MusicWeb International One of the most grown-up review sites around 2024
60,000 reviews
... and still writing ...

Search MusicWeb Here Acte Prealable Polish CDs
 

Presto Music CD retailer
 
Founder: Len Mullenger                                    Editor in Chief:John Quinn             


Some items
to consider

new MWI
Current reviews

old MWI
pre-2023 reviews

paid for
advertisements

Acte Prealable Polish recordings

Forgotten Recordings
Forgotten Recordings
All Forgotten Records Reviews

TROUBADISC
Troubadisc Weinberg- TROCD01450

All Troubadisc reviews


FOGHORN Classics

Alexandra-Quartet
Brahms String Quartets

All Foghorn Reviews


All HDTT reviews


Songs to Harp from
the Old and New World


all Nimbus reviews



all tudor reviews


Follow us on Twitter


Editorial Board
MusicWeb International
Founding Editor
   
Rob Barnett
Editor in Chief
John Quinn
Contributing Editor
Ralph Moore
Webmaster
   David Barker
Postmaster
Jonathan Woolf
MusicWeb Founder
   Len Mullenger


 REVIEW


Advertising on
Musicweb


Donate and keep us afloat

 

New Releases

Naxos Classical
All Naxos reviews

Hyperion recordings
All Hyperion reviews

Foghorn recordings
All Foghorn reviews

Troubadisc recordings
All Troubadisc reviews



all Bridge reviews


all cpo reviews

Divine Art recordings
Click to see New Releases
Get 10% off using code musicweb10
All Divine Art reviews


All Eloquence reviews

Lyrita recordings
All Lyrita Reviews

 

Wyastone New Releases
Obtain 10% discount

Subscribe to our free weekly review listing

 

 

alternatively
AmazonUK AmazonUS


Gioachino ROSSINI (1792-1868)
Il Turco in Italia - Dramma buffo in two acts (1814)
Selim, a womanising Turkish Prince captivated by Fiorilla - Marco Vinco (bass); Fiorilla, capricious wife of Don Geronio - Alessandra Marianelli (soprano); Geronio, elderly husband of Fiorilla - Andrea Concetti (bass); Don Narciso, servant and admirer of Fiorilla - Filippo Adami (tenor); Prosdocimo, a poet and friend of Geronio - Bruno Taddia (baritone); Zaida, enamoured of Selim - Elena Belfiore (mezzo); Albazar, confident of Selim, Daniele Zinfardino (tenor)
Prague Chamber Choir, Orchestra Haydn Di Bolzano e Trento/Antonello Allemandi
rec. live, Rossini Opera Festival, Pesaro, Italy, 18 August 2007.
Sung in Italian and performed in the edition by Margaret Bent for the Rossini Foundation
Director: Guido De Monticelli. Set designer: Paolo Bregni. Costume Designer: Santuzza Cali
Video Director: Tiziano Mancini
Dolby surround 5.0, Dolby, Digital 2.0 Stereo. Aspect 16:9 Colour
NAXOS 2.110259 [165.09]
Experience Classicsonline


Tancredi and L’Italiana in Algeri, premiered at Venice’s La Fenice and San Benedetto theatres in February and May 1813 launched Rossini on an unstoppable career. It saw him become the most prestigious opera composer of his time. Whilst the success of these works brought commissions from La Scala neither of his next two operas, both commissioned by that prestigious theatre, were considered a success at their premieres. The first of the commissions, Aureliano in Palmira, opened the Carnival (winter) season on 26 December 1813. Giovanni Velluti (1761-1861) the last of the great castrati sang the hero Arsace. It was the only time that Rossini wrote a work for the castrato voice. Despite its modest reception on its first night Aureliano in Palmira was given fourteen times in the Milan season. The second of the Milan duo, Il Turco in Italia, Rossini’s thirteenth opera, was initially seen by the Milanese as a repeat of L’Italiana in Algeri and they thought themselves short-changed. The work’s originality and quality were quickly recognised elsewhere and Il Turco spread to other Italian cities, and abroad, where, while not as original or enjoyable as L’Italiana in Algeri, it was received with acclaim.

The libretto was one of the later renowned librettist Felice Romani’s earliest. The plot concerns Fiorilla, the capricious and flighty wife of an elderly husband Geroni. She puts herself around male company in general and attracts an ardent admirer, Narcisco. She also takes a fancy to Selim, a Turkish Prince who arrives in Italy to survey the local ladies and quickly becomes besotted by Fiorilla. Selim has already spurned his long-time lover Zaida who is heartbroken and pursues him. The narrative is completed by the fact that a poet, Prosdocimo who, looking for a story for his next play, sees in the circumstances of the various liaisons the perfect situation for his plot. All ends well with Fiorilla duly contrite about her behaviour and Selim and Zaide back together. The poet has his plot and only Narciso seems without his earlier yearnings sated.

With this frothily implausible plot the best stagings are often the simplest and colourful. This is very much the case in this production from Pesaro first seen in 2002. The costumes are highly colourful and the basic set of a raked and sloped sand-coloured beach is easily and quickly adapted for the various scenes that follow. This is aided by judicious lighting and the use of an opening curved back. The arrival and departure of Selim’s boat is particularly well portrayed.

