Of the four available recordings of this great opera–Rossini’s last comedy–this is the weakest but is not entirely dismissible. It has charm, life, and energy (it was recorded during live performances) and a superb chorus. None of the solo singing is up to the competition, but much of it is more than respectable. Best is the Isolier of Luisa Islam-Ali-Zade, perky and well-inflected if not quite equal to the elegant standard of Diana Montague (Philips); worst is the ugly, wobbly Ragonde of Gloria Montanari. Wojtek Gierlach’s Tutor is well characterized but the singing is slovenly, with dry top notes and skimmed fiorature. Luca Salsi’s Raimbaud is good–he invents some of the pitches but has the right attitude in his patter aria.
Huw Rhys-Evans’ Comte is a puzzle: he’s an elegant tenorino with good coloratura, he handles the many high-Cs in ways that are vaguely dodgy but respectable, and he pays attention to the text and exudes charm. But put him next to Juan Diego Florez (DG) and he sounds like a voice student. A fine surprise is soprano Linda Gerrard as the Countess. Sumi Jo on Philips has greater clarity, but Gerrard is a real find: her high-sitting soprano is agile and warm and she has style and confidence. Brad Cohen leads a fun performance occasionally marred by stage noise and some pit/stage inconsistencies. As I said, this is fourth after the two recordings mentioned above and the historical recording led by Vittorio Gui, but it’s very inexpensive and not a bad introduction to this delightful work.
