Marcella: Palazzo Ducale, Italy (Benzi) [DVD] [2009]

This work was completely unfamiliar to me when I took a chance on buying this new DVD on the strength of knowing the two more famous operas by Giordano, Andrea Chenier and Fedora. I'm very glad that I did because this opera is a delight. It is a relatively short work, running for just over an hour and I suspect that this is one of the main reasons that it is much less well known and much less frequently performed than the two operas mentioned above. Without an obvious partner work this one act piece has presumably been rather neglected, and the loss of the score and parts during the Second World War will not have helped its chances of performance. I am very glad, therefore, that the composer's manuscript was used to prepare this performance given in 2007 on the centenary of the first performance in Milan. It is a delightful work, with many lovely melodies. It is clearly influenced by Puccini, Mascagni and possibly Massenet and has many moments reminiscent of works by all of these great composers. The opening scene of Marcella has echoes of the Cafe Momus scene in Puccini's La Boheme and the lovely prelude to the final episode has considerable echoes of Massenet's Meditation from Thais and particularly of the Intermezzo from Cavalleria Rusticana by Mascagni. It would be a great partner piece for this latter opera were it not for the almost unbreakable association that now has with I Pagliacci. Marcella is not a derivative work, however, it has clear influences but it is very much a product of Giordano's genius and contains many lovely and noble melodies that clearly show it to be a work by the composer of both Fedora and Andrea Chenier. The opera then, although short and with a relatively simple story and staging, is excellent - a real find in my view. I keep wanting to hear it again, which is always a good sign. The reason this DVD loses one star is that this is clearly a provincial performance and there are obvious weaknesses in almost all aspects of the production. That having been said, this is a very creditable performance and provides a decent showcase for a neglected work that should be better known. There are some real strengths here too. The star is most certainly Serena Daolio in the title role. She is vocally excellent - her lovely aria just before the end of the opera is an obvious example but she is very strong throughout, the opera performance lifts from the moment she appears and she carries the show. The opera is largely a duologue between Marcella and Giorgio - here played by Danilo Formaggia. He is a strong singer and gives a very good performance, particularly in his middle register and in the more lyrical music. There are some very nice moments of duet with Marcella. The slight drawback is that his voice has a somewhat unpleasant edge on many occasions, particularly in the upper register and when the voice is under pressure in more dramatic or louder sections. He does, however, provide good support - if not much chemistry, for Marcella and in his own right does let some of Giordano's noble melodies flower effectively. The rest of the cast are adequate without being outstanding. The orchestra is largely very good although the strings are less than perfect in some places - notably the very last few bars of the opera. Indeed the performance ends less than ideally not only because of the strings but also because of a rather curious stomping off by Giorgio - the noise of his departure is entirely out of keeping with the delicate beauty of Giordano's closing bars. This appears to have something to do with the wooden boarding laid as part of the staging, but is unfortunate. Despite all of these relatively minor flaws, the performance succeeds because the music is so good. It is extremely fortunate that we have this modern recording of a work that would otherwise be known by very few people, which would be a pity because it is a beautiful and enjoyable work. The DVD is short for the list price but is very well recorded and filmed. One great bonus is that very little time is taken up by applause and mercifully there are none of the interruptions for extended applause in the middle of scenes which usually mar most live recordings of opera from Italy. Indeed there is virtually no audible sound from the audience at all except at the very end of each of the three episodes. The list price is rather high for such a short work, but there often seem to be good offers available on new copies, so if you can pick up a good deal, I would certainly recommend this DVD.

A chance to see a rare piece thought to have been lost. This is a short opera with enormous potential. However this production is poorly produced in fact one could say it was almost amateurish. The singing just about made it but Daolio's acting skills are dreadful. Still it is worth a try even if you only see it once.