Unsung Composers

...forthcoming from Naxos:
http://www.mdt.co.uk/wolf-ferrari-i-gioielli-della-madonna-orchestra-friedrich-haider-naxos-2cds.html (http://www.mdt.co.uk/wolf-ferrari-i-gioielli-della-madonna-orchestra-friedrich-haider-naxos-2cds.html)
Wowee!

Here's a review of the performance in Bratislava:
http://www.operatoday.com/content/2015/05/ (http://www.operatoday.com/content/2015/05/)

Opera Today: May 2015 Archives
May 31, 2015
Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari: The Jewels of the Madonna

But the company's music director and opera director is the Austrian conductor Friedrich Haider, who is something of a Wolf-Ferrari expert having recorded Wolf-Ferrari's opera Il segreto di Susanna (Susanna's secret) and the violin concerto, and the house has a large permanent ensemble with a big choir from whom it was possible to cast the large number of important comprimario roles.

Rather impressively the opera was double case and we saw the premiere at SND's New Building on Friday 29 May 2015 with Kyungho Kim as Gennaro, Denisa Šlepkovská as Carmela, Natalia Ushakova as Maliella and Daniel Čapkovič as Rafaele, conducted by Friedrich Haider, directed by Manfred Schweigkofler with sets designed by Michele Olcese and costumes by Concetta Nappi. The SND Orchestra and Chorus, was joined by the Bratislava Boys Choir, and the Pressburg Singers.

The plot is relatively straightforward, Gennaro (Kyungho Kim) is a young blacksmith who has three obsessions, his mother Carmela (Denisa Šlepkovská), the Madonna and his foster sister Maliella (Denisa Šlepkovská). This latter is rather wild, wanting to enjoy life but is kept confined by her family. She is being courted by Rafaele (Daniel Čapkovič) the head of the local Camorra.

The first act centres on a celebration for the feast of Our Lady, with a gloriously chaotic series of processions and lots of street characters, including an appearance from the statue of the jewelled Madonna. Act two is in the courtyard of Gennaro's home and is a series of interactions, between Gennaro and Carmela, Gennaro and Maliella, Maliella and Rafaele. we learn that Carmela's protective mothering of Gennaro arose because she nearly lost him as a child, and the fostering of Maliella was the result of a vow to the virgin if Gennaro survived. Gennaro tells Maliella of his obsession and she laughs at him, he vows to steal the jewels of the Madonna for her. Later Rafaele comes courting and the two have a love scene through the grill locking Maliella in. Finally Gennaro reappears with the jewels and the act closes with Gennaro covering Maliella with jewels before claiming her virginity. Act three is Rafaele's gang's hangout; an orgy in progress is interrupted first by the arrival of Maliella, traumatised by Gennaro's taking of her virginity, and then by Gennaro with the jewels themselves. Though the gang has been having an orgy beneath an image of the Madonna, they are shocked by Gennaro's sacrilege. But Wolf-Ferrari knew Jung and was cleaarly interested in the madonna/mother/whore parallels, and it is clear that for Rafaele, Gennaro has stolen the jewels (virginity) of his madonna (Maliella), and Rafaele loses interest in Maliella.

Though I gioielli della Madonna is commonly linked to the later Verismo school, the opera has both dramatic and musical differences. True the story has the dramatic shock value of a Verismo opera, but Wolf-Ferrari is like Verdi in being interested in the consequences of actions. Operas like Pagliacci end with the major dramatic coup, in I gioielli della Madonna Wolf-Ferrari continues into the remarkable third act where we explore the tragic consequences of actions and it ends in a mysterious and unnerving manner with Maliella's disappearance (and presumed death) and Gennaro's suicide; no big climactic moment. Musically there are similar differences, and certainly none of the driving passion and big, throbbing, orchestra supported tunes from Verismo.

