Hot on the heels of an exceptional recording of a 1962 performance of Mozart's Don Giovanni, the Royal Opera House Heritage Series has released this almost equally impressive live performance of Puccini's Madama Butterfly.
Essential listening for the seminal interpretation of Cio-Cio-San by Victoria de los Angeles, the CDs capture a performance of both emotional and psychological intensity.
Although she had previously sung the role at Covent Garden in 1951, De los Angeles received the reviews of her life for her return to the role at the Royal Opera House in 1957. The staging was a revival of a 1950 production by Robert Helpmann, the famous Australian ballet dancer who had frequently partnered Margot Fonteyn in her early days at the Sadler's Wells ballet. But whereas the 1950 performances had been given in English (the 1950 Cio-Cio-San was a German soprano, Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, singing an Italian opera in English), the 1957 revival ushered in a new era of performing most operas in the original language, something that has remained policy to this day, thank goodness.
I was slightly nonplussed on my initial hearing of the recording to find that the highlights of De los Angeles' interpretation of the title character are not the obvious set pieces but moments in the libretto where the character is particularly animated or agitated. She sings the love duet in Act One very beautifully and 'Un bel dì' is powerfully done (though the final note is slightly attenuated), but in neither case does it feel like a significant statement is being made. Rather, the two stand-out points are the speech in Act Two where Butterfly sees the American warship with the returning Pinkerton coming into harbour - the singer expresses the character's elation so vividly that it draws loud applause at the end of it - and the final scene, which is truly chilling. Throughout the performance, De los Angeles' complete understanding of the role and enormous vocal reserves make it an absorbing experience.
It's a pity that her Pinkerton was a company man rather than a singer of greater stature. John Lanigan's tenor is far too light and thin for my taste, and by the side of De los Angeles' consummate performance he sounds strained and rather un-Italianate. The reverse is true of Geraint Evans, the impeccable Sharpless. His total immersion into this short but crucial part makes him an excellent counterpart to his leading lady. Evans' Sharpless is a friend and advisor to Cio-Cio-San, but there is a sinister edge to his portrayal, and his attention to the words adds further bite to it. It's good to see Michael Langdon, a much under-rated company principal for many years, as a dominating Bonze, and Barbara Howitt's Suzuki is subtle and refined.
The biggest surprise for me was the excellence of the conducting. Who'd have thought that Madama Butterfly was Rudolf Kempe's score? Yet on reflection it makes sense that a fine conductor of late romantic symphonies should excel in an opera influenced by the symphonic style of late German opera. From the intense fugal opening to the devastation of the final scene, he paces the work with energy and vitality.
In all, another triumph for ROH Heritage in this lavishly packaged release. More titles are due in the autumn, and it won't be a minute too soon. My own preference would be for a release of the great 1967 La traviata with Mirella Freni, Piero Cappuccilli and Carlo Maria Giulini. A man can dream.