Berlioz - La Damnation de Faust / Cambreling, Kasarova, Groves, White, Salzburger Festspiele

Make that "singing French", though tenor Paul Grove's pronunciation of français is the weakest part of his excellent vocal technique. But there's something culturally implausible about a French Faust, as there would be about a German Cyrano or an Italian Peer Gynt. None of the several French and Italian operas based on Goethe's "Faust" make much effort to portray the title character as the Promethean hero pursuing transcendental knowledge; instead he's merely a narcissistic fool and seducer, doomed to perdition for his one moment of bad conscience, while Margarethe achieves salvation by the innocent fidelity of her love. That's the outcome of Berlioz's semi-opera 'La Damnation de Faust". For a professed atheist, Berlioz celebrates Margarethe's redemption in solemn Marian Catholic fashion!But coherence was not the forte of Hector Berlioz ( 1803-1869), either as a librettist or as a composer, nor was it his objective. Ecstasy was. Consuming passion was. The score of The damnation of Faust is an inchoate phantasmagoria, more an orchestral/choral poem than a drama for the stage, a melange of symphonic overtures, Goliardic drinking songs, marches, village dances, Latin prayers and satanic chants in an incomprehensible language. It's also very exciting music. The duet between Faust and Margarethe in the third scene is luscious, and Margarethe's lovelorn solo in the fourth scene is exquisite. Paul Grove sings Faust as well, I think, as the role could possibly be sung, and Vessalina Kasarova soars musically in the role of Margarethe. Basso Willard White doesn't quite reach their level vocally, but his devilish demeanor and demonic stage presence carries the water emotionally for the whole production.Berlioz reportedly shaped most of the libretto himself, drawing from the French translation of Goethe by Gerard de Nerval. It does the music little justice. I'd wager that if a listener didn't know the Goethean tale of Faust fairly well, he/she would have not the slightest idea what was happening on stage. Even for those who know the legend, or the poetic drama in German by Goethe, or the play in English by Kit Marlowe will find this libretto flimsy and reductionist. Of course, as in many great and famous operas, it's only the music that matters.Coherence takes a serious hit, however, in the staging at the Salzburger Festspiele, recorded on this DVD. An almost fatal hit. I nearly shut the whole thing down in the first scene, I was so far from 'engaged' by the sets and dramaturgy. It seemed painfully clear that the 'narrative' being enacted had no connection whatever to the words being sung. In fact, I paused the DVD and read the synopsis in the notes ... and found myself utterly confounded! The 'plot' of the synopsis explicitly reconstructed the Faust legend as a kind of cocktail shaking of souls! And even so, I couldn't honestly find much congruence between the actions on stage and the symbolic excesses of the synopsis. The production, in short is truly wretched, a whole lot of pretentious 'son et lumiere' of the sort even American tourists would gag at. And yet.......and yet, as one previous reviewer has already stated, "it grew on me". Or rather, I grew inured to its banality and let myself enjoy the superb singing and the eccentric brilliance of the music. Would a CD be just as good? Perhaps. It would depend on your attention span.

My husband and I have watched this DVD several times, with each viewing increasing our understanding of Berlioz' moving and powerful work. We were preparing ourselves to see "The Damnation of Faust" presented by the San Francisco Symphony, which also featured the wonderful baritone Willard White as Mephistopheles. The set was outstanding, spare yet beautiful; the gleaming tower and stark wall form the perfect backdrop for the chorus and soloists. I am so glad to find this for sale, as we borrowed it from the library. Now it will be part of our own collection. I recommend it wholeheartedly!

Berlioz's Masterpiece is -unfortunately- neglected by the big opera houses world wide. That is too bad. In my opinion its musical and dramatic content is on par with any of the composer's -more popular- contemporaries. I found this production absolutely fascinating and enjoyable. Great voices, acting and what an artful staging!! I recommend this DVD to every opera lover.George

