La Favorite

The reason I did not give this DVD 5 Stars as it may deserve on its own merit, is that it simply can't compete with the Metropolitan Opera production of "La Favorita" I saw a long time ago with my daughter, starring Fiorenza Cossotto, Luciano Pavarotti, Gabriel Bacqiuer and Nicolai Ghiaurov, all in their prime. Simply nothing could ever compare to that. Too bad that it was never recorded on DVD and exists only on CDs. Ever since I have been steeped in the Italian version of which I know practically every word of every aria.So, to start with, although I do speak French, I find it a bit confusing to listen to its older French cousin. (The same actually happens to me with the original French "Don Carlos" when it is the Italian "Don Carlo" I have internalized over the years.)However, we are discussing here "La Favorite" and I did like very much what I saw and heard. The production was simple but adequate, the costumes were lovely and the singers definitely did not disappoint. They were well worth listening to throughout.Yes, the illuminated suitcase was ridiculous and Mr. Shi was not exactly the heroic figure preferable for this role but his voice was lovely and his judgment in not trying to hold on to notes that he reached just fine, was excellent.Altogether, I passed a lovely afternoon enjoying this DVD and considered it time well spent.

I made it my objective to see just about every opera commercially available by the big composers such as Donizetti. The risk is small considering the price now of operas on DVD. With 200 operas in my library it is difficult to rate this above a 3. To the more educated they somehow see a five star performance. I read everyone's review, and have to admit the I am more in alignment with the 2-3 star ratings. The video and audio quality are excellent. The opera itself is not memorable if we were to compare it to Donizetti's other works. But if you want to experience all of Donizetti please get it; I intend to get all of his works on DVD. But understand this is not one of his masterpieces. Leonor and Fernand are not well matched; the age difference appears to be about 20 years with virtually no love chemistry. Costuming is poor and staging non-existent; versus the polite "economical" or minimal sets.

I beg to differ with my predecessors' reviews. True, apart from the old VAI recording with Alfredo Kraus which is in poor condition, this is indeed the "only game in town" on DVD or Bluray, And since I like Kate Aldrich and Ludovic Tezier, I bought the Bluray version.A great disappointment. Let's start with the voices. Kate Aldrich is okay, but nothing to write home about. With a better cast/director she could do better. Ludovic Tezier, one of my favorite baritones , -his soul wasn't in it. Pity! Giovanni Furlanetto, makes an impressive appearance but is totally out of his depth with lower notes.The interesting voice is of the young Chinese tenor. He has a good voice, but -alas- does not know anything about acting. Worse, he is the "lover" of Kate Aldrich, who looks and acts like his MOTHER.I would like to know about the desgner of the clothes- was he drunk or did use some substance? I have never seen such ridiculous clothes worn in a cloister, monastery or royal palace. The scene was incredible as well. A shining floor strewn with flower petals in all three locations, a large mirror, a stuffed peacock and some -badly-drawn arches. No cloister, no palace, no alcazar, nothing.Waing for a more serious production.Purchaser, beware ! Caveat emptor!Shimon Schieber

La Favorite is rated as among Donizetti's finest. This is a well staged, well acted and well sung performance. Only the leading Soprano is less than superb, and she is quite good. It's a rather long opera, but time flew by watching it. Highly recommended.

Excellent product — excellent delivery.

Third rate indeed. The singing is good but from international soloists so it should be. Tezier noticeably lacks any commitment and whilst Mr Shi has a fine voice it is without colour and character. The sound quality is good. Those are the good things. The costumes are just dire. Cheaply made and faintly ridiculous bordering on hideous. They appear to have been made by an amateur sewing group. The sets are minimal and to me meaningless. The whole whole production is "stand and deliver" in stye and the minimal acting by Mr Shi is frankly abysmal. Very much a mediocre performance by a provincial opera house - to be viewed once then pass on the disc to the charity shop as you won't bother to watch it again.

I did not know this opera but on playing it I have discovered a Donizetti masterpiece. The music is fantastic and the plot creates the tension that makes this a gripping opera to watch. The singers are good, particularly Kate Aldrich and Luduvic Tezier and Giovanni Furlanetto. Yujie Shi despite having a good voice lacks stage presence in this lead tenor role . All the singers perform their roles with very good acting skills that make them convincing characters. The minimal set is effective and thought provoking and the quality of filming is excellent. This a welcome addition to my collection of opera DVD's and i recommend it to any opera lover since this is one that deserves repeated viewings. .

What perverse judgment of taste removed this masterpiece from the repertoire is absolutely beyond me. Now restored to its original French setting I can only say as a Donizetti fan that this is one of his finest works. The modern constraints on grand opera are amply coped with by using a simple setting and extraordinary colourful costumes. You see it can be done. By the way Yijie Shi as Fernand has to be the find of the century. An all round excellent production. I can only think that the clown who gave it a 1 star was not in his right mind at the time.

