Breakthrough Compani

I Compani has been around since 1985, and its mandate hasn't changed much at all since. The ensemble, formed and still directed by alto and tenor player Bo van de Graaf, devotes itself to the music of Nino Rota, whom film fans will recognize as Federico Fellini's Bernard Hermann. Over the years, van de Graaf and other members of the band have fattened the band's book with original compositions in the style of Rota, but it's Rota's work that still forms the core of I Compani's output. Fellini (IcDisc), a collection of Nota and van de Graaf compositions performed live, marks the band's second decade, and by now this routine is old hat. The band performs Rota's surreal folk music, minor-key ballads and carnival marches with balance and precision, saving the longer solos for van de Graaf's more atmospheric and open-ended pieces. Pieter Douma's electric bass gives the music a slightly funky touch, but the overall mood is respectful. For the curious: Fellini pulls from La Dolce Vita, 8 1/2, La Strada, Juliet of the Spirits, Amarcord and Casanova.

By 1981, when this production was taped for Canadian television, Joan Sutherland's voice was unquestionably past its prime. But even in its decline, that voice remained something quite special, and the role of the troubled Druid priestess Norma was one of her specialties. A substantial advantage in this recording is the presence at the podium of her husband and coach, Richard Bonynge, who had a deep understanding of the strengths and limitations of her voice and stage persona. His pacing and balance give the voice opportunities to challenge, at least momentarily, the ravages of time. Lotfi Mansouri, one of the great operatic entrepreneurs of the late 20th century, assembled a first-class supporting cast for Sutherland–most notably Tatiana Troyanos, to whose memory this video is dedicated.

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