While Norma for me is Bellini's masterpiece, I quite like I Puritani. The story is flimsy and the ending somewhat of an anti-climax, but the music is superb, being both beautiful and distinctive. I will say though that I do think I Puritani is better served on record, boasting the likes of Sutherland, Caballe and Callas, than on DVD. There are only four DVDs available as of now(I haven't yet seen Mariola Cantarero's though), and while they have imperfections none of them are bad. I personally loved the Anna Netrebko Met production, though I can definitely see why others won't. The Edita Gruberova Liceu performance was decent if having some ideas that didn't quite come together as well as they should. And I consider this production from Bologna decent as well.
It's strongest attribute is Juan Diego Florez. While it is not quite on part with his Almaviva(Il Barbiere Di Siviglia) and Tonio(La Fille Du Regiment) it is still an outstanding performance and he is by far the best of the three DVD Arturos. His technique, runs and high notes are still effortless, the tone is still bright and he has an ever appealing and dashing personality. A Te O Cara is beautifully sung and the Act 3 duet with Machaidze is glorious, easily one of the highlights of the evening. I quite liked Nino Machaidze as Elvira. The stage direction doesn't allow us to sympathise enough with her(Gruberova of the three Elviras did the best job on that front) and there are occasions of metallic edge to her voice and where her acting is too studied, Vein Diletto...is rather approximate and unsteady in the cabaletta for example. But there some on the whole nice tone and a decent(if in need of more polish) colouratura technique, she does bring pathos to Qui La Voce and she does have the benefit of looking young and beautiful.
As Giorgio, Ildebrando D'Archangelo is the best of the basses/bass-baritones in the role on DVD. He sings beautifully with a lot of warmth and resonance, his phrasing and musicianship are very thoughtfully placed and he is dramatically restrained and firm. My reservation comes from that I feel he is too young for an uncle figure, even with somewhat unconvincing but noble attempts to make him look older. Nadia Pirazzini is excellent as Enrichetta, she has a great voice and she and D'Archangelo are the best actors on stage. The orchestra play stylishly and musically if occasionally sounding a little dry, and the chorus blend beautifully. Michele Mariaotti's conducting is not always accommodating, which puts him below Friederich Haider, but his tempos are lively and fluid, putting him above Patrick Summers. On the visual front the production is well photographed and the costumes are very handsome.
Sound quality is good, not everything sounds resonant but it is clear and it captures the orchestra, chorus and singers credibly without favouring anybody in particular.
However, not all the performances worked for my tastes. Ugo Guagliardo is not always authoritative enough as Valton and while quite attractive in tone his basso notes are not always easy to hear. Gabriele Viviani was the weak link and the only one of the cast who I didn't at all care for. Granted it is nice in tone and he hits the right notes and pitches. But he does sound too lightweight and as though his voice is still maturing, he has a tendency to over-aspirate and his runs are rather approximate, a large part of why he sounded as though he was struggling with his Act 1 aria. As an actor he is a non-entity, the best he does is extend his right arm which is little more than a stock gesture.
The sets are also rather barren, and the lighting is rather dull, giving the production an unappealingly gloomy look. But if I were to say what asset I thought was the most disappointing one it was Pier-Alli's staging. The stage direction is static, with a lot of stand-and-deliver quality and standing in lines involved. Even Suoni La Tromba fails to rouse and comes across as predictable instead. And this is everybody, not just the chorus, who especially don't seem to know what they are supposed to be doing. Often they are not doing anything or made to do pointless posturing/gesturing, which is a complete waste. Consequently we don't get to know or root for the characters, above all not feeling enough sympathy for Elvira. Excepting Viviani, the principal singers do deserve a lot of credit for making some effort to emote.
Overall, is worth seeing but didn't completely work. 6/10 Bethany Cox
It's strongest attribute is Juan Diego Florez. While it is not quite on part with his Almaviva(Il Barbiere Di Siviglia) and Tonio(La Fille Du Regiment) it is still an outstanding performance and he is by far the best of the three DVD Arturos. His technique, runs and high notes are still effortless, the tone is still bright and he has an ever appealing and dashing personality. A Te O Cara is beautifully sung and the Act 3 duet with Machaidze is glorious, easily one of the highlights of the evening. I quite liked Nino Machaidze as Elvira. The stage direction doesn't allow us to sympathise enough with her(Gruberova of the three Elviras did the best job on that front) and there are occasions of metallic edge to her voice and where her acting is too studied, Vein Diletto...is rather approximate and unsteady in the cabaletta for example. But there some on the whole nice tone and a decent(if in need of more polish) colouratura technique, she does bring pathos to Qui La Voce and she does have the benefit of looking young and beautiful.
As Giorgio, Ildebrando D'Archangelo is the best of the basses/bass-baritones in the role on DVD. He sings beautifully with a lot of warmth and resonance, his phrasing and musicianship are very thoughtfully placed and he is dramatically restrained and firm. My reservation comes from that I feel he is too young for an uncle figure, even with somewhat unconvincing but noble attempts to make him look older. Nadia Pirazzini is excellent as Enrichetta, she has a great voice and she and D'Archangelo are the best actors on stage. The orchestra play stylishly and musically if occasionally sounding a little dry, and the chorus blend beautifully. Michele Mariaotti's conducting is not always accommodating, which puts him below Friederich Haider, but his tempos are lively and fluid, putting him above Patrick Summers. On the visual front the production is well photographed and the costumes are very handsome.
Sound quality is good, not everything sounds resonant but it is clear and it captures the orchestra, chorus and singers credibly without favouring anybody in particular.
However, not all the performances worked for my tastes. Ugo Guagliardo is not always authoritative enough as Valton and while quite attractive in tone his basso notes are not always easy to hear. Gabriele Viviani was the weak link and the only one of the cast who I didn't at all care for. Granted it is nice in tone and he hits the right notes and pitches. But he does sound too lightweight and as though his voice is still maturing, he has a tendency to over-aspirate and his runs are rather approximate, a large part of why he sounded as though he was struggling with his Act 1 aria. As an actor he is a non-entity, the best he does is extend his right arm which is little more than a stock gesture.
The sets are also rather barren, and the lighting is rather dull, giving the production an unappealingly gloomy look. But if I were to say what asset I thought was the most disappointing one it was Pier-Alli's staging. The stage direction is static, with a lot of stand-and-deliver quality and standing in lines involved. Even Suoni La Tromba fails to rouse and comes across as predictable instead. And this is everybody, not just the chorus, who especially don't seem to know what they are supposed to be doing. Often they are not doing anything or made to do pointless posturing/gesturing, which is a complete waste. Consequently we don't get to know or root for the characters, above all not feeling enough sympathy for Elvira. Excepting Viviani, the principal singers do deserve a lot of credit for making some effort to emote.
Overall, is worth seeing but didn't completely work. 6/10 Bethany Cox