Wolf-Ferrari was of mixed Italian and German heritage, and German trained in Munich under Rheinberger. His eclectic style is allied to a complexity in the orchestration and structure which makes for richness (when premiered the opera was far more popular in Germany than in Italy). There are tunes a-plenty including popular ones echoing the street celebrations, but all are melded into a remarkable synthesis ranging from Saint-Saens to Richard Strauss, with pre-echoes of Stravinsky and Shostakovich. Rather imaginatively, the Camorra are not depicted by dark music but they make their entrance to a jolly tune on the mandolins, though this can turn threatening when the knives come out.

The plot really requires the opera to be set in the correct period and location, intense devotion to the Madonna is a core component. Director Manfred Schweigkofler and designers Michele Olcese and Concetta Nappi moved the time forward to the 1950's but wisely kept the basic structures, with Michele Olcese's sets being formed of panels depicting scenes from Naples thus evoking the characteristic look and feel of the city. The production captured the liveliness and shabbyness of the street-life, but act one is not just about vibrant street life and processions, and Manfred Schweigkofler's handling of the crowds enabled us to appreciate the quieter moments. He drew strong performances from his cast in all he more intimate moments. The large chorus threw themselves into the action with a will, and sang strongly. Perhaps there was a certain staidness in their manner, but this fitted in with the 1950's setting, and the orgy was very effectively done yet firmly in period. The statue of the Madonna was a remarkable structure seemingly made of light, the design references became clear in act two when Maliella, covered with diamonds, began to resemble the twinkling brilliance of the statue.

Maliella is a big role, requiring a powerful lyric/dramatic voice. Natalia Ushakova's repertoire stretches from Violetta through Tosca to Elsa and Salome. In the first act she brought out Maliella's innate anger, even in the jollier moments such as her hymn to the joys of freedom, but she seemed a little careful and the rich orchestration threatened to overwhelm her. She seemed to relax somewhat in act two, in the series of powerful duets taunting Gennaro and flirting with Rafaele leading to an ecstatic duet with this latter. Natalia Ushakova seemed to throw caution to the winds and gave an incendiary account of her final scene.

Kyungho Kim's Gennaro was a sober, intense young man with a neatly observed obsessive nature. Kyungho Kim's voice had a richly powerful dark timbre allied to an heroic steadiness which brought forth a finely consistent account of the taxing role. His final scene, being castigated for sacrilege by the Camorra was as powerful as it was harmonically innovative with Wolf-Ferrari stretching tonality to breaking point. Though Gennaro's obsessions make him a rather difficult to love character, Kyungho Kim's performance went a long way towards eliciting our sympathy.

Daniel Čapkovič was neatly suave as the oily Rafaele, but allied to a powerful voice with a fine burnished tone. But the role need intensity and power as well as suaveness and a sense of line, and Daniel Čapkovič had the necessary reserves, but he always sang with the required seductivness so that Rafaele was attractive and dangerous, rather than boorish. Denisa Šlepkovská was a strong Carmela, warmly sympathetic of voice and monstrous in the intensity of her smothering love for Gennaro and indifference to Maliella's will for freedom.

The numerous smaller roles were strongly taken, with lots of cameos on the first act such as Igor Pasek's dim Biaso, Maxim Kutsenko's charming Totonno, the Rafaele's rather scary lieutenants Ciccillo and Rocco played by Peter Maly and Frantisek Duriac, the three girls providing lively entertainment to the Camorra played by Jana Bernathova, Maria Rychlova and Katarina Florova and many, many more.

Just as important was the orchestra, under Friedrich Haider's strongly inspiring direction. Throughout the orchestral playing had an impressive sense of flow, with details brought out and a lovely timbre to the playing. This did not sound like an unfamiliar score, and clearly there had been a lot of preparation which paid off.

The performances are being recorded with the hope of finding a record company to issue a recording, let us hope that they are successful.

Wisely the production chose not to indulge in too many modish modernism, in such a complex and unfamiliar opera conveying the music and drama's essential purpose was clearly a priority, and this was certainly achieved. I was in a press party, and was the only member of the group to have seen the opera before (at Opera Holland Park in 2014), and all were impressed both by the quality of the work and the performance.