As might be guessed from Callas’s revival of the work, it is a vocal and acting dream for a singing coloratura actress. In this production this is exactly what it get in the form of the ginger-haired and slim Alessandra Marianelli whose sung and acted portrayal is of a high standard. There are not many formal arias in the work but when she gets the chance for a solo, as when Fiorilla discovers her husband has disowned her and she is homeless (CH.29), the range of Marianelli’s vocal expression matches that of her flexible coloratura in the many duets and ensembles. Marco Vinco seems to be the Rossini buffa de jour. Whilst not erasing memories of Sam Ramey who had more fruitiness and sonority in his bass, Vinco is always able to portray these buffo parts with conviction as he does here with some resonant tones to go along with his resplendent costume and headgear (CH.7). The Prosdocimo, Bruno Taddia, is equally convincing, with his poet’s pencil protruding from his mop of hair. He sings and acts with character in the many ensembles and in his duet with Albazar (CH.25). Less convincing is the blandly acted Andrea Concetti as the husband. He seems a wimp anyway, at least until he gets some spine into himself and bars his wife from their home. Concetti is a light-toned singer and finds difficulty in investing his singing and acting with much character. Full-toned, if with a touch too much vibrato, and well portrayed is Elena Belfiore Selim’s cast aside Zaide. The two minor tenor roles of Narciso and Albazar are adequately taken with the latter having a pleasant light sound.

Rossini plundered the ebullient overture for Sigsmundo (1814), somewhat risky as it was back in Venice at La Fenice, and Otello (1816) far away in Naples. Antonello Allemandi conducts it with brio and navigates the weaker parts of the score with aplomb. The Orchestra Haydn Di Bolzano e Trento are well up to the demands of his baton and the score. The Prague Chamber Choir is an enthusiastic and vibrant participant.

I note that the packaging of the DVD quotes an enthusiastic review from a colleague for the parallel CD release by Dynamic (see review by JS). Another colleague was less enthusiastic about the singing (see review by RH). With the benefit of the visual production, I seem to sit midway between their views though sharing opinions about some of the cast. The Naxos DVD owes its existence to Dynamic and not only has a brief introductory essay, but also an excellent chapter-related synopsis in English and German as well as very welcome cast biographies, albeit in the former language only.

Robert J Farr 

 


EXPLORE MUSICWEB INTERNATIONAL

Making a Donation to MusicWeb

Writing CD reviews for MWI

About MWI
Who we are, where we have come from and how we do it.

Site Map

How to find a review

How to find articles on MusicWeb
Listed in date order

Review Indexes
   By Label
      Select a label and all reviews are listed in Catalogue order
   By Masterwork
            Links from composer names (eg Sibelius) are to resource pages with links to the review indexes for the individual works as well as other resources.

Themed Review pages

Jazz reviews

 

Discographies
   Composer
      Composer surveys
   National
      Unique to MusicWeb -
a comprehensive listing of all LP and CD recordings of given works
.
Prepared by Michael Herman

The Collector’s Guide to Gramophone Company Record Labels 1898 - 1925
Howard Friedman

Book Reviews

Complete Books
We have a number of out of print complete books on-line

Interviews
With Composers, Conductors, Singers, Instumentalists and others
Includes those on the Seen and Heard site

Nostalgia

Nostalgia CD reviews

Records Of The Year
Each reviewer is given the opportunity to select the best of the releases

Monthly Best Buys
Recordings of the Month and Bargains of the Month

Comment
Arthur Butterworth Writes

An occasional column

Phil Scowcroft's Garlands
British Light Music articles

Classical blogs
A listing of Classical Music Blogs external to MusicWeb International

Reviewers Logs
What they have been listening to for pleasure

Announcements

 

Community
Bulletin Board

Give your opinions or seek answers

Reviewers
Past and present

Helpers invited!

Resources
How Did I Miss That?

Currently suspended but there are a lot there with sound clips


Composer Resources

British Composers

British Light Music Composers

Other composers

Film Music (Archive)
Film Music on the Web (Closed in December 2006)

Programme Notes
For concert organizers

External sites
British Music Society
The BBC Proms
Orchestra Sites
Recording Companies & Retailers
Online Music
Agents & Marketing
Publishers
Other links
Newsgroups
Web News sites etc

PotPourri
A pot-pourri of articles

MW Listening Room
MW Office

Advice to Windows Vista users  
Questionnaire    
Site History  
What they say about us
What we say about us!
Where to get help on the Internet
CD orders By Special Request
Graphics archive
Currency Converter
Dictionary
Magazines
Newsfeed  
Web Ring
Translation Service

Rules for potential reviewers :-)
Do Not Go Here!
April Fools




Return to Review Index

Untitled Document


Reviews from previous months
Join the mailing list and receive a hyperlinked weekly update on the discs reviewed. details
We welcome feedback on our reviews. Please use the Bulletin Board
Please paste in the first line of your comments the URL of the review to which you refer.