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Pelléas et Mélisande
This performance of Pelléas et Mélisande captures Debussy’s delicate yet lush soundscape despite the apparent incongruity of the Swedish language. This is due in no small part to the insightful leadership of Jean Fournet in the pit, who achieves a finely judged balance between Romanticism and restraint. Elisabeth Söderström brings a compelling sense of mystery to Mélisande while suggesting a rich inner life, no small accomplishment in a role that can often seem strangely devoid of emotional expression.
Nicolai Gedda makes a persuasive case for casting a tenor as Pelléas, his sterling voice rising effortlessly to the dramatic climaxes. Particularly fascinating is the contrast between Gedda and the Golaud of Kim Borg, whose voice approaches that of a true bass. The striking difference in vocal color lends the relationship between the two characters an intriguing perspective, especially when compared with performances in which their voices can seem almost indistinguishable.
Track List
Act I
1. scene i
2. scene i
3. scene ii
4. scene ii
5. scene iii
2. scene i
3. scene ii
4. scene ii
5. scene iii
Act II
6. scene i
7. scene ii
8. scene ii
9. scene iii
7. scene ii
8. scene ii
9. scene iii
Act III
10. scene i
11. scene i
12. scene ii
13. scene ii
14. scene iii
15. scene iv
16. scene iv
11. scene i
12. scene ii
13. scene ii
14. scene iii
15. scene iv
16. scene iv
Act IV
17. scene i
18. scene ii
19. scene ii
20. scene ii
21. scene iii
22. scene iv
23. scene iv
18. scene ii
19. scene ii
20. scene ii
21. scene iii
22. scene iv
23. scene iv
Act V
24. scene i
25. scene i
26. scene i
25. scene i
26. scene i
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Sweden
A childhood memory
The date is that of the broadcast: three hours a Sunday afternoon. The opera had been recorded in the large hall of the Stockholm Concert Hall over several days in June as a studio production, rehearsed and set down scene by scene without an audience - except me. I was 12, school had just ended, and my father was a violinist in the orchestra, so I joined him for his daily work. I was thrilled and followed the clear Swedish of all the singers avidly. Most were of course new to me and relatively young. The Swedish translation was by Gösta Rybrant, a wellknown journalist who had translated West Side Story and My fair lady. He had a a background as a violinist. The opera would not reenter the repertoire of the Stockholm Opera until 1971, then in another translation, so the singers had learnt the Swedish version just for this radio production. It was the only occasion when Fournet conducted the Stockholm Philharmonic, who of course had not played Pelléas before.
At the time the Radio, like other broadcasters in Europe, produced their own studio recordings in the local language. There were a Nozze di Figaro under a young Colin Davis that same year, and Macbeth conducted by Nino Sanzogno. All probably survive in the radio archive in better sound than this off-the-air recording, from which only one scene has been issued on a Bluebell CD. There is some interference from another station, but the sound is generally clear favouring the singers who use the Swedish text in a very meaningful way. Ideal for me as a young boy, and sitting there and having key moments repeated led to a lifelong love for the opera!
Report
At the time the Radio, like other broadcasters in Europe, produced their own studio recordings in the local language. There were a Nozze di Figaro under a young Colin Davis that same year, and Macbeth conducted by Nino Sanzogno. All probably survive in the radio archive in better sound than this off-the-air recording, from which only one scene has been issued on a Bluebell CD. There is some interference from another station, but the sound is generally clear favouring the singers who use the Swedish text in a very meaningful way. Ideal for me as a young boy, and sitting there and having key moments repeated led to a lifelong love for the opera!