<< 1 >>
Rating: 
Summary: Absolutely super.. beautiful and entertaining
Review: I agree with othere that this version is unconventional, but also hasten to point out that the performers are really great. I do believe that Mozart would have been pleased, even if a bit dismayed by the razor-wire and submachine guns. It is really nice to see talented young performers do Mozart well and having fun doing it. I have a conventional version and clearly and strongly prefer this one.
Rating:
Summary: Ms. Schafer is just stunning
Review: I had to buy this because schafer was in it. Her Constanze is uncomparable to any soprano who has done it. If you just listen "Ach, Ich libte" you'll understand what I mean. That common aria sounds so different when she sings it. Just gorgeous!!! But one drawback if I have to say, the other singers are a little bland... compared to the same title CD from Erato. The CDs from Erato would be a better choice if you just go for the music. Also Schafer is in it, too.
Rating:
Summary: Ms. Schafer is just stunning
Review: I had to buy this because schafer was in it. Her Constanze is uncomparable to any soprano who has done it. If you just listen "Ach, Ich libte" you'll understand what I mean. That common aria sounds so different when she sings it. Just gorgeous!!! But one drawback if I have to say, the other singers are a little bland... compared to the same title CD from Erato. The CDs from Erato would be a better choice if you just go for the music. Also Schafer is in it, too.
Rating:
Summary: Perfection
Review: I recently saw Don Giovanni at DAR Constitution Hall. This started my quest for 5.1 mastered Mozart opera's on DVD. The Abduction from the Seraglio is brilliantly rendered. The audio is magnificient, and the DTS track a definite plus. I only wish the costumes did not include jeans and field coats, but that is but a minor distraction. The music is brilliant, skillfully moving from masculine fullness to feminine slenderness as required. Christine Schafer's vocals are mindblowing, and, to steal a quote from Amadeus' Maestro Salieri, "like fireworks zipping up and down at a fair". He jealously referred to them as "ghastly scales" but I politely disagree. Stunning. A definite must have.
Rating: 
Summary: not for me
Review: Often a good director can add some amusing or clever touches that actually make the opera more fun to watch. Such additions usually require a light touch and when done well are enjoyable. The modern dress and other anachronisms such as cigarette lighters and lighting up before an aria, a bullhorn, pepper spray, etc. were not amusing or clever. The pepper spray was particularly annoying, I thought. On the other hand, I'm probably just an old fuddy-duddy, and perhaps you will like this production. I didn't.
Rating:
Summary: IF 'WAM' WERE AROUND TODAY.......?
Review: THIS IS SUCH a delightful gem of an Opera ~ superbly staged and acted and sung in CONTEMPORARY terms. But then again wasn't it quite contemporary when it first HIT?LORD! What our Wolfie would have done for us today ..... such a funny, sad, uplifting and utterly POLITICALLY correct piece of art. [Remember the difficulties he had with the staging - the banning of the ballet, etc.] The Cast spear-headed by the Dresden-like Christine Schafer and the never-disappointing Paul Groves [recently seen in LA - Berlioz 'Damnation of Faust'. The Salzburg version with Mr. Groves is available on DVD]. AND the rest of the highly professional cast - perfectly in harmony with this work. NICE addition is the Turkish [NON 'WAM' music]. BUT it is the utter freshness of the cast dominated by the gentle Pasha and his Solomon like advice that remains long after the seats cool down. Very much a reflection of our times today .... GREAT DVD!
Rating: 
Summary: Break-in at the Harem
Review: This production of Mozart's Abduction from the Seraglio is sung in German, with English subtitles only.
The first thing you'll notice is that this is done in a more contemporary setting, with modern clothes, styles, and concertina wire around the building. The Pasha wears a suit and tie, as does Constanze. Oh, and the Pasha preaches to his harem in Arabic (with English subtitles). This gives the production a more Arab perspective than is customary. Blonde and Osmin are a delightful and playful couple who, by themselves could make this production a success. Constanze sings remarkably well, the "Marten alle Arten" aria beginning with four of the musicians on stage, each introducing the theme--a unique and effective touch. This production ends, believe it or not, with the Pasha dancing as a sort of Whirling Dervish, but it fits and it works! If you have never seen a production of the Abduction from the Seraglio, it might be better to start with the 2002 version done by Zubin Mehta and the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, a more traditional Mozart. This Salzburg production appeals more to those looking for "a different take." It's good, but it might be easier to start with a more basic, traditional version. This is well-done; it's just different.
Rating:
Summary: Break-in at the Harem
Review: This production of Mozart's Abduction from the Seraglio is sung in German, with English subtitles only.
The first thing you'll notice is that this is done in a more contemporary setting, with modern clothes, styles, and concertina wire around the building. The Pasha wears a suit and tie, as does Constanze. Oh, and the Pasha preaches to his harem in Arabic (with English subtitles). This gives the production a more Arab perspective than is customary. Blonde and Osmin are a delightful and playful couple who, by themselves could make this production a success. Constanze sings remarkably well, the "Marten alle Arten" aria beginning with four of the musicians on stage, each introducing the theme--a unique and effective touch. This production ends, believe it or not, with the Pasha dancing as a sort of Whirling Dervish, but it fits and it works! If you have never seen a production of the Abduction from the Seraglio, it might be better to start with the 2002 version done by Zubin Mehta and the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, a more traditional Mozart. This Salzburg production appeals more to those looking for "a different take." It's good, but it might be easier to start with a more basic, traditional version. This is well-done; it's just different.
<< 1 >>
| 
