Classical reviews: Donizetti and Beethoven

Donizetti’s ‘Il Paria’ is performed beautifully by Opera Rara, while pianist Imogen Cooper’s CD reinforces her position as one of the most judicious Beethovenists in the world

Sir Mark Elder conducts Donizetti’s ‘Il Paria’  (Rex Features)

Donizetti: Il Paria

Sir Mark Elder, conductor

Opera Rara ORC60

★ ★ ★ ★★

Under their conductor Mark Elder, Opera Rara continue to break new ground by exhuming forgotten classics. And this Donizetti opera was forgotten almost from the start: it premiered in Naples in 1829 to an audience who were not allowed to applaud until the King himself had done so, and as his response was tepid, so was theirs. Audiences liked an upbeat ending, and this work ended in tragedy. 

But the composer himself knew it was both mould-breaking and beautiful, and he included fragments of the score in subsequent operas, and he was inspired by the unfamiliar subject matter. Set in 16th-century India, and dealing with the clash between religious fanaticism and romantic love, the plot concerned the love of Neala, a priestess in the cult of the sun, for Idamore, the leader of the army who is also a member of the detested Pariah caste. The musical plotting is deft and persuasive, and in this recording is exceptionally well sung. Albina Shagimuratova’s Neala is delicately nuanced, with René Barbera making a sweetly graceful Idamore.

Imogen Cooper Plays Beethoven

Diabelli Variations, Bagatelles, Op. 119, Für Elise

Imogen Cooper, piano

Chandos CHAN 20085

★ ★ ★ ★★

Imogen Cooper is emerging as one of the most judicious Beethovenists in the world, and this excellent CD reinforces the message. Look at the autograph manuscript for Beethoven’s Diabelli Variations and you will see, visually reflected, all the emotions he experienced during its composition. Some are written out in a calm, almost calligraphic hand, while others are covered in frantic crossings-out; when he came to Variation 32 he clearly knocked over his ink bottle. And pianists bring their own emotions to bear.

Cooper describes the work as “a wonderful journey… I am instantly in a good mood when practising or performing this piece”. And that is what overwhelmingly comes over in her superb recording. Für Elise comes like a thoughtful coda; in the Opus 119 Bagatelles with which this recording begins, a tenderly ruminative charm alternates with a relishing of the sheer enigma of these tiny masterpieces.