Die Zauberflöte

Die Zauberflote, Mozart's last opera, performed on this disc by the Metropolitan Opera under the direction of James Levine.
The cast features such stars as Kathleen Battle (Pamina), Fancisco Araiza (Tamino), Manfred Hemm (Papageno), Kurt Moll (Sarasto), and Luciana Serra as the Queen of the Night. Brian Large, who has vast experience with opera, directs this major work. By R. Nicholson

One of the giants of the historically informed performance world needs little introduction; nor indeed his sympathy to Mozart’s oeuvre as already demonstrated in recordings of the three da Ponte operas that have met with wide acclaim and many awards for their closely observed intimacy, their sense of fun and drama and their well-chosen casts, at one with Kuijken’s vision of these jewels of human and music drama.

One of the giants of the historically informed performance world needs little introduction; nor indeed his sympathy to Mozart’s oeuvre as already demonstrated in recordings of the three da Ponte operas that have met with wide acclaim and many awards for their closely observed intimacy, their sense of fun and drama and their well-chosen casts, at one with Kuijken’s vision of these jewels of human and music drama.

Abbado… conducts a direct, keenly articulated, inspiriting account of the score… The playing throughout is alert and scrupulously articulated. The Tamino and Pamina are well nigh faultless. …Christoph Strehl… sings with a Wunderlich-like strength and beauty… He is partnered by Dorothea Röschmann… Her full-throated, positive singing, finely shaped, cleanly articulated, is a true match for Strehl's. Hanno Müller-Brachmann is a properly lively and amusing Papageno… René Pape sings Sarastro: now at the peak of his career, he conveys all the role's gravity and dignity in a gloriously sung performance.

This will be the Magic Flute chosen by most people who want to live with just one. It finds Georg Solti in a relatively relaxed state of mind, with an excellent if not particularly famous cast, and an orchestra and chorus that any conductor would give his left arm (not the one that welds the baton) to work with. The singers are not particularly well-known (London seems to have set up Solti as the star of this production) but a lack of celebrity attitudes and close attention to the conductor have paid substantial dividends in this production. Sumi Jo, in a spectacular and dramatic performance of the Queen of the Night's two arias, attracts special attention, as do Uwe Heilmann (Tamino) and Michael Kraus (Papageno). –Joe McLellan

Mozart - Die Zauberflote - Chor und Orchester der Oper Zurich (Nikolaus Harnoncourt) [2DVD Set] (2007) {Deutsche Grammophon}
2xDVD -> 13.3 Gb | All Regions | NTSC 16:9 | Deutsch (LinearPCM, 2 ch / DTS, 5 ch) | ~ 226m | ISO Images
Subs: Deutsch, English, Francais, Espanol, Chinese
Full Artwork @ 300 dpi (png) -> 111 Mb | 5% repair rar
© 2007 Deutsche Grammophon / Universal | 00440 073 4367
Classical / Opera

This latest European re-imagining of a classic opera, directed by Martin Kusej and featuring the Chor und Orchester der Oper Zurich conducted by Nikolaus Harnoncourt, is a splendid performance that was taped from a live television broadcast. Director Kusej, in the 45 minute bonus behind the scenes film on disc one, complains of "fuddy-duddy performances of opera, such as directed by Zeffirelli." Ouch! His intention to avoid such old-style productions is successful. The set represents a combination of a labyrinth and a modern building lobby. It rotates on the stage while cleverly designed moveable walls constantly produce new shapes so that no architectural space duplicates any other.

This Magic Flute (part of the M22 project) is charming and delightful, a sheer joy. It achieves just the right balance between the fairytale and spiritual elements of the singspiel and is brimming with inventiveness. The bright pop-up-book colours and toyshop imagery perfectly represent the pantomime aspect of this "magic opera" which meshes well with the altogether more serious business of Sarastro's realm of Enlightenment wisdom. I love the burlesque touches which occur throughout and the comic scenes around Papageno which make this such a happy and constantly droll performance…
Riccardo Muti conducts the ever-wonderful VPO at a good pace and with a transparency that brings out the finest touches of orchestral detail.