CAMPUS

Mozart in English II: Don Giovanni and The Abduction from the Seraglio

Mozart: Don Giovanni
Andrew Shore, Clive Bayley, Dean Robinson, Garry Magee, Barry Banks, Vivian Tierney, Mary Plazas, Majella Cullagh

Philharmonia Orchestra, Geoffrey Mitchell Choir/David Parry

Chandos 3057, 3 CDs, 2 hours, 38 minutes
($25.99 on ArkivMusic.com: Click here to buy this CD)

Mozart: The Abduction from Seraglio

Jenifer Eddy, Mattiwilda Dobbs, Nicolai Gedda, John Fryatt, Noel Magnin, David Kelsey

Ambrosian Singers, Bath Festival Orchestra/Yehudi Menuhin

Chandos 3081, 2 CDs, 2 hours, 13 minutes
($25.99 on ArkivMusic.com: Click here to buy this CD)

Some three years ago, I reviewed two other operas by Mozart in Chandos’ “Opera in English” series
and found them to be very good indeed. I am no less enthusiastic about these entries in this valuable series.

Maestro David Parry gives us the original “Prague” version of Don Giovanni , which does not include two arias that Mozart composed for the Vienna production: Ottavio’s “Dalla sua pace” and Elvira’s “Mi Tradi.” Many listeners will miss these pieces (which are part of the standard hybrid version of the opera typically presented today), but the dramatic flow of the opera is strengthened by their omission.

The English translation is generally very fine, though for some reason, the original words of the libretto are sometimes gratuitously altered, for no apparent reason and often to the detriment of the genius of Mozart and Lorenzo da Ponte’s original. For example, in the cemetery scene, when Giovanni recounts his amorous encounter with one of Leporello’s girlfriends, the angry servant cries out, “I’d kill you if she had been my wife!” Giovanni responds sarcastically: “What a warning!” In the original, the exchange (translated more faithfully into English) goes like this:

Leporello: “And suppose the lady had been my wife?”

Giovanni (laughing): “Even better!”

Why Chandos and translator Amanda Holden undermined the cleverness of the original libretto here is puzzling. Despite this intermittent annoyance, this Giovanni is consistently enjoyable. Parry’s cast is strong, though none of the singers would be a first choice in their roles. Still, they work well as a team, acting their parts as well as singing them.

The surprise for me was Yehudi Menuhin’s outstanding 1967 recording of Mozart’s delightful Abduction from the Seraglio. The Polish conductor brings a light touch to this sunny opera, and the cast here, led by the famous tenor Nicolai Gedda, is absolutely first-rate. Mozart’s German singspiels work especially well in English, and here the translation is quite faithful to the original libretto. The sound is outstanding. This is a triumph in every way and takes its place among the great recording of this work.

 
Grade:Don Giovanni

Performance: B+

Sound: A

Grade:The Abduction from the Seraglio