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Don Carlo
Anyone attending this performance and hearing Felicia Weathers as Elisabetta would likely have come away convinced that they were witnessing the emergence of a major Verdian soprano. That such a trajectory did not ultimately materialize is a subject open to speculation. One plausible explanation lies in the casting itself: Weathers, still in her twenties at the time, was entrusted with a role many sopranos reserve for their late thirties. That she didn’t have a longer career is a tragedy for the opera world, for her singing here is exquisitely poised—marked by a crystalline purity of tone and a fearless upper register that commands attention.
The remainder of the cast proves solid, though generally less distinguished. Exceptions include Camillo Meghor, whose Rodrigo is rendered with firm vocal presence, and Zoltán Kelemen, whose Grand Inquisitor achieves a chilling intensity that lingers. It's also worth noting that in a rare choice for 1964, this performance adopts the five-act version.
Track List
Act I
1. Su, cacciator! pronti o la belva
2. Fontainebleau!... Io la vidi
3. Qual voce risuonò nell’oscura foresta?
4. Di quale amor, di quanto ardor
5. L’ora fatale è suonata!
2. Fontainebleau!... Io la vidi
3. Qual voce risuonò nell’oscura foresta?
4. Di quale amor, di quanto ardor
5. L’ora fatale è suonata!
Act II
6. Carlo il sommo imperatore
7. Al chiostro di San Giusto ove finì la vita
8. È lui!... desso... l'Infante!
9. Dio che nell'alma infondere
10. Sotto ai folti, immensi abeti
11. Nei giardin del bello
12. La Regina!
13. Carlo, ch'è sol il nostro amore
14. Io vengo a domandar grazia alla mia Regina
15. Il Re!
16. Non pianger, mia compagna
17. Restate!
7. Al chiostro di San Giusto ove finì la vita
8. È lui!... desso... l'Infante!
9. Dio che nell'alma infondere
10. Sotto ai folti, immensi abeti
11. Nei giardin del bello
12. La Regina!
13. Carlo, ch'è sol il nostro amore
14. Io vengo a domandar grazia alla mia Regina
15. Il Re!
16. Non pianger, mia compagna
17. Restate!
Act III
18. Preludio
19. A mezzanotte ai giardini della Regina
20. Trema per te, falso figliuolo
21. Spuntato ecco il dì d'esultanza
22. Nel posar sul mio capo la corona
23. Sire! tempo egli è ch'io viva
19. A mezzanotte ai giardini della Regina
20. Trema per te, falso figliuolo
21. Spuntato ecco il dì d'esultanza
22. Nel posar sul mio capo la corona
23. Sire! tempo egli è ch'io viva
Act IV
24. Ella giammai m'amò!...
25. Il Grande Inquisitor!
26. Giustizia! o Sire!
27. Ah! sii maledetto sospetto fatale
28. Pietà! perdon!... per la rea che si pente
29. Ah! Più non vedrò... O don fatale
30. Son io, mio Carlo.
31. Per me giunto è il dì supremo
32. O Carlo, ascolta
25. Il Grande Inquisitor!
26. Giustizia! o Sire!
27. Ah! sii maledetto sospetto fatale
28. Pietà! perdon!... per la rea che si pente
29. Ah! Più non vedrò... O don fatale
30. Son io, mio Carlo.
31. Per me giunto è il dì supremo
32. O Carlo, ascolta
Act V
33. Tu che le vanità
34. È dessa!
35. Ma lassù ci vedremo in un mondo migliore
34. È dessa!
35. Ma lassù ci vedremo in un mondo migliore
Customer Reviews
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5.0
Based on 2 reviews
✓ Top Reviewer
United States
Excellent Performance in Excellent Sound!
I didn't expect a lot from this recording, but it turns out to be one of Opera Depot's Sleepers. Kertesz includes far more of the score than was usually heard back in 1964. Not only do we get the first act, but the trims taken in the rest of the score are relatively minor. Rodrigo and Elisabetta both lose a verse of their opening arias, the trio for Carlo, Rodrigo, and Eboli is cut, and there is a small cut in the last duet for Elisabetta and Carlo. Eboli gets her entire Veil Song, the prison scene is uncut and includes Eboli's return, and the final moments are played as Verdi wrote them without the editing most German houses used to come closer to Schiller's original ending.The singers are all very good without equaling the best heard at the Met and La Scala. Weathers is a superb Elisabetta, really showing why opera houses were so eager to have her on their rosters. She is regal and patrician without lacking in warmth and feeling. Her soprano glows on top; her last aria is worth the long wait. Bessel is a strong Eboli. The cadenzas of the Veil Song are easier for other singers and the tessitura of "O don fatale" lies high for her, yet she always conveys Eboli's desperate state of mind. Schachtschneider is better known for his Wagner roles. The voice itself is rather flinty and unlovely, bel canto not being his strongest asset. He does have excellent diction though and fits in well with the ensemble. He also interpolates a high B at the end of Act 3 that I've never heard from any other singer.The Dutch baritone Meghor sings a distinguished Rodrigo and American bass-baritone Mark Elyn a solid Phillip. His scene with Kelemen's Grand Inquisitor crackles with tension. Bardy and Hammes sing their smaller roles with distinction. Except for some minor file corruption in Act 4, scene 1 (already noted by Andy above) the sound is excellent and pitched correctly. This is not as exciting a performance as the one with Corelli and Kabaivanska (also available from Opera Depot), but it provides a more complete picture of the opera.
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Austria
Felicia Weathers
I have long wondered what becam of Felicia Weathers. For a while she sang a lot in Vienna at the State Opera, I recall her magical Aida with joy and gratitude; she was, perhaps, the finest I ever heard. All attempts to research her failed.
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