There is a word currently used in the world of opera, Eurotrash, which means an absurd "concept" staging of an opera in which symbolism runs riot, all too often at the expense of the drama and of the acting, let alone the singing. At first, I said Here We Go Again when I began to view the Arthaus Musik DVD edition of Berlioz' <La Damnation de Faust> (10011 018), giving us the 1999 Saltzburger Festspiele production. First all the negative elements. The stage contains a gigantic transparent cylinder in and around which most of the action takes place. The backdrop consists of three tiers of arches. The chorus is dressed throughout in loose fitting white outfits that make them look like bakers and they are forever carrying on their backs what looks like the old fashioned milk containers used on dairy farms. (They are supposed to be the holders of man's psyches, you learn if you read the notes.) Faust is similarly dressed but little by little, he keeps replacing his garments with black pieces identical to Mephisto's. (The two sides of man's personality, you see.) Marguerite has to settle for the same black evening gown throughout. (She has always been devilish? With such symbolism, who can tell?) The peasants who should be dancing on the green, according to what they themselves are singing, are wearing smoked glasses to see an eclipse of the sun, while later a small group is kicking around a soccer ball to show jollity. During the Hungarian March, we have the same whiteclad chorus forming a procession with those milk jugs, during the Ballet of the Sylphs, we have Mephisto slowly crossing the stage and not a dancer in sight, and during the Ballet of the Will-o'-the-Wisps we have those same jugs acting as flashlights but again no dancing. The result of all this is that we lose any feeling that these are real people (even the Devil should come over as a personality and not a symbol), much to the detriment of the drama. The subtitles often play free and loose with the French text, usually elaborating a simple French phrase into something more poetical, now and then introducing a slang word like "savvy" (for "style de savant"). And one has to wince when the gray haired Mephisto (Willard White, a black singer) iss described by the chorus as pale and red haired. The opening and closing titles indicate that this video should be shown with letterbox formatting. Also, the booklet's numbering of the tracks is one less than your player will show on the readout. Now for the good aspects. Computer-generated images are often projected onto the cylinder to stunning visual effect. We actually see horses during the Ride to Hell sequence (although Faust and Mephisto remain stationary. Faust's fall into the abyss looks quite real, although I wonder what the audience saw from their seats. Marguerite's song about the King of Thule and his goblet seems to take place inside an immense goblet that dissolves at the end of the song, again to great effect. The singing was first rate, if the acting was not. Paul Groves' voice was just right for both Faust's lyrical moments and his dramatic ones. Willard White was a very imposing looking Mephisto and managed to be appropriately mocking in his serenade. His voice was almost drowned out only in the Hell sequence in which the orchestra was too loud for a good balance. Vesselina Kasarova sang a sympathetic Marguerite and really tried acting during her two great solos, only to be defeated by having to sing from the cylinder. The close-ups unkindly accentuated the perspiration in which all three were bathed. The singing of the chorus was mostly very good, considering they were not allowed to move while vocalizing, and only during the first part of the Easter Hymn were they almost inaudible. Sylvian Cambreling lead his Staatskapelle Berlin with energy and now and then with the delicate nuance that this score demands. It is, after all, the only "Damnation" on video; but I hope some day for a more traditional treatment.

I have to admit that this is the first time I have watched a performance of Berlioz, and although we all know The March To The Scaffold, the rest was entirely new to me. I have been to this theatre, and its huge size warrants big productions. The three main roles were sung by exceptional soloists, and Kasarova exhibited such depth and intensity at times, and such contrasts of light and dark in her voice. I knew that Willard White would be excellent as he brings such class to a role. But Paul Groves was also excellent. The innovative staging added another dimension to the production, and I always admire the imagination of all those concerned. The huge male choir reminded me of Welsh male voice choirs, with a blend of harmony, emotion and power. I might watch it again some time in the future, but would also like to watch a different version for comparison.One last point. We all have our opinions and preferences regarding our tastes, but I do object to being told what I should or shouldn’t watch. Personally I thought that this version was inspiring.

Il voto massimo è dovuto innanzitutto alla stupefacente musica rappresentata in forma di concerto nel 1846, mentre la prima rappresentazione teatrale è avvenuta a Montecarlo nel 1893. In questa edizione viene presentata l'esecuzione in forma scenica avvenuta nel 1999 al Salburger Festpiele diretta magistralmente da Sylvain Cambreling e con la fantasmagorica scenografia della Fura dels Baus (Alex Olle e Carlos Padrissa). La scenografia proietta l'opera in un'atmosfera metafisica cui contribuiscono non poco il gioco delle luci, la coreografia e le performances musicali e teatrali dei personaggi (Faust, Margherita, Mefistofele). Un DVD eccezionale per una musica che non smette mai di stupire e per un'opera il cui tema è terribilmente attuale e intramontabile.

J'ai découvert l'équipe de la Fura dels Baus avec son extraordinaire Ring de Valencia, que j'ai commenté pour, je l'espère, partager mon enthousiasme avec d'éventuels lecteurs.Ensuite je me suis procuré leur vision des Troyens de Berlioz qui, à mon sens fut traitée avec beaucoup de sévérité par nos amis amazoniens et amazoniennes.Maintenant, du même auteur « la damnation » .Un nouveau choc.Cette équipe de la Fura est vraiment habitée par les partitions qu'elle aborde et sait avec ce grain de folie qui la caractérise sublimer ce qu'elle touche, tout en gardant scrupuleusement la vision de l'auteur.Avec elle pas de dérives déjantés qui trahissent l'oeuvre : style du Lohengrin de Jones, entre autres !Quand cette merveilleuse équipe s'empare d'une oeuvre elle la prend à bras le corps, puisant dans les sources lus plus intimes de la partitionJe pense qu'elle s'est penchée avec beaucoup d'intérêts dans l'oeuvre de Goethe, en particulier sur l'aspect symbolique et ésotérique qui nourrit son Faust.D'où la présence sur scène de cette immense colonne, de verre, qui n'est autre, à mon sens, qu'un gigantesque athanor,.C'est lui qui va cristalliser toutes les métamorphoses, les transformations des personnages.Dans cet athanor Faust va déverser tous les actes de sa vie passée,engendrant ainsi l'apparition de son ombre, chère à Jung, qui s'incarne dans le personnage de Méphistophélès.Puis va apparaître l'anima de Faust ; Marguerite son côté féminin.Goethe et Jung et la Fura, même analyse : choc du temps, pérennité de la penséeNous pourrions multiplier les exemples qui alimentent cette interprétation.Indépendamment de cette approche ésotérique à laquelle beaucoup ne souscriront pas ; et qui n'est peut être qu'un mauvaise interprétation de ma part, je voudrais souligner la beauté et la grandeur ce cette vision.Les interprètes sont excellents !Tout d'abord Paul Groves qui distille avec une grande élégance les méandres de cette partition, reconnue par le grand Kaufmann comme très exigeante.Le Méphisto de Willard White, impressionnant à souhait, dont la voix et les gestes fascinent.Enfin la Marguerite de Vesselina Kasarova qui chante avec beaucoup de conviction et d'intelligence.Dans la fosse, conduisant la Staatskapelle Berlin, Sylvain Cambreling : Parfait dans cette partition, maîtrisant avec brio les fusées et les extases du grand Hector.Un mot encore sur l'excellente qualité des images en 16/9 et sur le son 5/1.Un vrai régal pour les yeux et les oreilles, avec au passage une pointe de métaphysique. Pourquoi pas ?

