Mozart - Cosi fan Tutte / Dessi, Ziegler, Corbelli, Scarabelli, Kundlak, Desderi; Muti, La Scala Opera

In several of the scenes in Act Two, the conductor Muti, larger than life, is superimposed upon the stage action, in some cases completely blocking out the singers. I found this disconcerting, particularly distracting as the opera is ending. None of the reviewers have mentioned this; if I had known, I should never have purchased this DVD version of the opera. I have never seen such disrespect for the performers, nor such disregard for viewers like me who want to watch the performance, not the conductor.

Modern "Regietheater" productions can be fun, but I find they are never as satisfying in the long run as a well done traditional production. Salzburg's 2006 M22 complete Mozart opera set is available in Europe, and about to arrive here. Salzburg is a hot bed of radical productions that will confuse anyone not familiar with the opera as written. If you are not familiar with Mozart opera, and you want a production that goes by the book, a production that will not confuse you, this La Scala DVD is a great place to start.

First, It would be hard to find a better Fiordiligi than Dessi. She equals Sena Jurinac's 1950 recording of excerpts. Jurinac's Mozart singing was my gold standard until hearing Dessi and for the smaller roles, Hartelius.

Second, It is hard to imagine a better Despina than Scarabelli.

Everyone else is very good, which brings me to the conductor, Muti.
Cosi, more than other Mozart operas has a tendency to "stall out" due to extended legato phrasing. Even John Eliot Gardiner falls into the trap, turning in a performance that loses steam. Harnoncourt and Barenboim don't avoid the trap either in my opinion. Muti keeps the pulse of the music alive without any disruptive punchy accented notes.

The sound is not quite as dynamic as I would like in act one, but it is very good for it's time. It is far more dynamic than some much newer DVD. Any compression is subtle, but be sure to select wide range if your player has DRC (dynamic range control). There is no distortion audible on my studio monitor headphones. Vocal balance is excellent and consistant.

I have 3 of the current Cosi's but not on DVD. The previous negative reviews made me hesitate but the strong positives convinced me to gamble. I strongly agree with the positive reviews. Not only is it a very good production but it is at bargain cost!

This is a good but rather old-fashioned performance. The singers are all excellent, both individually and as an ensemble, and Riccardo Muti's conducting is, as usual, well paced and exciting. The sets and costumes are simple but gorgeous. Overall the impression is of beauty, refinement, and dignity: the libretto's farcical aspects are certainly not ignored (how could they be?), but the characters are played as real people with (mostly) believeable thoughts and feelings, not as the cardboard cutouts one so often encounters in broader interpretations of the piece.

With all these strengths, it's unfortunate that the staging is so dull. I'm not a fan of overly busy staging, or of movement for movement's sake, but in this case a bit more liveliness would have been welcome. The singers also sometimes go a little catatonic during their arias, in particular Daniela Dessi, who is otherwise a very fine Fiordiligi.

It is also worth bearing in mind that this production is from the 1980s. Muti's direction is admirably lean and free of excess romanticism, but in other respects the musical approach is pretty old-fashioned (for example, there places in the arias where Mozart clearly indicates a cadenza of some kind by placing a fermata over the entire bar instead of over just one note, but in this performance, as far as I could tell, all such spots are sung exactly as printed). Of course, depending on your attitude toward what we rather dubiously call "historical authenticity," you may find this a strength rather than a weakness. Personally I prefer a more historically informed approach, but the performance here is good enough on its own terms that I didn't mind too much.

All in all, this is solid but not exceptional: very well sung, expertly conducted, beautifully designed -- and unfortunately also a little dull. But if you're looking for a traditional, gimmick-free performance, you could do a lot worse.

Excellent audio recording, one of the best I've heard. Video also first quality. Unbeatable orchestra too.