Mozart: La Finta Giardiniera (mei, Harnoncourt)

Christopher Williams reviewed the conventional DVD version of this, along with a competing Salzburg Festival DG issue conducted by Ivor Bolton, in Fanfare 31:1. Williams found that this Harnoncourt performance on TDK offered “a fuller text, tighter ensemble, and more ‘traditional’ stagecraft,” but less dynamism in individual roles. Still, wrote Williams, “Harnoncourt delivers a lively and captivating performance, with that characteristic Harnoncourt ‘bite’ and penchant for surging hairpin dynamics.” The Harnoncourt “bite” is difficult to discern on the Blu-ray’s DTS-HD audio track, which softens the orchestral attacks and puts the singers at a great distance; they’ve got less volume to cut through the swimmy acoustics than in the closer, clearer PCM stereo version, which presents everyone to much better advantage. I agree with Williams that Christoph Strehl displays “a voice of spun (and occasionally crooning) gold,” but with the exception of Eva Mei, whose performance is notable for its balance of warmth with lightness and delicacy, the other singers fall a bit short of perfection. Liliana Nikiteanu lacks the stamina to carry her all the way through some phrases, and Rudolf Schasching can be a little coarse vocally. Furthermore, the cameras aren’t always pointing at the right character. Even so, it’s overall an enjoyable performance, for more details on which you should consult the earlier review.

Price: $47.98