Dies ist eine Padrissa-Inszenierung mit La Fura dels Baus, die Opern-Geschichte machen wird. Ein elementares, großartiges Schauspiel in der Felsenreitschule Salzburg, was die optisch opulente, spektakuläre aber nicht vordergründige Präsenz anbelangt. Das interpretatorische Konzept muß man allerdings vorher zwingend lesen, um mit diesem Meisterwerk umzugehen. Sängerisch ganz herausragend besetzt in allen Schlüsselrollen mit hervorragendem Chor. Paul Groves als Faust sehr überzeugend auch in der heiklen Höhenlage. Andreas Macca ist ein überzeugender Brander. Willard White ist als Mephisto, ein stimmliches und schauspielerischer Ereignis, substanzvoll bass-bariton-timbriert , in einigen Szenen einfach umwerfend. Seine Mephisto Serenade ist grandios gestaltet und gesungen. Die Marguerite von Vesselina Kasarova ebenfalls klangsinnlich subtil,nuanciert, cremig mezzolike, eine Traumstimme mit einem ergreifenden Rollenporträt. Ihre Romanze gehört zu den interpretatorischen Sternstunden der Oper. Die Staatskapelle Berlin unter Sylvain Cambreling sowie Chor und Tölzer Knabenchor runden das Ganze mit einer intensiv klangfarbensubtilen Leistung. Insgesamt ein Meisterwerk, das man sehen muß wobei allein die Mephisto Serenade und die Romanze der Marguerite ein Grund wären, hier zu investieren, in eine Sternstunde der Oper.

The Opera begins with beautiful lyrical harmonies, and Paul Groves, Tenor, matches this with a smooth and haunting voice as Faust. Berlioz is said to have composed with a lightness and instinct which was not customary during 1844 and 1845. He developed it from earlier concert pieces he composed after being impressed by the works of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe published in 1828.Goethe, like Sigmund Freud later, explored the concept of the Human Psyche as having various facets. Hence Faust has a Dark or shadow side, a Feminine side, a mind a body and a soul.In this dramatisation Mephistopheles, sometimes interpreted as the Devil, is Faust's own Shadow, here portrayed very powefully by Bass/Barritone Willard White.Marguerite as well as an object of desire, is also the Woman inside himself, and sometimes interpreted as his fragile soul, played and sung beautifully by Vesselina Kasarova.The character of Brander in the Tavern scenes can be interpreted as part of Faust's Rational or impartial mind, sung by Andreas Macco.Berlioz, Almire Gandonniere, and Gerard De Nerval wrote a libretto with a lot more scenes in addition to the concept of Goethe's philosophy.The single set representing a modern city and factory with a central curved tower, somewhere in Hungary and Northern Germany, is very effective. With special film effects it becomes a red hot furnace, or Hell, and at one point features a larger than life image of conductor Sylvain Cambreling. Through this also is visible the total Eclipse of the Sun under which auspice a lot of the ritual and symbolic action takes place. The multi storey factory initially produces new people, so the chorus all wear white one piece protective overalls and this concept is on a par with industrialisation, and the Vorticist Movement in Art, where men and machines become one.In this staging by Alex Olle, Carlos Padrissa, (La Fura dels Baus) Heinrich Brunke and Jaume Plensa, - Mephistopheles, Faust and Marguerite are smelted into a new person, and there is a short Epilogue in Heaven, or a return to innocence, when the people celebrate the return of the Sun after the Eclipse.Whatever the Philosophy, the Staatskapelle Berlin, play a beautifull, dramatic, and lyrical realisation of the work lasting about 146 minutes, at the Salzburger Festpiele. The picture(16.9) and sound quality (pcm or 5.1)is excellent, and there is a 28 page booklet, and a choice of subtitles, with this impressive one disc set. Absolute Perfection.