The performance by SND was an immense achievement for the whole ensemble, but more than that it was a vividly, vibrant piece of musical theatre and showed that Wolf-Ferrari's opera might yet achieve its place.

Robert Hugill

Cast and production information:

Gennaro: Kyungho Kim, Carmela: Denisa Šlepkovská, Maliella: Natalia Ushakova , Rafele: Daniel Čapkovič, Biaso: Igor Pasek, Totonno: Maxim Kutsenko, Ciccillo: Peter Maly, Rocco: Frantisek Duriac, Stella: Jana Bernathova, Concetta: Maria Rychlova Serena: Katarina Florova. Conductor: Friedrich Haider, Director: Manfred Schweigkofler Sets: Michele Olcese Costumes: Concetta Nappi. The SND Orchestra and Chorus, the Bratislava Boys Choir, the Pressburg Singers. Slovak National Theatre, Bratislava, 29 May 2015.

It was indeed a superb performance and even though updated the opera was still as I've always imagined it from the Bella Voce recording of 1976.
So now there will be two new sets. The theatre in Freiburg currently has a very successful production which is due to appear on the CPO label in their series of operas from Freiburg.
I hope the Naxos recording has restored the introduction to act 2 which was omitted in the theatre. Naxos proclaim their recording as a world première, so does that mean the Bella Voce recording doesn't count?

The Bella Voce is a pirated recording, presumably taken off the radio.

Many thanks for enlightening me, Alan!

You can tell it's a pirate - they can't even spell 'gioielli' correctly. And on the CDs themselves the opera is titled 'O Gioiella della Madonna'! Having said which, the booklet notes are quite good. And the performance itself is fine.

Misselling is nothing new. CPO had a "Price Symphony" by Georg Schumann!

'Misselling' or 'Misspelling'?

Of course, 'Preis' in German means both 'Price' and 'Prize'. No excuse, though...

The Naxos CD will be officially issued next month. Looking forward to it. The conductor, incidentally, is Edita Gruberova's ex-husband.
And, incidentally, in a few hours I will just leave for Bratislava to make a new recording on Sunday :-)

It's out in the UK next week (29/4).

Quotea new recording

More Brun?

Hi Alan
I was in Vienna's Gramola shop yesterday morning and a Naxos parcel just was being delivered by the postman. They opened it in front of my eyes and there was the Wolf-Ferrari, so I may be its first buyer in Austria :-)
Will let you know later about it, I just came home and feel totally worn out and unable for a while to listen something. In Bratilsava we made a recording of my own 20-minute's Concertino for Ondes Martenot and Strings - a difficult work (also for the fiddles), but we got good results :-)
The very last of my 10 Brun CDs (Cello Concerto, work for choir and Orchestra and 6 songs with string sextet) is due for this month; that's what Guild told me long ago.

Thanks for all that news. Do let us know what you think of the Wolf-Ferrari when you have time.

Warning: this is just my very personal opinion!
Haider's recording of "I gioielli della Madonna" can be considered as good, but not excellent enough to become a reference recording.
I once had a pirate LP from a (BBC?) broadcast, which I liked quite well...
As far as the overall interpretation is concerned, I lack full Italian temper and more perfect pronounciation - which is expected from such a kind of work, be it verismo or not. At times, it becomes quite boring or "fade" (in the French meaning of the word) and I had to interrupt the listening.
I think this project should have been realized by a full Italian cast and orchestra, or at least with the help of a good Italian coach or correpetiteur. The singers sing well, but they just sing and give not enough expression to the words they are singing, it's all in the same style. Thus, the lead singer's voices become, more than occasionally, dull, except perhaps mezzo Susanne Bernard, the most sympathetic lead. Gennaro, sung by a more dramatic and tempered tenor would have saved much: but Kyungho Kim sounds to me a still bit undeveloped. Natalia Ushakova, who has excellent material, does not dare to exploit it in full. The baritone has a sympathetic voice too, but his wobble is often disturbing...
I think, Maestro Haider should have also instructed the singers that many passages are there to be sung not necessarily belcanto-like, but in the mezzo parlato/mezzo cantato style, as, already Verdi required in his "Otello". But not even those few solo parlato places in the Wolf-Ferrari score are not sounding convincing and authentic enough to emphasize drama - because there were not properly coached. I have worked in this field during 25 years and know about quite well. And such kind of repertoire must be done vividly and really Italian-like. These are some of the details making an opera thrilling and more colorful.
As listeners will hear, the choirs too, they have to cope with some problems...
In every aspect, this is a very difficult score, and one feels that the participants, including the orchestra, are still on a level of letting the audience feel this.
A Verdian star singer's cast production of this piece would be urgently needed!
Who knows, a live instead of a studio recording would have helped to enhance the drama a bit, but the risk of too many musical mistakes was certainly a wise decision by Maestro Haider. Not to forget stage noises, which can be louder as singer's.
The sonics are well-known to me, since I have done many recordings in the same hall - and with the same Niznasky/Geschwandtner team - who has obtained an excellent balance and sound, considering the difficult task they were confronted with.

