Parisina d’Este will never be one of Donizetti’s most-performed works. Despite the fact that it comes from 1833, when the composer was at his peak, it is only intermittently musically interesting, and that interest invariably rests on the title role. Parisina is one of those sad, noble heroines in Donizetti who has no power over her circumstances but plenty of beautiful music–indeed, Montserrat Caballé scored quite a great success with it in concert performances in New York and elsewhere 20 or so years ago (there is a recording in which her singing is breathtaking and the rest of the cast is pretty good too). There is a nice ensemble in each of the first two acts, but Parisina closes the opera on a high note (no pun intended), and when all is said and done, it is only her music that stays in the memory.
This studio recording from Swiss Radio is obviously meant as a showcase, then, for Alexandrina Pendatchanska, who sings Parisina–and in fact, she’s excellent. The voice is of a good size and flexibility, with just enough of the Slavic edge at its top to be telling without becoming irritating. One might wish for more chest voice for exclamation, but she’s probably, wisely, being careful. At any rate, she’s definitely worth hearing. The piece’s villain, her husband Azzo, is very poorly sung by baritone Ramon de Andres, and this leaves a hole in the opera, especially since Azzo has plenty to sing, even if it is by-rote villainy. The tenor part, Ugo, is Azzo’s son by a previous marriage (he and Parisina are in love but chaste). His music is typical in a lyrically rousing sort of way, and Amedeo Moretti has a pleasant enough voice, though he forces it for emphasis. The other singers are not memorable. If you want a Parisina and can’t find the Caballé (it’s out on at least two private labels) or are interested in Pendatchanska, you’ll need this.
