Samson arguably is Handel’s most operatic oratorio, but it has yet to find an ideal performance on CD. Raymond Leppard’s reading on Erato had great energy but Janet Baker was miscast as Dalila–no heavy seducing going on here. This set, from 1969, finds a young Martina Arroyo lustier of tone than Baker, Alexander Young convincing as Samson, Ezio Flagello’s Harapha woolly, Thomas Stewart’s Manoa authoritative, Norma Proctor’s Micah richly sung, and Helen Donath, in four roles, good but not thrilling. Her “Let the bright Seraphim” disappoints when it should dazzle.
But the set’s real problem is the leadership of Karl Richter. Granted, we leave with the impression of having experienced a Biblical epic, but this is a performance Handel would not have recognized: It has no spring, no spontaneity. Unlike Richter’s classic–if historically incorrect–B minor Mass, this drama just doesn’t gel. The playing of the Munich forces is first-rate, as are the sonics. But we’ll just have to sit tight until a truly persuasive Samson comes along.