Thanks, Adriano. So a decent stop-gap, maybe?

QuoteThe very last of my 10 Brun CDs (Cello Concerto, work for choir and Orchestra and 6 songs with string sextet) is due for this month; that's what Guild told me long ago.

Now available to order on the Guild website  ;D ;D

Thanks. Please see this thread:
http://www.unsungcomposers.com/forum/index.php/topic,5823.15.html (http://www.unsungcomposers.com/forum/index.php/topic,5823.15.html)

A quick audition this morning suggests this is rather more than a decent stop-gap. In fact, I'd say it was pretty  magnificent. More anon...

That's very encouraging, Alan. I'll just wait for the download to become available in a few days.

It is superb. There is a real sense of this being part of a live run. Excellent orchestral playing and recording too. No libretto, of course  >:(

And I thought, Alan, that you were particularly sensitive to wobbling singers and mild tenors :-)
The production comes form the Slovak Opera; funny enough, they did not use its orchestra, but the Radio ensmble instead.

I've hear far, far worse, to be honest. In fact Kyungho Kim (tenor) as Gennaro has a fine, steady voice, well used, and Natalia Ushakova as Maliella is also very good, although not in the same class as the superb Natalya Romaniw whom I saw at Opera Holland Park back in 2013. I'll report back on the baritone...

...who is indeed a wobbler. Not good at all. But he's the only blot on the landscape so far.

QuoteThe production comes form the Slovak Opera; funny enough, they did not use its orchestra, but the Radio ensmble instead.

Very odd because the Slovak National Opera Orchestra played in the performance I saw last May!

I was astonished myself to see that this CD was done with the Radio Orchestra. The Radio may have imposed this to them; in exchange they may have got the studio for free. Since 1987 I have worked with the Radio Symphony Orchestra; at a time it was a super ensemble. Then followed a big corruption scandal (managers and organsiators had taken parts of musician's fees into their own pockets - or the CD companies were charged for sessions which never took place), so the orchestra went bankrupt and had to be reduced to a small ensemble - of inferior quality. At the same time, the Radio itself had problems... Apparently now, the Radio seems to try to re-build its ensemble into a larger one, but I have my doubts about this. How can such a city cope with three such large orchestras? In earlier times, they were all supported by the Communist government... Even today, ticket fees of opera and concert performances are very low, compared to ours, so I wonder how could they survive, now that everywhere cultural support is being drastically cut down? In fact, some people involved told me that the Slovak Opera's budget had just bee drastically cut down by the government...

That's why I am working now with the Bratislava Symphony Orchestra, which is an indipendent, mainly studio ensemble of the best musicians from the Radio, Slovak Symphony and the Opera. It's a private company which has mainly become the address for recording soundtracks by TV and film production companies from all over the world. The 5 recordings I have done so far with this new ensemble, its conductor/manager as a producer and its faboulous sound engineer (they just rent the studio and bring along their own, more sophisticated equipment) have realised the very best sound I ever had in all of my 49 recordings!
http://www.bso.sk/ (http://www.bso.sk/)

@Alan
In other words, there will be also a (live) cpo production featurung the very same tenor??

