Richard Strauss - Ariadne auf Naxos / Susan Anthony, Iride Martinez, Sophie Koch, Jon Villars, Colin Davis, Dresden Opera

Ariadne auf Naxos is one of my favorite operas and I have seen it on stage numerous times. However, in the past I have found the Prologue only occasionally amusing but not nearly as enjoyable as the opera proper. But with this production, and especially with the singing and acting of Sophie Koch as the Composer, I now truly enjoy the Prologue. Koch is simply magnificent as the young, innocent, idealistic composer who discovers that her masterpiece is to be trashed by the whim of her aristocratic employer. She is horrified when she meets Zerbinetta, whose Commedia dell Arte troop is to perform simultaneously with her opera. But, Zerbinetta works her magic on the Composer and for a few moments the Composer is transfixed by Zerbinetta. But the bustle of getting ready for the performance (performances?) sweeps over the stage and the Prologue comes to an end.As Ariadne, Susan Anthony, new to me, does an excellent job. Of those I've seen on stage, Elisabeth Schwarzkopf remains the standard for me (correction, Schwarzkopf was scheduled for performances in San Francisco but ultimately didn't appear, she recorded a wonderful cd of the role), and both Leontyne Price and Deborah Voigt are close competitors in the role. Susan Anthony also comes very close. Iride Martinez, also new to me, is superb as Zerbinetta. I haven't yet had the pleasure of seeing Natalie Dessay sing the role (though I have her on CD) and she might even be better, and I've heard several other excellent Zerbinetta's in the past, but Martinez does a wonderful job, especially with the show-stopper Grossmachtige Prinzessen. The rest of the cast is strong. The major-domo is wonderfully imperious.The production is set in "modern times" and is unconventional in several respects. I'm not a big fan of "updating" operas. I think updating Rosenkavalier, for example, would be a terrible mistake-its whole logic depends on the ethos of the time in which it is set. But I don't think there is any compelling reason to perform Ariadne as an 18th century event. Wealthy boorish "patrons" exist today. I also don't think the production could properly be called "euro-trash" (of which there is too much these days.) It is unconventional, and there are a couple of jarring features in the sets-the "bathroom" at stage right in the Prologue and some sort of TV device in the background during the Opera proper, but mostly the set is pretty realistic given that it is supposed to be set in a large mansion, not in a theater. So, the Prologue takes place in a makeshift backstage and the Opera proper is in a space somewhere in the house. The inclusion of the guests milling around on the periphery of the stage might be jarring to some, but it didn't bother me-it emphasized that the "patron" was a boor who has boorish friends. Finally, during the opera proper, the Composer makes several (silent) appearances, most prominently where "he" "plays" the piano during Grossmachtige Prinzessen while looking as if "he" is in love with Zerbinetta. I thought these were nice touches (though, doubtless, controversial) since it always seemed to me to be a shame that the Composer disappears at the end of the Prologue and we never know how he might have reacted to the final product. I think the Opera proper is simply magnificent music-easily on my "desert-island top ten" list--and I have probably listened to it on LP and then on CD multiple hundreds of times in the past half century. So it is nice to see in this production that the Composer is captivated by the final product.I recommend this DVD wholeheartedly, first for Sophie Koch's incredible performance, second, for the solid performance of everyone else and, third, for an imaginative production-- though "modern" not jarringly so, at least to me.

