert Bezzina, Conductor Henri Ledroit, Argene, Mezzo soprano Isabelle Poulenard, Alinda; Arpago John Elwes, Dario, Tenor Michel Verschaeve, Niceno Nice Baroque Ensemble |
Author: Nicholas Anderson
Although L'incoronazione di Dario is the seventh opera by Vivaldi to have been commercially recorded, our picture of his operatic output has been some way far from justly reflecting his gifts in this field. Mostly they have suffered from savage and often tasteless cuts but there has been little attempt, either, to present them in a lively dramatic context. A complete recording of Tito Manlio (Philips), several years ago, provided a faithful but static account of an interesting score; now comes a livelier and stylish performance of L'incoronazione di Dario which Vivaldi wrote in 1717 for the carnival season in Venice and which gets a passing mention in Burney's General History of Music. In the previous year he had written his oratorio Juditha Triumphans so we should not be too surprised to find reworkings of three numbers from that; but devotees of Vivaldi's vocal music will doubtless spot other familiarities, too.
Vivaldi's operatic career, spanned the years from 1713 until 1739; thusL'incoronazione di Dario belongs to an early period which, from a musical standpoint, is an attractive one where voices and instruments operate a well-balanced partnership. The libretto is an arrangement by an unknown hand of one by Adriano Morselli dating from the previous century. The historically-based plot is set in the fifth century BC at the Persian Court. The recently vacated throne of deceased King Cyrus provides an opportunity for a three-cornered fight for it by Darius, who enjoys the support of governors, district commissioners and the like, Oronte—the people's man—and Arpago, a captain backed by the militia. Darius suggests that the crown should go to whichever of them shall marry Cyrus's elder daughter, Statira. He's in love with her, of course, and fully intends to marry her himself. But Statira's sister, Argene, is secretly in love with Darius and plots against her sister. The whole thing is rumbled: Statira is saved from the hungry advances of predatory wild animals; she marries Darius who becomes King, and forgives everyone except Argene for whom it's fetters and chains. Those are the bare bones of the story but there is some effective sub-plotting, too, though little in the way of vivid character portrayal.
As I've hinted already, Vivaldi the composer plays a stronger part in the earlier operas than in the later ones, where wider considerations of opera production seem to have occupied his mind. The orchestra required for Dario includes, on occasion, oboes, recorders, bassoon, horns, trumpets and a 'viola all'inglese' as well as strings.
The opera begins with an attractive three-movement Italian sinfonia which was previously found its way into recorded programmes of Vivaldi's orchestral music. The cast, by and large, is a strong one though I felt that the drama was played out at a pretty low tension. ''My heart's joy will be the gift of your heart'' announces Dario in his first aria but John Elwes sounds anything but certain that this will, in fact, be so. His subsequent arias are fuller of conviction and his phrasing and articulation bring out the seldom absent lyricism of the music. Stronger characterization of roles comes from two of the three male altos; Henri Ledroit as the scheming Argene has something of James Bowman's quality of timbre. His technique is reliable and he brings colour to his portrayal of a prominent figure in the drama.
But it is Dominique Visse, whom we have encountered so often before in the context of Les Arts Florissants, who really succeeds with his portrayal of the confidante, Flora, in bringing some individuality to the role; one only has to listen to the exhortation of Statira ''Arma il cor di bel coraggio'' (Act 1) to see what I mean. When Flora is around the drama really begins to come to life. I liked Agnes Mellon's Oronte, too, though I found it difficult, at first, to identify her vocal timbre with a male part. Her agitated ''Lasciami in pace'' (Act) comes off especially well and is a happy example of Vivaldi's ability effectively to match music with text; a similarly happy marriage between music and text occurs in Oronte's hauntingly beautiful siciliano in Act 2, ''Non mi lusinga'', one of the musical highspots of the opera. Isabelle Poulenard is in the difficult position of having to take the roles both of a suitor (Arpago) and a princess; hers is an attractive voice, though intonation is not secure, but it is hard to find characteristics in her approach which help us to distinguish one role from the other.
Gerard Lesne's Statira struck me as being less convincing. He can sound less at ease in his tessitura than do the other members of the cast though two of Statira's finest arias ''L'adorar belta che piece'' (Act 1), with its elaborate obbligato for 'viola all'inglese' (played here by a viola da gamba), and ''Se palpitarti'' (Act 2) with muted strings, are affectingly performed. Michel Verschaeve could have made more of the philosopher Niceno—not one to be taken too seriously—but his Act 2 aria, ''Non lusinghi il core amante'' with bassoon obbligato, comes off pretty well. There's an attractive little quotation in the minor key, incidentally, which Vivaldi develops into a major key ritornello in Alcindo's aria ''Dell'alma superba'' in his Serenata a tre, ''Mio cor povero cor'', RV690.