That's what I thought too! Still, he's good. Although Nuttaporn Thammathi would be better...

Of course Kim is good, but he also wobbles a bit too much... For me he is too liric and not passionate enough (not "Italian" enough). His timbre is somehow like the one of young Carreras, but that guy had blood in his veins already in his début period. We Italians (sorry, we are implacable in belcanto matters) call such a voice "una voce senza coglioni" :-)
As far as conducting Wolf-Ferrari is concerned, we must not forget Nello Santi, whose magnificent DECCA LP of 1960 features the Suite of "I gioielli" and other symphonic pieces. Years ago, he conducted "I quattro rusteghi" and "Il segreto di Susanna" - two wonderful productions at the Zurich Opera. On "Rusteghi" I remember him saying to me: "This is the first time after 50 years that I cannot conduct a score by memory, at my age I am not able anymore to learn, so I will use a score, since I have never done this opera. Please give all possible cues from your prompter's box!" In fact, "Rusteghi" has some vocal ensembles, which are real hell.
In Zurich we also had a production of Wolf-Ferrari's "Sly", conducted by Rafael Frübeck de Burgos. A very unsual thing: we had to transpose down Carrera's part - and that way the production was done, and leter on recorded by Koch-Scwann in Barcelona. There I had a hell of a work in my box too, and I won't forget José how nivce and thankful he was with me. I also conducted piano rehearsals. And I won't forget the magificent voice and stage presence of Isabell Kabatu!
This glamourous time of the Zurich Opera has gone by, alas...
The other DECCA LP with "Il segreto di Susanna", conducted by Laberto Gardelli, is excellent too - unfortunately, Bernd Weikl is totally miscast.
Last but not least I must admit, that Haider's "Intermezzo" from "Gioielli" is more beautifully played than Santi's Paris Orchestra on that old DECCA LP...

I hear Kim rather differently. His vibrato isn't a wobble - it's slower than ideal, maybe, but always secure. I'd rather have him than any of the 'can belto' brigade, e.g. Del Monaco, Landolini, etc. In London in 2013 Joel Montero was superb - more robust than Kim, but capable of the verismo extremes without shouting or losing focus.

I know what you mean about the younger Carreras. I still think his Cavaradossi (for Davis, not Karajan) is the best in recorded history. But he made the same mistake as di Stefano, singing roles at least one size too big for him before he was ready. Then, of course, he had leukaemia and his voice never recovered...

Well, everybody experiences/receives singer's voices personally/differently - and that's a good thing too :-) I can imagine very well Montero singing this part!
A real pity about Carreras. All parts he sang in Zürich during the Pereira era (including Sly, Tosca, Fedora, Carmen) were already a bit too much for him.
But take now the duet of "Goielli" in the Naxos recording: this is nicely done, but not convincing as far as both singers are concerned. At the end, one if happy tht's finished. When Mariella sings the popular song, there is a descneding passage reminding me of Florence Foster Jenkins. Not to speak that one does not understand one single word there. Why does she not work more with text and esprit? And when Gennaro shouts at her "Cedi Mariella ed amami", just on the long note, a vibrato (for me it's a bad wobble) is absolutely out of place, it just so cheap and parody-like. Again, an Italian specialist coach would have helped improving the stylistics of this production. Take also, for example, the clumsy/mechanical rendering of the Camorristi's Waltz after the mentioned duet: it's not correct and destroys the piece - and the big Feast in act 3, being clumsy, raher slow and lacking of élan - this just to say somethinbg about Haider's work. 
This is my last word on this production: sorry for having been so severe and passionate, but I know this opera quite well :-)

I accept all of what you say, of course. You see things with a perfectionist's eye, which is quite right. Thanks for giving us your view.

