Donizetti - Lucrezia Borgia / Sutherland, NPO, Bonynge

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Music reviews of Donizetti - Lucrezia Borgia / Sutherland, NPO, Bonynge

Music Review: Viva The Diva: A Listening Pleasure
Rating: 5 Stars

Although I personally feel that Beverly Sills did the most for reviving these operas and making them real powerful stuff as drama, Joan Sutherland served audiences as a reminder that bel canto is a listening pleasure. To watch her perform, Joan Sutherland did not always convince you in dramatic roles. Try as she would, she just did'nt put as much effort into her acting. If she had, she would have been exactly like Maria Callas who she was trying to emulate. She's been in many dramatic bel canto operas however - Lucia Di Lammermoor and Bellini's Norma. Her Norma has long been considered her signature role and her best and I agree. On recording, at least you get listening pleasure from hearing her voice, even if there is little to no acting.

Lucrezia Borgia is in many ways Donizetti's more demanding works for a soprano. Other than Queen Elizabeth I in Roberto Devereux, the role of Lucrezia Borgia is classified as a highly challenging dramatic character to sing. Lucrezia must come off as scheming, evil and tempting. She is beautiful, vain, impetuous. Who knows how the historic Lucrezia Borgia was like. The Borgias, of course, were dubbed villainous and power-hungry in Renaissance Italy and it was Lucrezia's own relative Cesare Borgia who tainted her name by such accusations as adultery and poisoning her own son. In the opera, although Lucrezia is a fierce woman, she wants to re-connect with her estranged son. This is another side to her character, her lighter side, her motherly side. This is appropriately full for a character in opera, and especially in a diva role. If you've seen Roberto Devereux or heard it on recording, Queen Elizabeth is two sides of a coin- jealousy, rage and awesome majesty and soft romantic love-struck woman. The same goes for Lucrezia- she's both light and dark. This recording only showcases Joan Sutherland's beautiful singing voice. She is fine in some portions but she fails to convey drama and power in many other portions, especially the portions where she is required to be dramatic and to act. Thus, this is only a must have recording if you are a hardcore fan of Joan Sutherland. You may also see her in the DVD release of her live performance as Lucrezia Borgia. I feel she's giving a better performance on the live performance and not on this studio recording.

Here's the best advice I can give you if you want to hear the best Lucrezia: Try to sample different sopranos other than Joan Sutherland who have sang Lucrezia- they are Montserrat Caballe (dramatic, powerful voice, beautiful legato and pianissimo) Beverly Sills (the best dramatic inflection, perfect legato, fantastic coloratura and my personal favorite Lucrezia. For Beverly's rare Lucrezia, which never made it into a recording, you have to buy the recording "Sillsiana" which features Beverly doing a number of bel canto arias including Lucrezia). Finally, for a recent, more updated soprano who has sang Lucrezia, listen to Renee Fleming, who has a recording of bel canto heroine arias. Her Lucrezia Borgia is excellent. Renee Fleming looks the part, is dramatic, convincing, and a mixture of beautiful voice and dark voice. But kudos to all the sopranos who have dared take on the role of Lucrezia, including Joan Sutherland.

Description of Donizetti - Lucrezia Borgia / Sutherland, NPO, Bonynge

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