Meyerbeer L'Etoile du nord
View record and artist detailsRecord and Artist Details
Composer or Director: Giacomo Meyerbeer
Genre:
Opera
Label: Marco Polo
Magazine Review Date: 2/1998
Media Format: CD or Download
Media Runtime: 166
Mastering:
DDD
Catalogue Number: 8 223829/31
Tracks:
| Composition | Artist Credit |
|---|---|
| (L') Etoile du nord |
Giacomo Meyerbeer, Composer
Agnete Munk Rasmussen, Natalie, Soprano Aled Hall, Danilowitz, Tenor Christopher Maltman, Gritzenko, Baritone Darina Takova, Prascovia, Soprano Elizabeth Futral, Catherine, Soprano Fernand Bernadi, Reynolds, Bass Giacomo Meyerbeer, Composer Ireland National Symphony Orchestra Juan Diego Flórez, George, Tenor Luis Ledesma, Yermolov, Baritone Patrizia Cigna, Ekimona, Soprano Robert Lee, Ismailov, Tenor Vladimir Ognev, Peter the Great, Bass Wexford Festival Chorus Wladimir Jurowski, Conductor |
Author:
In the old catalogues there was a record by Amelita Galli-Curci, with obbligato by flutes (plural), of the “Grand Air de Catherine” from L’etoile du nord. It was given ‘Connoisseur’ status, and I somehow felt that to own that would be to have reached the height of operatic sophistication. It turned out to be the silliest piece ever (apart, maybe, from that same lovely singer’s record of Bishop’s Pretty mocking-bird). The opera as a whole is, I’m afraid, not all that much better. It tells of an episode in Peter the Great’s time-out, when as a young man he lived among villagers in the Gulf of Finland, fell in love with a resourceful young woman and made her his Empress. She establishes her credentials as a heroine of comic opera by joining up as a soldier-boy, and fits the tragic requirements by going mad. Her wits are restored by an elaborate ‘sting’, set up in the interests of psychotherapy. It works like a charm, and after the aforementioned ‘grand air’ (entitled, if I remember, “La, la, la, la”), with the options kept open for comedy (“Cured!” cry the chorus) and tragedy (“Dead!” sings a soloist), comedy prevails and after the shortest of choruses (“Vive notre imperatrice”) down comes the curtain.
There is a lot of humour and heartiness but not much wit. Musically, considerable accomplishment is exercised in the handling of melody, orchestration and construction, but nothing very worthwhile gets done. One passage stands out as a good example of its kind, and perhaps as quite lovely in its own right: this is a duet towards the end of Act 1 for Peter and Catherine in which, as it happens, both singers are at their best. For a few phrases the bass, Vladimir Ognev, sings in the tradition of Pol Plancon, and Elizabeth Futral is delightfully neat in her decorative work. For the rest, the cast keep promising well but not quite delivering. Not that one can judge them with great confidence as the recording from the stage so often loses touch. The National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland play clearly and with energy; the chorus sing well. A purpose is served by such revivals, and one must be grateful even when the results seem largely negative. The score is strong enough for hopes to rise. But I find they soon sink; rise again ... and sink.'
There is a lot of humour and heartiness but not much wit. Musically, considerable accomplishment is exercised in the handling of melody, orchestration and construction, but nothing very worthwhile gets done. One passage stands out as a good example of its kind, and perhaps as quite lovely in its own right: this is a duet towards the end of Act 1 for Peter and Catherine in which, as it happens, both singers are at their best. For a few phrases the bass, Vladimir Ognev, sings in the tradition of Pol Plancon, and Elizabeth Futral is delightfully neat in her decorative work. For the rest, the cast keep promising well but not quite delivering. Not that one can judge them with great confidence as the recording from the stage so often loses touch. The National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland play clearly and with energy; the chorus sing well. A purpose is served by such revivals, and one must be grateful even when the results seem largely negative. The score is strong enough for hopes to rise. But I find they soon sink; rise again ... and sink.'
Meyerbeer L'Etoile du nord
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