This Ariadne, in spite of the updating, is conservative if compared to the more recent release from Zurich in which the opera proper is set in a famous Zurich restaurant! Even so it is miles away from the Met edition and the film from Vienna.Considering that Dresden was famous for it Strauss performances, it is ironic that not one of the principals is from either Germany or Austria. The soprano and tenor are American, the Composer is French and the Zerbinetta from Costa Rica. To top it off the conductor is British. The only performance that has real distinction is Koch's Komponist. I don't suppose that the role will ever revert to a soprano, e.g., Jurinac, Seefried. The role doesn't lie that high, and lyrical mezzos usually don't encounter problems but one only has to listen to either of the aforementioned sopranos (espcially Seefried's performance recorded as a birthday present for the 80 year old composer)to realize who really should be singing the role. Of the mezzos singing the role for DVD, I find Trudelise Schmidt more successful than most. Having said that I must admit that Koch is wonderful, full of passion and detailing the text to the manner born.Susan Anthony has to be in the unfortunate postion of being compared to some of the greatest lyrico spinto sopranos of the last century who have recorded the role either on DVD or CD. Let me first say that she trumps the German soprano Hillebrecth who is dreadful easily but this is damming with faint praise. Unfortunately Anthony's voice is somewhat generic and only in portions of the great aria, Es gibt ein Reich, does she meet the music head on an convey the tragic pathos of the role.Jon Villars has a leathery rugged sound that does not fall easily on the ears. It is a serviceable voice and while Strauss hated tenors it must be said that Villars is able to sing all the notes. It is no better or worse than James King, Rene Kollo, though hardly in league with Max Lorenz.Iride Martinez is also able to sing all the notes in the great aria, but the Strauss style is alien to her musical vocabulary; she sounds as if she would be more comfortable in another opera. She is more akin to Alda Noni (the Zerbinetta in the aforementioned birthday performance) than, say, Ivogun and Streich, the latter my ideal in the role. Needless to say she received a considerable amount of applause after the aria.Strauss is not a composer one associates with Colin Davis. I do not know if he conducted any Strauss while he was head of ROH (he recorded a lot of Verdi for which he should have recused himself) but he and the Semper orchestra turn in a brilliant performance although I cannot imagine that he would be a sympathetic conductor of Frosch.

So what if the three Muses look like multi-colored Smurfs?Yes, the costuming, scenery, and number of people onstage may be different from what we are accustomed to, but IT WORKS!First, Sophie Koch, as the Composer, not only sings excellently, but, acting-wise, she seems more involved in the entire production, as she drifts on and off the stage, pondering what is to become of her composition--this work. She really makes Strauss's point about writing music for the stage.Colin Davis and the orchestra of the Sachsische Staatsoper Dresden provide the appropriate sublimely Strauss "terrible chords" (in the good sense) which support the great artist performances here.Susan Anthony brings passion and masterly singing, with acting to match it. At the end, as the credits start to roll, we can see that she is exhilarated by this magnificent performance.Jon Villars, though a bit bizarrely attired (how does one dress as Bacchus?) is the most powerful, vocally and stage-presence-wise that I've seen in this (Hermes/Bacchus) role.Iride Martinez, despite the other two strong leads, manages to steal the show. Her singing is superb. Her joie d'vivre and-- Oh, her facial expressions!-- give new depth to the role. This is why opera should be seen on DVD!It's like leaving the theater thinking, "Oh boy, I sure am glad I came to see this tonight."

Good job by all involved in this production.

I have had 'Ariadne' on CD for many years. Yet nothing prepared me for this DVD. In order to make sense of this opera, you have to see it as well as hear it. Without the visuals, I'm tempted to take the plot too seriously, which is bad news, because however beautiful the music is (and it is enchantingly beautiful), the plot is uproariously funny. This DVD gets that across admirably. This can be a difficult work to stage - and yet in this production everything fits together perfectly and even Iride Martinez (as Zerbinetta) has a good laugh at herself. This is a production in which everyone is clearly enjoying themselves, including the orchestra and conductor, and this communicates itself to the viewer; and I just LOVE the way that a barman manages to drop an ice cube into a glass of gin and tonic in perfect time to one of the notes in Zerbinetta's aria! If your mission is to convince someone that opera is worth getting into, start with this.