Thanks, Alan :-)
There is a small addendum - which has nothing to do with criticism: I just learn from a Bratislava manager that the recording was done with the Radio Symphony just because the Opera Orchestra had refused to record the piece with Haider. They may have been offended after Haider had resigned for the end of this season because of the budget shortenings I've mentioned earlier in this thread. Haider was mad to hear that the Philharmonic was given 1,5 million more and 600'000 were taken away from the Opera. Well, this is not the only Theatre getting such suprises... If we go on like this, suppose that in a few years there will be just one Opera House per nation. And music lovers who cannot travel or pay high ticket fees, just go to a cinema and watch a direct TV broadcast... Here in Zurich we already have a cinema offering such programs.
And, as far as Mr. Kim, the tenor of the Bratislava CD is concerned, he will not be singing on the cpo recording for sure: his Naxos contract says that he is not allowed to record this part again over a period of 5 years. Did cpo know about this recording? They even may, perhaps, withdraw from the idea of issuing another "Gioielli" now there is already a new one - and available at such cheap price!

An interesting thought. I wonder who's understudying for Kim in Freiburg?

They should be called to suggest Montero :-)
Incidentally, the Wolf-Ferrari symphonic opera excerpts CD, conducted by Neville Marriner (EMI, 1992,) is very beautiful and recommendable! It also contains a suite of "Gioielli".
And nobody should miss to listen to WF's oratorio "La Vita Nuova"! A real masterwork. It was recorded by Koch-Schwann in 1994. Three years before, the same label produced another recommendable CD with WF's "Idillio Concertino" (Obeo, 2 Horns and strings) and the Concertino for English Horn, 2 Horns and Strings.
Having to deal with WF these days in this forum, I rediscover quite a few jewels in my CD collection! :-)

I agree most heartily about "La Vita Nuova" - a gloriously moving piece. I was amazed when I heard it first, and it gives me great pleasure every time I play the CD.

Oh dear. Something else for the list...

 8)

It seems there has been a change in the Freiburg cast, and that Mr. Kim will not sing the rôle of Gennaro anymore, and will be replaced by Hector Lopez-Mendoza.
It also seems to me that the Freiburg production will be sung in german, and not in italian (thus the title "Der Schmuck der Madonna")

http://www.theater.freiburg.de/index/TheaterFreiburg/Monatsspielplan.html?SpId=75488 (http://www.theater.freiburg.de/index/TheaterFreiburg/Monatsspielplan.html?SpId=75488)

Excellent news! That the piece will be sung in German is, in the case of Wolf-Ferrari, quite normal. He himself insisted that his operas should be sung in both languages - and some of them were first performed in German anyway. In other words, he took particular care to write his vocal lines suitable for both languages. WF, like Martucci, Sgambati and Busoni, felt himself a bi-cultural spirit. Last but not least, his real name was Hermann Friedrich Wolf, his father was Bavarian, his mother Italian. In the 1930 he psychically suffered very much, by seeing his two beloved countries taken over by Nazis and Fascists.
My friend Laureto Rodoni has some interesting info on his WF website:
http://www.rodoni.ch/busoni/wolfbusoni/ (http://www.rodoni.ch/busoni/wolfbusoni/)
and there is an offical site too (presumably done by Friedrich Haider)
http://www.wolf-ferrari.com/
(http://www.wolf-ferrari.com/)

I don't think it'll be sung in German: it's simply that the opera is known by its German title in Germany. In England it's known as 'The Jewels of the Madonna', but does that mean it'd be sung in English?
Evidence, for anyone with good ears, here:
http://www.swr.de/swr2/kultur-info/kultur-regional-musik-der-schmuck-der-madonna-theater-freiburg/-/id=9597116/did=17071258/nid=9597116/ryym0r/index.html (http://www.swr.de/swr2/kultur-info/kultur-regional-musik-der-schmuck-der-madonna-theater-freiburg/-/id=9597116/did=17071258/nid=9597116/ryym0r/index.html)

Oh, OK, Alan.  However I think I presumed that (it was sung in german) because I had SEEN it written somewhere (maybe on the Freiburg program brochure ?), but now I can't seem to find it.

