Placido DomingoVerdi - Stiffelio

Is Verdi’s 1849 Stiffelio, reconstructed in the late 20th century, the last of his early operas, showing its bel canto roots, or is it his first plunge into the future with his ideas about reforming opera practice?In their respective 1993 productions, the MET and the Royal Opera Covent Garden each chose a definite answer to that question. The Royal Opera, almost certainly basing their options on his total output and statements about opera, decided to bring to life Verdi’s intentions. Cast, costumes, set design, direction, were all assembled to produce a taught, white-knuckle drama set to music. The resulting DVD is a gem: buy it immediately.The MET, however, in their 1993 DVD, went to the opposite extreme. The MET production is full bel canto retro. The soloists, Sharon Sweet and Vladimir Chernov in particular, are singing in traditional opera style. The MET production emphasizes set numbers: arias, choruses, trios, etc., pausing for applause after each “number”. It’s a magnificent production, complete with the outstanding, amazing MET chorus and orchestra, but in comparison with the Royal Opera’s in-depth creation, I find it embarrassing.If you decide to buy this DVD, you will certainly get your money’s worth: besides MET chorus and orchestra, always astounding, you will get Placido with his excellent singing and acting (and perhaps more in tune with the Royal Opera production), and his subtle timing and phrasing in the very last scene. With those pluses, you will have to accept Sweet’s unsuitable-for-the-part physical appearance and occasional screechy high notes, and Chernov’s unusual-for-him-as-a-noted Verdi baritone rather stiff acting.This DVD is worth owning for the MET chorus and orchestra, and for this production’s very last scene of the opera — but, if you’re a Verdi lover, only if you buy the Royal Opera’s DVD as well. If cost means you have to make a choice, go with the Royal Opera DVD.

Stiffelio is a GREAT opera. Lost for close to a century, it has been slow in making its way into the standard repertoire, but productions such as this one should further its cause as well as its reputation. This is frankly one of the best opera productions I've ever seen. Every facet is top of the line, from the orchestra to the singers to the stage production to the video direction. Prepare to be overwhelmed. And, if you've never seen or heard Stiffelio before, prepare to welcome a new opera into the canon of Verdi masterpieces.Stiffelio, about a Protestant minister who learns that his wife has cheated on him while he was away, has a story that is closer to verismo opera than most of the other operas of that time in that it deals with regular people rather than kings and queens, gods and goddesses. Like verismo, the emotion is often pushed to a level that is melodramatic, even larger than life. Yet even those moments have the core of truth to them, because Stiffelio's characters are never less, or more, than human, defined as they are by human weakness. This is a very powerful opera, Bergmanesque(as in Ingmar) in that it deals with the conflict between the spiritual life and the earthly one. This juxtaposition is never more beautifully realized than at the end of act two, where Stiffelio has just learned of his wife's indiscretion and is prepared to kill her but is stayed by the voices of the congregation emanating from the church, singing about forgiveness. I was overpowered, and I'm not even a religious person! Then again, neither was Verdi, yet the great humanist was able to put aside his anticlericalism and create an astonishing vision of a man finding redemption through faith. This has always been a Verdian specialty, scenes where private agonies clash with public responsibilities. Probably the greatest example comes late in act three of Otello, where Otello has just finished spying on Iago and Cassio and is tormented with jealousy and thoughts of violence just as the horns signal the approach of the heralds. Trust me when I say that the scene I just described from Stiffelio is in that same league.The music of this opera, which was written between Luisa Miller and Rigoletto, shows the composer's progress. There is very little standard recitative, it's almost all through composed, with fewer arias and more concerted music than the norm, creating an undeviating dramatic flow. Many scenes show the richness in orchestration that would characterize his later operas. Also, this is one of the few Verdi operas where the tenor character is the most demanding role. The uniqueness of Stiffelio might tempt some to write it off as a curiosity, yet the power of the story and the passion of the music demand that it be taken seriously as one of Verdi's most beautifully realized triumphs."Taken seriously" certainly applies to this production. The commitment of all involved is palpable. James Levine's orchestra plays with an extraordinary Verdian fervor and flair, yet is never less than subtle in the more pensive, nuanced moments. This lesser known score couldn't be in more capable hands. Under Levine, Stiffelio becomes an emotional powerhouse, it sounds like an opera that belongs in the same class as the more oft performed Verdi masterworks of that period. On to the singers. Placido Domingo gives a performance of Otelloesque intensity. Here is a singer who cares more about dramatic authenticity than strict vocal beauty, and his voice, while lovely, is also savage and tumultuous, just like his acting. Domingo has always excelled in the more angst-ridden roles, Don Jose, Cannio, Otello, the difference here being that Stiffelio offers an opportunity to explore the dawning of wisdom as well, and redemption, and Domingo accepts the challenge. I wasn't familiar with Sharon Sweet, our Lina, prior to watching this. I understand her career at the Met was shortlived. Still, it's easy to see why she demanded so much enthusiasm during her brief period in the spotlight, her singing is explosive yet also beautiful and, dare I say it, sweet. She is also a compelling dramatic actress, her wayward, fatalistic wife, the catalyst for this tragedy, is never less than a sympathetic character. Vladimir Chernov matches the tenor and soprano's intensity as Stankar, Lina's father, the tragic counterpart to Stiffelio, his foil if you will, who yields to the same impulse to violence that initially drives Stiffelio, unlike Stiffelio he only yields to the power of forgiveness after sating his need for bloodshed. Paul Plishka has a smaller role as Jorg, but no less important, since he functions as Stiffelio's conscience, his voice of reason. His stoic compassion is mesmerizing. Regarding Giancarlo del Monaco's production, this is an advertisement for tradtional productions when they are done well. The dark, brooding sets, while effective at setting the mood of the piece, are also light on abstraction, on symbols, they allow the singers and the music to impart the opera's profundity. The settings are elaborate and in their own way as essential to the performance's success as the singers and orchestra. Brian Large's video direction is as polished and cinematic and as unintrusive as ever, using closeups during moments of extreme emotional distress but also pulling back his camera when necessary to allow the viewer to take it all in. I've never seen a Met broadcast look better.One final note. I persist in objecting to this opera's overture. I don't approve of cuts in most instances, particularly in operas that are under two hours, but if I were ever to consider making a cut to any score, this overture would have to be one of the first I would consider. For one thing, Stiffelio is a short, intimate opera, close to a chamber piece in some respects, so a ten minute overture seems inappropriate. Second, although the overture does use motifs from the actual score, the texture and pacing of the piece are too jaunty and therefore a poor match for the subject matter and mood of the opera itself. It sounds more like something Donizetti would have written for one of his lighter operas, it has a standard bel canto feel to it whereas Stiffelio is one of those operas that does its best to break free of bel canto conventions. Basically, Stiffelio's overture is unworthy of the man who just prior to that wrote the brilliant prelude to Luisa Miller and the stirring overture to La Battaglia di Legnano. More than that, it is unworthy of the opera. Despite all that, Levine and his orchestra give a spirited reading. I'm certainly not about to allow a weak overture spoil what is otherwise a beautiful opera and a magnificent production and an overwhelming viewing experience. Nor should you.

