This 1955 EMI recording of Le nozze di Figaro from the Glyndebourne Festival is deservedly a legendary account of the opera. Vittorio Gui's reading of the score is essentially conventional, in the best sense -- he avoids imposing interpretive eccentricities, and he allows the music and the drama to unfold naturally, while remaining constantly alert to the nuances of the score's details. He's working with a superb group of expert Mozart comedians, and he gives them the freedom and flexibility to shine both as individuals and ...
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This 1955 EMI recording of Le nozze di Figaro from the Glyndebourne Festival is deservedly a legendary account of the opera. Vittorio Gui's reading of the score is essentially conventional, in the best sense -- he avoids imposing interpretive eccentricities, and he allows the music and the drama to unfold naturally, while remaining constantly alert to the nuances of the score's details. He's working with a superb group of expert Mozart comedians, and he gives them the freedom and flexibility to shine both as individuals and in their ensembles. He's especially sensitive to the recitatives as vehicles to sharpen the individuality of the characters and advance the opera's humor. The sense of camaraderie among the singers, most of whom had performed the opera at the festival, is evident in the naturalness and spontaneity of the repartee. Sesto Bruscantini brings a laid-back confidence to Figaro that pleasantly contrasts with the more manic interpretations that tend to characterize many performances; he is...
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