Der Rosenkavalier

This is billed Carlos Kleiber, but the disc that was actually sent to me was by Semyon Bychkov from the Salzburg Festival. Nevertheless, an excellent live recording, wonderful singing. Only slight problem is the uninspired staging. The director doesn't seem to know what to do with the extremely wide Salzburg stage.

Some astonishingly good music in this recording, if you are patient. But even today not everyone will be excited by the story this opera tells.

Der Rosenkavalier has some of the most wonderful opera music though all the somewhat muddly bits when there are lots of people on the stage tend to rather go on. Its big problem is that it needs 4 soloists of considerable stature and this rarely happens. In this performance Felicity Lott was out of this world as the Marschellin. But the other three, though good, did not match her. The start and finish of the first act had me totally hooked, Felicity Lott was so moving. From then on it was pleasant but not in the same class until she appeared again at the end of the third act when she again moved me to tears. The music was always good but the in between bits with many on the stage seemed rather more muddly than usual. The two young lovers sang well but their acting never really grabbed me as sometimes it does, and I found the Baron a bit 2 dimensional. But still well worth 5 stars for Felicity Lott alone.

OK, you probably either like opera or you don't. If you don't I doubt this would persuade you otherwise.

No matter how much you detest the form, it would be hard not to be moved by the last 15 minutes of this, although you have to go a long long way to get there.

I am generally an opera fan, although I am only just exploring Richard Strauss and it isn't easy listening.

If you are a fan of this composer I would imagine you would find it hard to criticise the DVD, it is staged at the Vienna State Opera, no attempt has been made to ' film ' it, and there probably isn't the slightest reason to do so.

They have pointed the camera at the stage and let it happen.

I watched it twice, I enjoyed it, I will rent it again because I can't pretend to have got everything that I am sure is there. I will probably rent it again later and have another try.

I wouldn't choose to start exploring opera with this one though, Mozart, Rossini, Verdi or even our own dear Sir Arthur are probably much better places to start along with countless others.

That said, you have to be impressed with the production and all the values it incorporates.

If you want theatre in a big way, as opposed to Hollywood, it works.

My previous rental was -coincidentally -' Troy '. I struggled to find anything in that which was remotely positive, no problems with this on that account.

Gloriously sung and lovingly conducted. It is a traditional staging with no producer's 'contemporary interpretations'. Marvellous!