The orchestra and singers on this DVD recording have approached perfection and the quality of the sound recording is also superb, especially at the climax, ranking with Richard Strauss's best. The staging however is a complete waste. The house of the richest man in Vienna has been interpreted as a trendy modern art museum apparently hosting a donor's party, complete with distracting flashes from a video installation. The prologue is placed in a lobby with the washroom and several basins visible to the side.If you know the plot and understand German, I suggest that you close your eyes and just listen to a great performance. If you don't understand German, then the subtitles are of some value to add to your understanding and enjoyment of the music.

Pour avoir entendu Sophie Koch, excellente en Komponist dans la production de Laurent Pelly donnée à l''Opéra Garnier en 2003, pour connaître la tradition straussienne de l''Opéra de Dresde et la qualité de son orchestre, on peut être tenté par cette production. Hélàs la mise en scène du prologue est inepte. Le problème n''est pas d''avoir voulu « faire contemporain ». Il est d''abord dans la grande misère des décors : les lavabos et le carrelage ne donnent pas la moindre idée de l''intérieur de « l''homme le plus riche de Vienne ». Il est ensuite dans la grossièreté des effets : dans le livret, le maître de danse est un homme sûr de lui et gai, il n''est pas utile de le transformer en clown vulgaire. Ariane à Naxos doit être une fête de l''esprit et des sens; on en est ici bien loin. Les choses s''améliorent avec le début de l''acte, qui est (jusqu''au début du monologue de Zerbinette, que le public applaudit avant sa fin) la partie la plus réussie. Le metteur en scène se fait enfin oublier, l''orchestre est vraiment beau (les bois), les Naiades se marient bien avec, l''Ariadne de Susan Anthony est crédible, touchante et remarquablement bien chantante, les comédiens sont marrants et l''air d''Harlekin d''Urban Malmberg (j''ai dû chercher son nom dans le générique de fin, il n''est pas indiqué sur la pochette) est une vraie réussite. Enfin, on tient ce qu''on était venu chercher. Ensuite, conformément à ce nouveau poncif de la mise en scène d''opéra -des personnages qu''on introduit sur scène alors que le livret ne le demande pas, le Compositeur reparaît pour accompagner une Zerbinette enjouée (Iride Martinez) de mimiques exagérées et de grands gestes inutiles. A la fin, Bacchus débarque en imper et pyjama et de toute façon, sur un plan scénique la partie est perdue depuis longtemps. La direction de Colin Davis m''a parue inégale. Au total une production qui musicalement a de réelles qualités (d'où les étoiles) et dont il vaut mieux oublier la mise en images.Sous-titres en anglais seulement. Aucune notice (Arthaus a aussi édité cette production en DVD, sans doute avec plus de confort).

Die Inszenierung an der Semperoper ist eine bühnenbildliche Mischung aus modernem Ambiente und eher traditionellen Versatzstücken. Eine Art Patchwork-Ambiente. Possenhaftes, Harlekinade und "große Kunst" sind in Szene gesetzt in singschauspielerisch überzeugender Art. Dieses schlüssige Konzept wird allerdings den auf rein traditionelle Bühnenbildumsetzung festgelegten Seher eher nicht so zwingend ansprechen.Ensemblemäßig wird eine hervorragende singschauspielerische Leistung geboten. Herausragend der Komponist, gesungen von der großartigen Sophie Koch, die die Rolle intensiv und mit aller Subtilität gestaltet. Große Klasse. Susan Anthony ist die überzeugende Ariadne und Jon Villars liefert eine gediegene Leistung als Bacchus. Iride Martinez begeistert als Zerbinetta mit feinziseliertem Sopranambiente. Werner Güra als Tanzmeister liefert in dieser kleinen Rolle ein wunderbares Rollenporträt.Sir Colin Davies dirigiert subtil überzeugend.Insgesamt eine Ariadne,die sängerisch überzeugt und inszenatorisch ein schlüssiges Konzept bietet, das aber wohl eher den auch moderne Inszenierungen akzeptierenden Opernseher ansprechen dürfte.