Recorded in 1958, this Don Giovanni’s prime attraction is Ferenc Fricsay’s crisp, forward-moving conducting. The tempos are swift, almost as though Fricsay can’t wait to damn the Don, a scene done with the requisite sense of fatal drama. It’s an approach that might have worked better with a cast more alive to the ambiguities of the text and music; this is, after all a “Dramma giocoso”. Balancing those two elements is always a challenge, but there’s precious little “giocoso” here. As the Don, Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau is a joyless, driven rake with none of the seductive elegance that’s part of the character. At this relatively early stage of his career, Fischer-Dieskau’s voice had smoothness and bloom, and his interpretations, while text-driven, avoided the overdone quality of his later years. But his hectoring Don made me think it was recorded two decades later. His “La ci darem la mano” is threatening rather than seductive, and the Champagne aria, a frantic war-cry.
There’s no fun in the echt-Germanic Leporello either, as Karl Kohn’s dour portrayal is distinguished by one of the few recorded “Catalogue” arias I’ve heard without smiling. The women almost save the show. Sena Jurinac is a fine Donna Anna, her large, lovely voice generously filling out the part, and Irmgard Seefried is a delightfully flighty Zerlina. The big surprise is Maria Stader’s Elvira, cast against type. Her high soprano seems more suited to Zerlina, but she digs deep to come up with a fiery “Non ti fidar” and a warmly beautiful “In quail eccessi”, along with some individual phrasing that makes you sit up and take notice. Aside from Ivan Sardi’s commendable Massetto, the rest of the cast is neither here nor there; mostly there. Be prepared for Germanic Italian, with “kvel” for “quel”, among other atrocities. The early stereo recording adequately conveys Fricsay’s thoughts, which are well worth hearing. For all its faults, it’s good to have this Don Giovanni available again.