By now you will have gathered that I have been enjoying this opera. The performance is, I think, more successful than any of its predecessors in offering us a reasonably faithful picture of a Vivaldi opera. I have not seen a score but it sounds as if few if any substantial cuts have been made. The Baroque Ensemble of Nice play Vivaldi's music stylishly and reliably and Gilbert Bezzina, who also prepared the performing edition, gives an affectionate account of it. There is plenty of variety in this opera; variety in aria form, for instance, some being through composed and some da capo, variety in colour, and variety in temperament of which, I think, more could have been made.
In summary, a very worthwhile project in a thoughtful, musicianly performance. This is an oasis in a veritable desert of undistinguished recordings of Vivaldi's operas. Satisfactory recorded sound and helpful presentation with full Italian text and translated summaries in French, English and German. Recommended.
'
Vivaldi's operatic career, spanned the years from 1713 until 1739; thus
As I've hinted already, Vivaldi the composer plays a stronger part in the earlier operas than in the later ones, where wider considerations of opera production seem to have occupied his mind. The orchestra required for Dario includes, on occasion, oboes, recorders, bassoon, horns, trumpets and a 'viola all'inglese' as well as strings.
The opera begins with an attractive three-movement Italian sinfonia which was previously found its way into recorded programmes of Vivaldi's orchestral music. The cast, by and large, is a strong one though I felt that the drama was played out at a pretty low tension. ''My heart's joy will be the gift of your heart'' announces Dario in his first aria but John Elwes sounds anything but certain that this will, in fact, be so. His subsequent arias are fuller of conviction and his phrasing and articulation bring out the seldom absent lyricism of the music. Stronger characterization of roles comes from two of the three male altos; Henri Ledroit as the scheming Argene has something of James Bowman's quality of timbre. His technique is reliable and he brings colour to his portrayal of a prominent figure in the drama.
But it is Dominique Visse, whom we have encountered so often before in the context of Les Arts Florissants, who really succeeds with his portrayal of the confidante, Flora, in bringing some individuality to the role; one only has to listen to the exhortation of Statira ''Arma il cor di bel coraggio'' (Act 1) to see what I mean. When Flora is around the drama really begins to come to life. I liked Agnes Mellon's Oronte, too, though I found it difficult, at first, to identify her vocal timbre with a male part. Her agitated ''Lasciami in pace'' (Act) comes off especially well and is a happy example of Vivaldi's ability effectively to match music with text; a similarly happy marriage between music and text occurs in Oronte's hauntingly beautiful siciliano in Act 2, ''Non mi lusinga'', one of the musical highspots of the opera. Isabelle Poulenard is in the difficult position of having to take the roles both of a suitor (Arpago) and a princess; hers is an attractive voice, though intonation is not secure, but it is hard to find characteristics in her approach which help us to distinguish one role from the other.
Gerard Lesne's Statira struck me as being less convincing. He can sound less at ease in his tessitura than do the other members of the cast though two of Statira's finest arias ''L'adorar belta che piece'' (Act 1), with its elaborate obbligato for 'viola all'inglese' (played here by a viola da gamba), and ''Se palpitarti'' (Act 2) with muted strings, are affectingly performed. Michel Verschaeve could have made more of the philosopher Niceno—not one to be taken too seriously—but his Act 2 aria, ''Non lusinghi il core amante'' with bassoon obbligato, comes off pretty well. There's an attractive little quotation in the minor key, incidentally, which Vivaldi develops into a major key ritornello in Alcindo's aria ''Dell'alma superba'' in his Serenata a tre, ''Mio cor povero cor'', RV690.
By now you will have gathered that I have been enjoying this opera. The performance is, I think, more successful than any of its predecessors in offering us a reasonably faithful picture of a Vivaldi opera. I have not seen a score but it sounds as if few if any substantial cuts have been made. The Baroque Ensemble of Nice play Vivaldi's music stylishly and reliably and Gilbert Bezzina, who also prepared the performing edition, gives an affectionate account of it. There is plenty of variety in this opera; variety in aria form, for instance, some being through composed and some da capo, variety in colour, and variety in temperament of which, I think, more could have been made.
In summary, a very worthwhile project in a thoughtful, musicianly performance. This is an oasis in a veritable desert of undistinguished recordings of Vivaldi's operas. Satisfactory recorded sound and helpful presentation with full Italian text and translated summaries in French, English and German. Recommended.
'
Vivaldi L'Incoronazione di Dario
Vivaldi L'Incoronazione di Dario
Vivaldi L'Incoronazione di Dario
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