Giacomo PUCCINI (1858-1924)
La Fanciulla del West
(1910) [132:48]
Cluj-Napoca Choir
Transylvania State Philharmonic Orchestra/Lawrence Foster
rec. June 2019, Studio of Radio Cluj, Romania
Text and translation included
Reviewed as downloaded from digital press preview
PENTATONE SACD PTC5186778
[60:19 + 72:29]
A few years ago my colleague, Paul Corfield Godfrey, in his
review
of a reissue of the old Tebaldi recording of this opera wrote, “Whenever I
hear a performance of La fanciulla del West I am always tempted to
think of it as Puccini’s greatest opera – Puccini thought so, too.” Did
Puccini regard this opera so highly because he thought it was actually
better than his other compositions?
It is a fact that the period of composition occurred during the most
personally tumultuous episode of Puccini’s career. The “Affaire Doria”
nearly destroyed the Puccini family in a very public and legal sense.
Briefly, the Puccinis' maid, Doria Manfredi was accused by Elvira Puccini
of having an affair with her husband. Her very public accusations and
harassment of the girl in the small village of Torre del Lago, where the
Puccini’s made their home, became so desperate for Doria that she ended her
life by taking poison in January 1909. The legal battle mounted by Doria’s
family lasted into the summer and became headline news around the world.
The fact that Puccini did not actually have an affair with Doria was only
finally proved a few years ago when long-hidden letters were revealed which
made clear that Puccini did have an affair, but with Doria’s cousin Giulia
Manfredi who was, coincidentally, a tavern keeper. The entire episode
placed an enormous strain on the Puccini household, and also interrupted
the composition of the opera which Puccini had begun in 1907.
Act Three seems to have given Puccini the most enormous trouble, as he
desperately searched for a way to refocus the final act of Belasco’s rather
matter-of-fact play into something that he could fill with emotion and
meaning. Puccini was especially driven to find a way to make Minnie redeem
the character of Dick Johnson in some way. Was the need for this a way for
Puccini to allay the deep guilt he felt over his part in the tragedy that
consumed them all? It seems likely to this reviewer and for that reason I
will suggest that Puccini’s particular love for this work was complicated
for a number of very personal reasons.
In the end the New York premiere of the opera in December 1910 was deemed a
failure on many levels by the critics. In the fascinating book “Puccini and
the Girl” by Annie J. Randall and Rosalind Gray Davis (University of
Chicago Press, 2005), the authors detail the enormous publicity build-up
the opera received prior to its premiere. It was generally marketed as
something revolutionary and extremely American in its content. This led to
a huge public disappointment as the New Yorkers were expecting a work sung
in English filled with well known American songs worked into the score. The
most common criticism of the work was that it wasn’t nearly American
enough. Puccini came to be very defensive on this subject and this reaction
has stalked the opera for over a century and still features in criticism of
it today. My response to it is “hogwash.” Fanciulla is one of
Puccini’s most complex scores and features the one heroine who is the most
three-dimensional in the entire Puccini canon.
There are only five prior commercial recordings of Fanciulla; the
most recent was Leonard Slatkin’s version from Munich, which is essentially
the least recommendable one. Pentatone has brought forth a bright new
studio recording which they have released on SACD, although I am
auditioning a digital, two channel stereo version. The sound that arrives
on this recording from Romania is quite fine indeed. The orchestral
textures are beautifully clear and there is a moderate feeling of space
around the instruments, less so for the voices. In this regard it doesn’t
quite come to the level of the old Decca recording with Tebaldi, but it is
certainly an improvement on the very constricted sound that DG summoned up
for the otherwise superb Mehta recording (Originals 4748402 or Pentatone
SACD PTC5186243 -
review).
Lawrence Foster leads the excellent Transylvanian orchestra in a somewhat
careful reading of Puccini’s most impressionistic score. He shies away from
driving things forward with the marvelous feeling of tension that Lovro von
Matačić did for the EMI/La Scala version with Birgit Nilsson
(Warner 3818622 -
review, now download only, mid-price, no booklet). His view of
the score more closely resembles that of Franco Capuana on Decca (4215952,
download only, no booklet). Foster is
at his finest in the third act, especially from the point at which Minnie
enters to free Dick Johnson on to the end of the opera.
Melody Moore is a really believable Minnie. Her voice is the most
convincingly youthful sounding Minnie on any recording. Her tone is steady
and she sings with feeling for the words and the drama. There are times
when the role seems just too large for her and she becomes drowned out by
the orchestral climaxes but this is a rare occurrence.
Her Dick Johnson is a very reliable Marius Vlad, who is possessed of a
voice that is responsive and well above average quality among tenors that
are currently trotted before the public. He doesn’t quite have the ability
with the text of Ms Moore, and vocally he is not in the same league as
Placido Domingo or Jăo Gibin, who is my favorite Johnson of them all. Vlad
delivers a nicely crafted version of “Ch’ella mi creda libero”. I
shall never get over my disappointment that Ben Heppner did not record this
complete role, as his 1995 recording of the same aria is one of the finest
I have come across, and the role would have suited him down to his toes.
Lester Lynch defines Jack Rance well. Rance is a complex character to enact
as he is a villain who isn’t really villainous, merely unpleasant and
pushy. Lynch captures this quite well although he too is not quite up to
the level of Sherrill Milnes for Mehta or the underrated Andrea Mongelli
for von Matačić. The smaller roles are for the most part given excellent
performances by a group of talented young singers. The performers of Wowkle
and Billy Jackrabbit are two of the best in what is mostly a fine ensemble
cast.
This is only the second recording to include the Act One scene between
Minnie and Billy Jackrabbit that Puccini excised before the premiere. It
lasts only a few minutes but it is important because it makes Minnie a more
rounded character as she harasses Billy for not marrying Wowkle because of
their baby. Minnie’s saintly persona slips directly after her Bible lesson
and she becomes believable because of this human flaw. Leonard Slatkin was
the first to restore it to CD so it is most welcome to see it return on
this newest release.
To sum up, a reasonably good version can be welcomed on SACD, even if it
doesn’t displace the top recommendation, which remains the near-perfect
Mehta recording on DG, derived from the Royal Opera House production in
1977.
Mike Parr
Cast
Melody Moore – Minnie (soprano)
Marius Vlad – Dick Johnson (tenor)
Lester Lynch – Jack Rance (baritone)
Gustavo Castillo – Jake Wallace (baritone)
Ilseyar Khayrullova – Wowkle (mezzo-soprano)
Alexander Köpecki – Billy Jackrabbit (bass)
Amitai Pati – Nick (tenor)
Radu Simpan – Trin/ Pony Express Rider (tenor)
Rareș Munteanu – Happy (tenor)
Lóránt Barta – Joe (tenor)
Kevin Short – Sonora (bass-baritone)
Ruben Ciungan – Bello (baritone)
Alessandro Luciano – Harry (tenor)
Martin-Jan Nijhoff – Ashby (bass)
Alexandru Suciu – Sid (baritone)
Antonio Di Matteo – Larkens (bass)
