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Track Listings
| Disc: 1 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Act 1, Scene 1: Mesdames, Messieurs! - Toby Spence | |||
| 2. Act 1, Scene 1: Es Ist Ja Wahr: In Meinem Herzen Bin Ich Nur Ein Sanger - David Rendall | |||
| 3. Act 1, Scene 1: Pourquoi Me Voulez-Vous Quitter? - David Rendall | |||
| 4. Act 1, Scene 2: ...Und Da Hat Er Mich Gekusst! - Melanie Diener | |||
| 5. Act 1, Scene 2: Ich Soll Ihn Niemals, Niemals Mehr Sehn. - David Rendall/Melanie Diener | |||
| 6. Act 1, Scene 2: Cathrine! - Was Ist? Madame? - David Rendall | |||
See all 10 tracks on this disc
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| Disc: 2 | |||
| 1. Act 2, Scene 1: Na, Was Soll Denn Das Kosten? - Alison Duguid | |||
| 2. Act 2, Scene 1: Zu Ihm! Ich will Zu Ihm! - Melanie Diener | |||
| 3. Act 2, Scene 1: Was Gibt's Denn Da? - Robert Hayward | |||
| 4. Act 2, Scene 2: Monsieur Francois - BBC Singers/Martyn Brabbins | |||
| 5. Act 2, Scene 2: Verdienst Eigentlich Gar Nicht, Dass Ich So Nett Bin - Lillian Watson | |||
| 6. Act 2, Scene 3: In Einer Viertelstund' - Robert Hayward | |||
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See all 10 tracks on this disc
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| Disc: 3 | |||
| 1. Act 3: Mutter, Mutter! - David Rendall | |||
| 2. Act 3: Wo Ist Mein Heim - David Rendall | |||
| 3. Act 3: Wach Auf, Du Schone Sunderin! - David Rendall | |||
| 4. Act 3: Mein - Mein? Noch Immer Mein? - David Rendall | |||
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
8 of 9 people found the following review helpful
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We are a long way from German Expressionism in this opera which was composed in the 30's but is brimful of Viennese-style Romanticism and open, heartfelt melody. It is fashionable to denigrate Korngold as one who resisted "progress" in music but his harmonic language and through-composed style are by no means always retrospective. The plot is slightly sprawling - not as dramatically taut and controlled as the operas of his great admirer Puccini - but the characterisation is deft and the depth of colour in the orchestration always a source of delight. Is there a simpler, more beautiful tune than Kathrin's "Ich soll ihn niemals, niemals, mehr sehn"? And there are so many such moments. It is extraordinary to think that when Korngold died prematurely at sixty in 1957, he was planning another opera; what might he have given us to counterbalance the modernist musical hegemony?
I have long been a fan of David Rendall's unusual, highly expressive tenor, since I first heard him at the outset of his career in Handel and Mozart (see my review of his "Cosi" with Te Kanawa, conducted by Lombard) before he moved on to heavier roles. He has done so without sacrificing flexibility and tonal beauty and I admire the sensitivity and intelligence of his singing. Some find his pronounced vibrato odd; I like the way he uses it as a means of conveying intensity. He is worthily partnered by Melanie Diener, whose lovely, rich, velvety mezzo glides over those sumptuous tunes. The mainly British supporting cast in this recording features some now quite famous names and although the French and German accents are not always faultless, everyone is dramatically committed. The BBC Concert Orchestra under Martyn Brabbins play expertly and really bring this music alive rather than treat it as a schmaltzy wallow.
Some have labelled this work "operetta", which is inaccurate; it is more substantial and serious than that. If you enjoy this, try, too, Korngold's masterpiece "Das Wunder der Heliane" (again; see my review). Some consider it pretentious and recidivist; I love it.
I have long been a fan of David Rendall's unusual, highly expressive tenor, since I first heard him at the outset of his career in Handel and Mozart (see my review of his "Cosi" with Te Kanawa, conducted by Lombard) before he moved on to heavier roles. He has done so without sacrificing flexibility and tonal beauty and I admire the sensitivity and intelligence of his singing. Some find his pronounced vibrato odd; I like the way he uses it as a means of conveying intensity. He is worthily partnered by Melanie Diener, whose lovely, rich, velvety mezzo glides over those sumptuous tunes. The mainly British supporting cast in this recording features some now quite famous names and although the French and German accents are not always faultless, everyone is dramatically committed. The BBC Concert Orchestra under Martyn Brabbins play expertly and really bring this music alive rather than treat it as a schmaltzy wallow.
Some have labelled this work "operetta", which is inaccurate; it is more substantial and serious than that. If you enjoy this, try, too, Korngold's masterpiece "Das Wunder der Heliane" (again; see my review). Some consider it pretentious and recidivist; I love it.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
7 reviews
29 of 29 people found the following review helpful
Guileless Melody
16 Jun 2002
That this work of splendor has languished in obscurity speaks volumes about the problems of opera in the modern age. While Strauss was thinning his orchestral textures and trying to be like Mozart, after Schreker and others had largely abandoned expressionism in favor of "zeitoper", Korngold, true to his inner voice, headed in the opposite direction and produced a work with more splendid melody than any work since Puccini, and in spirit "Die Kathrin" is Puccinian in so many ways. Who else since Puccini (or before him for that matter) has so perfectly captured the chemistry of infatuation when young lovers meet? The accompanying booklet apologizes for the libretto, and it's true that it lacks the tight dramatic structure and sharp characterizations of Puccini's oeuvre, but I thought it worked. Puccini was a very sophisticated dramatist, and the elements of his operas are, almost without exception, balanced to perfection. But with "Kathrin", there's not an ounce of guile or calculation. And while Puccini's stories head for heartache, "Kathrin" is an archtypal story of love, at first torn apart by the difficulties of the world, which survives through the power of steadfast devotion and optimism.
Calling this work "operetta like" sells it short. It does have one brief scene of spoken dialogue (included in the booklet, but not in the recording), but the music is through-composed in a ripe late romantic idiom, tinged with the harmonic language of expressionism, but immediate it's appeal. The highlights are too numerous to catalogue, but Kathrin's prayer at the end of Act I "Mein Mann hat mich vermieden" ("My man has left me") is heartbreaking, with the music alone enought to bring tears to your eyes. And the opening to Act III is equally moving, with chiming church bells, and a melody that only Korngold could have written.
This was Korngold's last opera[...]. Korngold was planning a new opera at the time of his premature death in 1957. Imagine if he'd lived to finish it--a true romantic opera appearing in the mid 1960s! As much as I love Barber's "Antony and Cleopatra" (and, yes, I do like it very much), I'd guess Korngold's work would have blown it away. So, in my opinion, it's a sin to neglect what he did leave us. Please, opera companies...stage "Die Kathrin". Let it assume it's proper place in the reperatory.
12 of 12 people found the following review helpful
A Rolls-Royce Bon Bon
27 Dec 2002
This is Korngold at his most appealingly melodic. No bombast, no convoluted German Expressionistic libretto, no metaphysical plot. Just a Puccini-esque love story with an extraordinary cast of brilliant, committed singers. "Rondine" with a Swiss twist. The piece is delightful from beginning to end with moments of the highest inspiration. Korngold, as always, is a genius at everything he touches. Be prepared to fall in love!
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
Don's views
21 Aug 2004
This recording was a complete surprise to me. I've long loved the operatic music of Korngold but had not known of this recording before. What an absolute delight! It should be on every "modern" opera lovers record shelf. Thank you CPO and BBC for bringing this music to us. And thank you Amazon for making it available. Nowhere, either in-store or on the net could I find this beautiful music.
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