It was definitely sung in Italian, as this quote from the the review by Jochen Rüth confirms:

"...wie die italienisch gesungene Premiere dieser wahren Opernrarität vor nahezu ausverkauftem Großen Haus des Theaters Freiburg am gestrigen Abend zeigte."
http://www.deropernfreund.de/freiburg-12.html (http://www.deropernfreund.de/freiburg-12.html)

...and the tenor, Hector Lopez-Mendoza, sounds extremely promising:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TNEN6EFx0vs (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TNEN6EFx0vs)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S_bMFqUfyhA (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S_bMFqUfyhA)
Wow!!

Good to know, thanks Alan. I perused various reviews, but not that one - and even the promotional site of the Freiburg House does not mention this; so why on earth they do not use the original Italian title? They have done "Francesca da Rimini", so they should alss translate this into "Francesca von Rimini" :-)
Looking at the productions photos, once more one has to deal with a typical "Deutsches Regietheater" ejaculation, of which I have seen dozens everywhere and of which I am tired since decades... To set up a piece "psychologically" (as they always call it) and transport it into another epoch with some extra shrill ideas is much easier than to study the music and the libretto and to find out what's all in there. All has to be effectful and colorful...

Thank goodness there won't be a DVD, then!

QuoteLooking at the productions photos, once more one has to deal with a typical "Deutsches Regietheater" ejaculation

Yeah, it was the same Kirsten Harms who attempted to ruin the Königin von Saba production....
But at least, in Freiburg, they seem to have a knack for discovering promising talents and giving them chances !!!

Anyway, I'm going back to Freiburg in June, to hear 1 or 2 performances of these "Jewels" along with a performance of Boïto's Mefistofele (and then on to Bielefeld, for a Sondheim Little Night Music).  In Freiburg, my only disappointmoint so far has been a rather terrible Sweeney Todd.

For those who want to sample excerpts from the Naxos recording, they're now available at jpc:
https://www.jpc.de/jpcng/classic/detail/-/art/wolf-ferrari-i-gioielli-madon/hnum/2826384 (https://www.jpc.de/jpcng/classic/detail/-/art/wolf-ferrari-i-gioielli-madon/hnum/2826384)

Meanwhile, there is a review:
http://www.classicstoday.com/review/unnecessary-gioiellirespectable-performance/?utm_source=Classics+Today+Subscribers&utm_campaign=68395c74de-RSS_EMAIL_CAMPAIGN&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_6ca671ff6a-68395c74de-98642073
(http://www.classicstoday.com/review/unnecessary-gioiellirespectable-performance/?utm_source=Classics+Today+Subscribers&utm_campaign=68395c74de-RSS_EMAIL_CAMPAIGN&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_6ca671ff6a-68395c74de-98642073)

Here's the review in full:

Unnecessary Gioielli/Respectable Performance
Artistic Quality: 8
Sound Quality: 7
by Robert Levine

Composer of a bunch of chamber music as well as 15 operas, most of which are comic, the half-German, half-Italian Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari is rarely heard from today. His comic works, coming from the buffo tradition of Goldoni, are well regarded, but somewhere near the middle of his career—in 1911, to be exact—he decided to throw his hat into the ring occupied by Mascagni, Leoncavallo, and the other verismo composers. The result is I Gioielli della Madonna, a quasi-pile of crap of an opera that is so over-orchestrated and over-populated (there are almost 30 solo roles) that even when you sit back and realize the skill with which many of the ensembles are put together—Wolf-Ferrari's sense of counterpoint is almost too fine for such direct brutality—it offers little pleasure.

The plot—as loaded as a twice baked, bacon-filled, cheesy potato—is set in Naples at the time of the opera's composition. Gennaro, a blacksmith, is hot for Maliella, his low-born foster sister (whom his mother, Carmela, took in as penance when Gennaro, ill as a child, was saved), who finds his attention to her ridiculous and lets him know it. She's intrigued by Rafaele, the head of the local Camorra (a Mafia-type group), and he desperately wants her because 1) she is wild and arrogant, and 2) she is a virgin.