... Anche se Placido Domingo non mi fa impazzire è comunque una buona interpretazione!!

Dvd's render great audio and video. The sub-titles come in several languages and are clear and easy to read. I love watching them over and over.

As good as expected

bellissima interpretazione con grandi interpreti, bellissima opera, per un bel e buon ascolto... consigliatissima anche per riscoprire un altro gioiello del gran maestro Verdi

In the lead role of Stiffelio, the Christian minister after whom this work is named, we have one of Verdi's finest tenor roles superbly rendered in this production by none other than Placido Domingo. How is it that certain works become the hall marks of great composers to the detriment of some of their other compositions which are just as good and even better in some respects? Stiffelio was not helped by having a shaky start when it was first performed in 1850 in Trieste. Maybe the idea of a married priest with an adulterous wife leading to a near divorce was all too much for that day and age. Although this work has been revived in recent times it has not been able to overcome the stigma of its initial rejection, which is a great pity as it's worthy of being included among Verdi's greatest works.'Verdi,' we say, 'Ah yes, La Traviata, Rigoletto, Aida, Il Trovatore – wonderful!' I don't mind if all kinds of experts and learned folk disagree with me when I maintain that Stiffelio is just as great. It simply needs to be realised that nothing is perfect and it's always easy to discover weaknesses in even the greatest works. For instance, the reason for Lina's (Stiffelio's wife) adultery is not made clear. Why did she enter into a liaison with the noblemen Raffaele? We don't know. But, then again, do we need to know? Verdi was not without his own marital problems, first with the death of his two children followed by that of his wife Margherita in 1839. Later on, in November 1850, when Stiffelio was first performed in the teatro Grande in Trieste, he was living with his mistress, the famous soprano Giuseppina Strepponi, whom he had first met in Milan in 1847. He married her twelve years later.Siffelio fell into problems with the censor on account of its religious content and this, coupled with its poor reception in Trieste plus its being overshadowed by the first production of Rigoletto in Venice a few months later in March 1851, it fell out of the repertoire until it was rediscovered and performed during the latter half of the Twentieth Century. Although this performance at the Met is top quality, I would say that the more recent performance at Il Teatro Regio di Parma (q.v.), a recording of which is available in Blu-Ray, is even better. This work is one of the very few of Verdi's operas that does not end in a tragic death, concentrating instead on the importance of forgiveness and reconciliation, although the character of Stiffelio is obviously finding it very difficult to come to terms with his wife's adultery. I did not find Sharon Sweet in the role of the adulterous wife Lina quite as convincing as Yu Guanqun in the same role in the Parma production. However, Vladimir Chernov was convincing in the role of Lina's father, colonel and count of the Empire.This work deserves to be better known and appreciated. I have to say I like it every bit as much as I do any of Verdi's better known works, and it is so encouraging that we now have two excellent recordings of it. It's all too easy to miss out on rewardingly good performances by concentrating too much on the better known works. No work is perfect and it's always possible to find weaknesses in even the greatest of composer's compositions and even more so with the performances. However, I venture to say that we have here a great performance of one of Verdi's most interesting and rewarding works, which deserves to be better known. I'm so pleased that I now have recordings of two different productions of this fascinating, very watchable work.