Magical
gellio | San Francisco, CA | 03/31/2000
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Mazeppa is an opera often overlooked in the light of Eugene Onegin and Pique Dame- but some of Tchaikovsky's best music lies within Mazeppa's score.The finale of Mazeppa is absolutely one of the most beautiful and touching in all of opera. The whole score is full of musical fireworks but they come to a blarring hault in the final pages, making it utterly astounding. The plot has just boiled over. Everyone Maria loves is either gone or dead. Andrey (a friend who is in love with her) is lying wounded. Maria, who has gone crazy with despair, first thinks he is her dead father than a child asleep in the grass. Cradling the dying Andrey she softly and beautifully sings a sleep lullaby as the final notes come to a soft end. It's so beautiful.The Battle of Poltava is a great opening to ACT III! A bombastic symphonic piece that resembles the timeworn 1812 Overture, but is simply thrilling! Fans of Boris Godounov will recognize music from the Coronation Scene in The Battle of Poltava. No, Tchaikovsky did not steal Moussorgsky's music but rather both composers used 'Slava' a popular Russian folk song. Moussorgsky's is more powerful though- but that battle scene is thriling.Other favs of mine are Mazeppa's love aira to Maria, and of course all the chorus' and the prision and excecution scenes.I prefer this recording to the Deutsche Grammaphon recording. The chorus is without a doubt superior in this reading as it is a "Russian" chorus. As well I think this recording has the conducting and orchestral playing edge. Cast wise, I prefer Mazeppa here and have no preference for either Maria- they are both wonderful. I just prefer Russian opera to be done by a Russian conductor, cast, chorus, and company.This set fits in wonderfully with the other Kirov opera recordings.GOD BLESS GERGIEV and the KIROV for bringing us the wonderful Russian operas of Tchaikovsky, Moussorgsky, Prokofiev, and Rimsky-Korsakov....all operas so overlook (cept for Boris). KEEP THEM COMING!"
An Ignored Opera
D. A Wend | Buffalo Grove, IL USA | 01/07/2003
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I find it hard to understand why Mazeppa is not performed outside of Russia. The only operas of Tchaikovsky that have been embraced are Pique Dame and Eugene Onegin. Mazeppa has a lot going for it: the Girl's Chorus and the energetic Gopka in the first act, the Prison Scene and Finale in the second act and the Battle of Poltava at the start of the third. In addition, there is a lovely duet in the first act between Maria and Andrey, a nice monologue for Mazeppa in the second act, and a duet with Maria and in the third act, the death scene of Andrey. The story involves the historical figure Mazeppa, the hetman of the Cossacks during the reign of Peter the Great. Maria is the daughter of a nobleman named Kochubey, and has fallen in love with the seventy-year old hetman. She rejects the love of Andrey and goes off to live with Mazeppa. Kochubey discovers that Mazeppa plans to go over to the side of the Swedish King Charles XII. Kochubey informs the Tsar but is disbelieved and handed over to Mazeppa along with Iskra, a friend of Kochubey. Both men are subjected to torture (Act II, Scene I) and are executed at the end of Act II as Maria looks on, having been told by her mother of the treachery of Mazeppa. The Swedes are defeated by the Russians, and Andrey encounters the hetman, who shoots him. Maria appears, driven mad by watching her father's execution. Mazeppa is urged to flee and he leaves her behind. Maria sees Andrey but does not recognize him, taking him for the body of her father and then a child. She sings a lullaby as he dies. This is a live recording, and there is some stage noise that may be annoying to some people but I found that it adds to the drama. The audience applause is minimal and there is no coughing. The Kirov Orchestra is marvelous, and Valery Gergiev provides a vivid reading of the score. The singers are quite good although at time Irina Loskutova's voice sounds a bit strained. I highly recommend this opera to anyone interested in exploring Russian opera."
Wow!
Michael F. Burdick | Chino Valley, AZ, United States | 05/20/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)
"As a lifelong lover and student of Classical music I have always regarded Tchaikovsky as one of the all-time great composers (contary to the opinions of some "critics"). I have not spent a lot of time listening to operas, as I have been primarily interested in instrumental and piano music. But, recently I decided to begin exploring the realm of opera to see what I might have been missing.
With this opera, Mazeppa, I discovered that my opinion of Tchaikovsky as a great composer is at once confirmed! Not only is this opera well structured, it contains some of the most sophisticated, profound music that Tchaikovsky ever wrote. Harmonically and orchestrally, this opera looks forward, at times, to the music of Rachmaninoff and Prokofiev (and, even, Debussy!). On the other hand, the intimate partnership of the orchestra and voices is comparable to that observed in the late operas of Wagner.
As Tchaikovsky was a Russian, I am guessing that he was particularly comfortable writing this opera, with its Russian story, folk music influences, and typical Russian harmonies. Much of Tchaikovsky's musical output sounds more Germanic (with Beethoven as a model), French, or Italian, than Russian. But, that is NOT the case with Mazeppa, which is the most Russian sounding piece that I have ever heard by Tchaikovsky. It is a shame that he did not spend more time in his "Russian zone," as his greatness as a composer was so much more apparent when he did.
I will not offer a critique of the singing on this recording, as I am not familiar with the artists. Certainly, the entire opera is beautifully sung, played, and conducted. The only criticism that I have of this recording is that the orchestra is not allowed to finish its final notes (at the very end of Act III) before the audience begins applauding (nb., this is a LIVE performance). The famous ending, with its Russian lullabye, is SO beautiful that it is painful to hear the audience bursting in before the Debussy-like music is allowed to fade away.
If I had to place this opera among the great operas of all times, I would put it AHEAD of Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin and Pique Dame, because it is SO much more convincing and emotionally powerful than either of those two. In fact, I personally feel that Mazeppa belongs among the all-time great operas--comparable to Carmen, Faust, Otello, Romeo and Juliet (Gounod), Tosca, etc. I should point out, however, that I have a prejudice for Romantic and nationalistic music, which obviously skews my ranking of "great" operas."
Track Listings (14) - Disc #1