Another Raff opera to be recorded

[Maury]

Mr Thomas,

 Thanks very much for your dedication and hard work on behalf of these neglected composers. Hope the recording earns your full satisfaction.

[Mark Thomas]

Thanks, Maury, but this time around I'm not the prime mover of the project. All credit must go to Volker Tosta of the publisher Edition Nordstern, who has taken the lead on this one.

So far so good. We'll see how the choir does today....

[Mark Thomas]

...and they turn out to be really very good. About 30 strong, well rehearsed, good control of dynamics and enunciation. Their German pronunciation, I'm told, is "good enough". So, a result. Hearing soloists, choir and orchestra at speed and at close quarters is really exciting!

[Alan Howe]

Yes: from my one experience of following a recording project while it was being made, I can imagine how you must be feeling.

Thanks for the exciting update.

[Mark Thomas]

A final report - recording finishes today. So, what about the music? As sections are recorded piecemeal, not consecutively as they occur in the opera, it's not possible to get anything more than an impression of the work's character. Although the Overture doesn't share any of the opera's material, it's a very good guide to what one can expect. The whole piece absolutely fizzes, it's fast-paced with lots of comedic drama (Offenbach come to mind), it's awash with classic Raff melodies, although there are some stretches of the parlando that one finds to a greater extent in Benedetto Marcello and even more in Die Eifersüchtigen. The orchestration is gloriously inventive and the musical atmosphere immensely varied.

Standout moments are a pair of scatty, fast duets shared by the sopranos and a gorgious Gounod-esque waltz aria for Angela (beautifully sung by 23 year old Lara Rieken), Manuel's Act I aria and Act III romance, and most of all a meltingly lyrical trio for Angela, Manuel and Rodrigo - the list could go on. All are Raff as I guarantee you've never heard him. The two roles of Rodrigo and Juan have fewer headline moments, but are very characterfully drawn - the former impressionable and superstitious, and Juan overbearing and gruff. Maestro Salvi directs the recording with real authority and an obvious understanding of what Raff wants.

Overall, my impression of Dame Kobold is that it's a really fun and gloriously lyrical piece which will show us a completely new side to Raff's musical character - the contrast with Samson couldn't be greater, but it's as impressive an achievement in it's own way. I might come to regret being so relentlessly positive, but it's difficult to think how it's recording premiere could be bettered.

When I return home I'll see if I can post some videos or sound clips from the recording.

[eschiss1]

This is standard recording style for tv, so shouldn't necessarily be a problem

[Mark Thomas]

It's not a problem for the recording process  of course - it's standard practice - but it makes it difficult to gain an overall impression of the artistic whole if you're hearing unconnected takes over three days.

[eschiss1]

Makes sense, yes.

[Mark Thomas]

Here's a YouTube playlist with a collection of very rough videos of last week's recording sessions of Dame Kobold. They're of various takes from seven of the numbers. In most, probably all, cases not the take which will be used in the final recording. I hope they give an an idea of the style of the opera, the quality of Raff's writing, and also what the recording sessions were like. The sound quality of the finished recording will be very much better, of course.

The seven videos are:

The Dance Divertissement No.2
Donna Angela's waltz aria
A trio for soprano, tenor & bass
The first duet for the two sopranos
The second duet for the two sopranos
Don Miguel's Romanze
The trio for tenor, baritone and bass

[Alan Howe]

Many thanks, Mark. Some marvellous music here - and very well sung by these young soloists, by the sound of it. Have you any idea when the recording will be released?

[Mark Thomas]

The master tape should be with Naxos by mid December and Naxos' usual lead time, depending on what they've already in their release schedule, is 9-10 months, so my guess us around this time next year.

Yes, I was delighted with the quality of the soloists, all 30 or under. They all deserve to do well, but one to watch, I think, is Lara Rieken, only 23. There are several videos of her on YouTube and she's a singer of real presence and ability.