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5.0 out of 5 stars
Maybe the best recording of ANY opera., Mar 14 2004
The Klemperer studio Fidelio for EMI has long been considered one of the supreme, if indeed not the very benchmark, performances of this work. Well, this live 1961 Covent Garden broadcast surpasses it. To begin with the conductor, Klemperer live is a very different musician than when performing in front of a microphone. While tempi can be broad (and I don't mean slow), the tension is of a white-hot nature that one would not normally associate with Klemperer. This is a passionate, even explosive rendition of this most moving of operas, by turns ethereal, thunderous, savage, and grim: The grave digging duet must be the blackest, grimmest, most sinister passage in all music; not even Hagen's music in Goetterdaemmerung can surpass this. And the great choral symphony that ends the opera, "Wer ein holdes Weib errungen", thunders to its victorious conclusion, with Klemperer actually taking it at breakneck speed.
As for the cast, the booklet points out that Klemperer wished to take his entire cast into the recording studio, but Walter Legge vetoed that decision, only allowing Frick and Vickers to be kept on. This was surely one of Legge's biggest blunders. To begin with the youngsters Jacquino and Marzelline, John Dobson and Elsie Morrison project a far more interesting portrayal that usually encountered; Dobson, particularly, is a fiery young man who is genuinely frustrated and heartsick over his fiancee's infatuation with the turnkey Fidelio. Dobson every so often lets his Englishness come through in his German pronunciation, but he is admirable in every way, better than any other tenor in this role. Forbes Robinson as the Minister is very noble and consoling, as he should be. Thanks to the gods for Gottlob Frick! I think one normally thinks of Frick as the Hagen without equal (and he is that, indeed), but I suspect that Rocco was probably a role very close to him, and it shows in this performance. Frick projects a fatherly but deeply conflicted character, far more involved than in his other (3) recorded performances. His conflict with Pizarro is very audible and deeply felt. Pizarro is none other than the great Hans Hotter, a savage, really SCARY prison warden, yet smooth and polished as he first attempts to blandish Rocco into murdering Florestan. This is no ordinary stage villain, but a Nazi-SS officer! Although he has moments of unsteadiness, Hotter simply overshadows any other Pizarro, recorded or otherwise. And now to the conjugal couple, "Das Ehepaar." Sena Jurinac made her debut as Leonore in this performance, and she brings down the house with her intensity and warmth. She is a true dramatic soprano here, but less a Flagstad and more a Frida Leider type, with ringing high tones, a vibrant vibrato, and superb diction. As for Florestan, well, this is Jon Vickers' greatest performance, even outshining his studio rendition for Klemperer. I cannot listen to "und spuehr ich nicht linde" without breaking into tears. Vickers shows, I think, that only a true Heldentenor can do this role justice, and that is what Vickers was, the last of the true heroic tenors.
Well, this is a lot to say about a recording, but it must be done the justice that it deserves. How anyone can still say that "Fidelio" is a flawed masterpiece is now beyond me. I don't think that Beethoven or anyone else every wrote anything more moving or able to truly cleanse the soul.
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5.0 out of 5 stars
I join in the praise, Jan 29 2004
I join in the chorus of praise. Having owned the EMI Klemperer Fidelio for so long, I rushed out to buy this as soon as it was released. It didn't disappoint. The fantastically intense Otto Klemperer is just that in the theatre - fantastically intense. This is a Fidelio to set beside the legends!!
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5.0 out of 5 stars
Long-awaited legendary performances, Jan 25 2004
The world has long known of this legendary performance, unavailable to the public. I've read that some recordings from dubious sources existed. Now, finally, the official release from the original tapes itself from BBC. Listening to it, I am struck by Klemperer's total command of the score. If you've heard his EMI performance, you may think "it's doctored in the studio". But here is a 'live' performance totally undoctored, thrilling in its intensity, just like the EMI performance. In fact, Klemperer moves faster in this 'live' recording. His finale march and the final chorus for instance, moves at a much faster pace, the effect is quite similar to Solti's Fidelio with Behrens and the Chicago forces, but more intense. Klemperer also makes astute use of the timpani to stunning effect. Hans Hotter was in great voice that night although the voice is a bit woofy. Gottlob Frick is superb as Rocco, his dark bass making him sound authoritative as a father. Jon Vickers is unsurpassed as Florestan. I don't care what people say, nobody does THIS like Vickers. Jurinac is excellent as Leonore. Her high B at the end of her Act 1 aria is slightly messed up but that dpesn't really spoil the overall performance which is beautifully and intensely sung. She has a kind of vibrato which is very pleasing to hear.The ensemble is not always perfect. There are instances of the singers running ahead of the orchestra. After the trio, at the start of the Act 1 march, the audience clapped hysterically until someone shouted "Quiet! Sssssh!!" because Klemperer did not stop for the applause but continued with the performance even though he was drowned out by clapping. So there are all these warts in the performance, undoctored. But the performance is so moving and intense that it just doesn't matter. A truly great performance. BTW, I just saw the video from the Met starring Mattila, that is also a great performance. Since Klemperer's EMI Fidelio in 1962, there has not been any truly great recordings of Fidelio coming out. Now suddenly we have 2 together. The 2000 Met production is the greatest Fidelio since Klemperer 1962.
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