DVD – ZANDONAI Francesca da Rimini 

Riccardo ZANDONAI (1883 – 1944) Francesca da Rimini DVD video

 

Sara Jakubiak (Francesca), Jonathan Tetelman (Paolo),

Ivan Inverardi (Giovanni), Charles Workman (Malatestino dall’Occhio),

Deutsche Oper Berlin,

Carlo Rizzi conductor,

Christof Loy stage director

 

DVD Naxos, 2022  TT 140min

 

⁠Riccardo Zandonai’s Francesca da Rimini is a four-act opera set during the Renaissance period. The plot concerns an arranged marriage between Francesca and Giovanni, also known as Gianciotto, who is impersonated by his handsome brother Paolo, and with whom Francesca falls passionately in love. Sometimes referred to as the ‘Italian Tristan’, the opera ends in betrayal and a double murder. The production of this rarely performed opera from the Deutsche Oper Berlin proved to be a huge critical success.

 

⁠BBC Music Magazine April 2022: “The piece can certainly boast a fascinating score that reveals the composer’s extraordinary technical skills, with their combination of opulence and refined sensuality influenced by Debussy and Richard Strauss; here it finds an ideal interpreter in the shape of conductor Carlo Rizzi. 5 out of 5 stars

 

Gramophone Magazine May 2022: The whole thing is, I think, a great achievement. Do watch it.

 

Opera November 2022: Jakubiak is a true stage animal…The voice, though of a more Nordic quality than one normally hears in this repertoire, has no problems coping with Francesca’s wideranging vocal extremes…[Tetelman’s] strong voice, natural poise, impassioned delivery and sensitive dynamic shadings make him ideal in the part.