When the performance
starts, Sir Georg makes a quick entrance
in his usual energetic manner, gently
smiling as though already anticipating
what will take place on stage. The overture
is vital, rhythmically alert and the
maestro makes the most of the dynamic
contrasts. In the lyrical middle section
there is more warmth than in his LP/CD
recording made a few years earlier –
or is it just the visual impact that
adds this extra feeling of cosiness?
When the colourful
non-figurative curtain opens we at once
share Sir Georg’s pleasure with the
fanciful stage design: Pasha Selim’s
palace to the right, looking just as
we have always thought it would, judging
from the fairytale picture books we
read as children, and with a lovely
garden surrounding it. In this setting
the whole action takes place. Director
Elijah Moshinsky has done an inspired
and inspiring job with a lot of amusing
details. The tragic side, represented
by Belmonte and Konstanze, is always
difficult to project. Their sometimes
long arias are dramatically quite static
and the walking about and sitting down,
only to rise again within some seconds
is what we all too often meet in the
opera houses. I can understand the director’s
despair: standing upright delivering
a ten-minute-long aria feels very old-fashioned
today. However is the alternative –
hyper-activity – any better? The fault
lies really in the play, in the music,
and it can to a large extent be redeemed
by good singing, of which there is plenty
in this performance.
All the singers, and
the actor, are convincing in their roles.
As so often is the case it is the secondary
couple, Pedrillo and Blonde, who steal
the show. The character that dominates
the stage whenever he appears is Pasha
Selim. Oliver Tobias is younger than
most Pashas. He is a dangerous presence,
he can be violent, roaring with Hitler-like
intensity, forcing Konstanze into a
kiss. His grim looks send shivers down
the spine. This also makes his volte-face
at the end even more surprising.
Pasha’s factotum, the
gardener Osmin, Kurt Moll is magnificent,
both vocally and visually ... and those
enormous whiskers! He is a superb actor
and it is a pleasure to follow his facial
expressions when Humphrey Burton lets
the cameras zoom in on him. The "Tea
Party Scene" during Blonde’s Durch
Zärtlichkeit aria is excellent
comedy, further enhanced by Lillian
Watson’s lovely acting and singing.
Moll executes his arias with all the
fruitiness one could wish and his jubilant
Ah, wie will ich triumphieren,
the last bars of which are sung from
the top of the prompt-box, is met with
ovations. Lars Magnusson as Pedrillo
is a highly accomplished comedian who
makes the most of the pizzicato-accompanied
Im Mohrenland and what’s more
it’s sung with hushed elegance.
Of the two "serious"
lovers, Deon van der Walt has a smooth
rounded lyrical voice that is close
to ideal for Belmonte. He also has the
technical skill necessary to negotiate
the intricacies of the second act aria
Ich baue ganz, but his tone has
a tendency to harden under pressure.
This is a marginal flaw though, and
the masterfully written duet Welch
ein Geschick! is excellently done.
His voice and that of Inga Nielsen blend
well. On her own Ms Nielsen is in glorious
form in Welcher Wechsel herrscht
in meiner Seele, which musically
is one of Mozart’s finest tragic arias.
She’s on similarly inspired form in
the notoriously difficult Martern
aller Arten, requiring a coloratura
soprano able also to take on Fidelio
– a role Inga Nielsen has excelled in
for a long time. I heard her as Leonora
in Vienna three years ago and she also
sings it on the highly recommendable
complete recording on Naxos.
Fine singing, good
acting and charming sets all presided
over by a Solti less hectic than he
has sometimes been. Good playing and
good technical quality makes this another
recommendation. Buy and enjoy!
Göran Forsling
Fine singing, good acting, charming
sets ... presided over by a Solti less
hectic than he has sometimes been. Good
playing and technical quality ... Buy
and enjoy! ... see Full Review
Royal Opera Chorus 
WARNER NVC ARTS 0630-18773-2 [approx. 142:00]