If you are looking for a first choice Don Carlo on
DVD then this is emphatically not it. In fact, it’s problematic
from almost every angle. It’s a 1965 performance from the new
Deutsche Oper so it’s in black and white - though the picture
is pretty sharp - and the sound is in mono. The thing that will
put most people off, though, is that it’s sung in German. Admittedly,
this gets around the problem of whether to sing it in French
or in Italian, but it brings no gains to anyone who is not a
native German speaker. Realistically this will confine it to
the “specialist” corner. Furthermore, it’s the four-act version,
which I for one think is always an opportunity wasted when it
comes to this work. Without the Fontainebleau Act the opera
feels as though it has had a limb lopped off. For me this rules
it out of the ball park straight away, though I’m prepared to
admit that this is predominantly a personal preference.
The performance itself isn’t at all bad, as it happens. It enshrines
Sellner’s handsome production which is all geometric lines and
austere settings with sumptuously observed costumes. The film
direction is very unexciting, often relying on only one camera
angle which zooms in or out depending on how personal the level
of the action. Language apart, the singing is actually rather
good from most people. James King is an ardent and virile Carlos,
almost too much so, rendering heroic the rather weedy character
that Verdi created. The finest figure on stage is Fischer-Dieskau’s
Posa, caught in his operatic prime in 1965. He sings with heroic
warmth and tender affection, providing an exciting foil in his
duet with Philip and attaining something close to transfiguration
in the death scene. Pilar Lorengar sings with beauty and purity.
Her big final act aria is surprisingly powerful, but the role
of Elisabeth is too big for her on the whole. Patricia Johnson
is a compelling if one-sided Eboli, and Talvela’s Grand Inquisitor
is cut out of cardboard. Greindl sounds very uncomfortable in
his role, too often creating a sound that is actively ugly.
He overuses the dramatic pause on a number of occasions.
Sawallisch’s conducting is solid and safe, but there are numerous,
infuriating cuts which will cause great annoyance to anyone
who knows the score. It particularly ruins the ending by eradicating
the part of the mysterious friar. What’s more, there is an infinitesimal
but profoundly irritating time-lag between what you see and
what you hear. Not everyone will notice it, but once you do
you’ll never be able to ignore it. No: this is not one I’ll
be returning to. Top choice for the Italian version is still,
for me, Levine with a star-studded cast from the Met on Deutsche
Grammophon, while Pappano’s
French version on Warner delivers an even more compelling
dramatic experience. This Arthaus release is of historical interest
only.
Simon Thompson
Don Carlos – James King (tenor)
[155:00] 