Search - Henry Purcell, Nikolaus Harnoncourt, Barbara Bonney :: Purcell - The Fairy Queen / Bonney · von Magnus · McNair · L. Dale · Holl · Michaels-Moore · Harnoncourt

A voice teacher and early music fan

George Peabody | Planet Earth | 03/07/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"THE BEST OF THE THREE RECORDINGS ON THE MARKET! AND IF YOU ARE A MICHAEL CHANCE FAN THIS RECORDING HAS HIM SINGING MANY MORE SOLO PARTS THAN IN GARDINER'S VERSION OR THAT OF THE SIXTEEN!



"What have we left untry'd to please this Age, To bring it more in liking with the Stage? We sunk to Farce, and rose to Comedy; Gave you high Rants, and well-writ Tragedy." Thus says the beginning of the 'Prologue to The Fairy Queen (1693).The stage music of Henry Purcell is part of a colorful period in England's history. "The Fairy Queen" was first performed in the Queen's Theatre on May 2nd,1692.It is in five acts each consisting of several songs some sung by the groups and some as solos.



Purcell eschewed Shakespeare's words in favor of an anonymous libretto loosely based on the situations of Shakespeare's. It would be difficult to deduce plot or characterizations from the libretto alone and although the music is a continuous joy, it is an imaginative feat to think of this work as a convincing dramatic narrative today. The First Act consists of of fairies pinching and tormenting a drunken poet, while the Second Act meditates on the misunderstandings of the lost pair of lovers in Shakespeare's play and rhapsodises on night, sleep and mystery. The Third Act is a bucolic romp in which the drunken poet(Robert Holl, bass) chases after Mopsa (Michael Chance,countertenor) begging for a kiss from him/her; you name it. Act Four is a panorama of the seasons and Act Five is an inexplicable Chinese Pantomime. Most of the songs in this semi-opera have been much recorded by singers on solo albums,especially countertenors.



Nikolaus Harnoncourt has assembled the perfect group of singers for this opera. I have the English Opera DVD of The Fairy Queen and it is delightful filled with humor and dancing and singing, and is much fun to watch, especially after listening to the CD. It has just been reissued at a very reasonable price.



The line-up on this recording reads like a "who's who" in the world of voice: Bonney-soprano,von Magnus-soprano,McNair-soprano,Chance-countertenor,Laurance Dale-tenor, Robert Hole-bass and Michael Moore-bass. In addition, the Arnold Schoenberg Choir and the Concentus Wien "ripped" out the songs in a jovial and upbeat manner that is sure to delight all lovers of Purcell's music. Since there is no visual involved the singers were not tied down to specific characters which allowed them to sing what was best for their voice type.



Some of the songs often individually recorded by singers of this genre from this opera are: "Come all ye Songsters"-"One Charming Night"- "A Thousand Thousand Ways"-"Thrice Happy Lovers"-"Hark!the echoing air". Just a great listening treat!!!!!"