Rafaele offers Maliella the jewels that hang around the Madonna's neck in the local church, but even Maliella can't accept such sacrilege; she can, however, tell Gennaro about Rafaele's offer, which drives him to steal them. Maliella and Rafaele share a hot love duet, after which Gennaro shows up with the jewels, and Maliella, still thinking dirty thoughts about Rafaele, gives in to Gennaro. Since her "flower" is now gone, Rafaele disowns her and she drowns herself. In a fit of insane religious ecstasy Gennaro prays for forgiveness and stabs himself.

Two of the duets are fine and melodic—oases in the midst of a lot of chaos and local color; but mostly there are peasant choruses, religious choruses, and children's choruses, along with a Tarantella and Bacchanale, between the beginning and end of the opera, most of which takes place out-of-doors so we can meet the neighbors and local thugs. Religious fervor hangs over the work like a shroud, but Cavalleria and Suor Angelica do it better. There is a xylophone and there are mandolins, but none of the inexorable catastrophe that permeates the best of verismo.

Despite a poorly balanced recording, this set will be welcomed by fans of Wolf-Ferrari and those with a curiosity about this work. Conductor Friedrich Haider keeps excitement high, even when the plot walks away and is merely commented on by every Tomasso, Riccardo, and Enrico in Naples. The tension remains high despite an inherent inability to care about the slutty, confused Maliella, the insane Gennaro, or the nasty Rafaele.

Natalia Ushakova's cutting-edge top and darkish, Tosca-like tone is just right for Maliella, and she chews up the text, smolders, and soars over the orchestra. It's a big sing and Ushakova impresses. Tenor Kyungho Kim sings steadily and is well able to express Gennaro's one dimension; his final, loony scene in front of the Madonna is finely played. The role of Rafaele really needs a steadier—and darker—baritone than Daniel Capkovic possesses. He's a nastier guy than Alfio in Cavalleria, but Capkovic sings without much authority or menace. Susanne Bernhard is a voice of reason and niceness as Carmela, Gennaro's mother, in their one duet. You'll know if you need this.

An unnecessary review, I'm tempted to say. The music's far better than that. Wonder whether Mr Levine's ever experienced it live?

I attended a Freiburg performance a few days ago, and I must say I was impressed by the quality of the work, as well as that of the cast and overall performance.  Really looking forward to the CPO recording in a few months from today.

The cpo recording's now out, of course.

Apologies: it's the Naxos that's out.

QuoteThe cpo recording's now out, of course.

Strange, Alan, I can't find it anywhere on their homepage!

Eccola:
https://www.jpc.de/jpcng/classic/detail/-/art/wolf-ferrari-i-gioielli-madon/hnum/2826384 (https://www.jpc.de/jpcng/classic/detail/-/art/wolf-ferrari-i-gioielli-madon/hnum/2826384)

Sorry: this is the Naxos recording!

That's what I suspected you meant, Alan, but it's not the CPO recording mentioned above! That would be breaking all world records for them to issue CDs so quickly after the performances.

My fault - I meant the Naxos recording, of course. Apologies. The cpo's not out yet.

Having had the download for a few weeks, I at last settled down to listen to it last night and what a terrific listen it turned out to be. The music itself is really vibrant, and powerfully conveys the ever-changing atmosphere of the work, brimming over with colour and melody. The plot of course is, to use that infamous description of Tosca, "a shabbly little shocker" and Robert Levine's characterisation of the principals in his review as "slutty, confused Maliella, the insane Gennaro, or the nasty Rafaele" is about right, but it makes for great verismo opera and Wolf-Ferrari holds nothing back. I loved it. Like Alan, I thought both the recording and the performances more than adequate, although I again agree with Levine that Daniel Capkovic is nowhere near as villainously snarling as he should be as Rafaele, the local mafia head. All in all though, this is a good recording of a hugely entertaining opera. My only criticism is the lack of a libretto, although the booklet does give a very thorough track by track description of the action. Thoroughly recommended.   

I suspect the cpo recording will trump the Naxos...

Maybe so. If so, it'll be fine to have good, and an even better, recording of this very enjoyable opera.