Vocal performances are excellent, sets and costumes a bit gaudy, but never mind that. I am happy to have a Favorite in the right language instead of the usual clumsy Italian translation. Here Donizetti is determined to be French and Grand and has very skilfully adopted the idiom. There is a slight tendency to substitute theatrical gestures for drama. I think the French of the 1840:ies liked that. On the whole a very enjoyable performance.

Pour une fois, je commencerai par le coté visuel, car la réussite sur ce plan me semble totale. Le plateau est plein de couleurs éclatantes grâce à une maîtrise sophistiquée des éclairages sur les tenues des personnages. Il faut souligner la qualité des robes de Christian Lacroix dont les drapés sont très harmonieux et les teintes chatoyantes. Cela permet de se passer de tout mobilier. Bref, un régal pour l’œil, et c’est important en DVD.On a le temps d’admirer le plateau car la mise en scène est un peu indigente et les personnages sont souvent assez statiques, voire figés, qu’il s’agisse du chœur (excellent) ou des interprètes, sauf dans quelques scènes où ils se roulent par terre comme dans cette violente scène de viol en public de l’acte 2 qu’à mon avis on aurait pu éviter: c’est même déplacé, simplement pour sacrifier à la mode actuelle, ce n’est pas à l’honneur du metteur en scène. Par contre, on aurait pu maintenir le ballet qui a disparu, sans doute pas les moyens de le payer en plus des 2 stars de la distribution. Je n’ai pas compris ce que vient faire cette valise lumineuse jaune que Fernand balade du début à la fin, je ne vois pas ce qu’elle apporte, elle attire trop l’œil et est gênante.Pour interpréter cette partition, par ailleurs assez inégale, ce n’est pas la meilleure de Donizetti, le chef est un peu décevant, allant à l’outrance dans les forte mais sachant mieux rendre les mélodies, on eut pu mieux tirer parti de cet orchestre de Toulouse dont on connait la qualité. On s’en rend compte dès l’ouverture qui est lourde.Ludovic Tezier, majestueux, domine la distribution de toute sa classe qui en fait de nos jours l’un des tout meilleurs barytons au monde : précision du phrasé, beauté du timbre, projection, maîtrise du legato conduisent à une expression artistique et émotionnelle parfaite; dès sa première intervention, j’ai senti les frissons comme seuls les très grands peuvent les provoquer. Que de chemin parcouru depuis que je l’avais découvert vers 2000 sur cette même scène du Capitole en un très bon Posa. Admirable !Ces frissons, je ne les ai pas ressentis avec Léonore, Kate Aldrich (remplaçant notre Sophie Koch prévue à l’origine, mais mobilisée par le Met pour remplacer E. Garança en instance de maternité) campe une Favorite de grande présence scénique, avec une voix puissante de mezzo aux graves profonds mais avec une tendance à un vibrato excessif dès que l’on monte dans la gamme. Elle semble manquer un peu de souffle ce qui nuit à l’expression des sentiments, d’autant que sa prononciation du français est fortement déficiente, et donc ne passe pas bien les émotions. C’est pourquoi le célèbre grand air du 3° acte « oh ! Mon Fernand » n’est pas salué chaleureusement par le public, là où F. Cossoto recueille plus de 2 minutes d’acclamation. Elle arrive cependant à se hisser au niveau de L. Tezier dans les duos. La comparaison avec F. Cossoto dans le vieil enregistrement de Tokyo est cependant sans appel.Je ne dirai pas grand-chose du chinois qui interprète Fernand, (il a dû remplacer tardivement S. Pirgu, ce qui doit rendre indulgent) il n’a pas le physique du rôle, ne comprend pas ce qu’il chante faute de connaître la langue, donc a une expression purement phonétique qui ne permet pas toujours une compréhension minimum, bref je n’ai pas du tout aimé, et pas seulement parce que j’ai Alfredo Krause dans l’oreille. Mais là, on touche aux limites budgétaires qui ne permettent pas de se payer aujourd’hui à Toulouse 3 chanteurs de premier plan quand on a déjà mis beaucoup d’argent dans l’apparence. Quant à G. Furlanetto, il campe un Balthazar honorable mais sans éclat, et sa voix trahit son âge.Donc globalement un bon spectacle, mais musicalement on n’atteint pas et de loin la qualité du DVD de Tokyo qui malheureusement est techniquement vieux. Alors, peut-être aurons-nous prochainement en DVD l’enregistrement du festival de Salzbourg 2014 avec J. D. Flores (étincelant), E. Garança (expressive et bouleversante) et de nouveau L. Tezier, spectacle qui a été salué comme remarquable, ce qui n’est pas étonnant quand on a là 3 des meilleurs chanteurs du moment. Mentionnons encore l’indigence du livret figurant dans le boitier, il ne comporte qu’un résumé de chaque acte, aucune analyse, rien sur les interprètes.

J'ai été très satisfait par ce dvd et je vous en remercie.Je ne connaissais pas cet ouvrage et j'ai été ravi de le découvrir.Merci