Mirella Freni, Heinz Blankenburg, Gabriel Bacquier, Leyla Gencer, Edith Mathis & Carlo Cava
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra & The Glyndebourne Chorus, Silvio Varviso
Recorded live at Glyndebourne on 9 June 1962. A rare
recording of a Glyndebourne signature piece from the 1962 Festival with a vintage cast.
“It will surprise no-one who saw her Zerlina here last year or recently at Covent Garden that Miss Freni makes an enchanting Susanna, but Mr Blankenburg’s Figaro is new to English audiences and is entirely worthy of her, concealing a wealth of energy and passion beneath his chubby smile.” The Times, 1962
“Like Covent Garden, Glyndebourne is now delving into its rich archive of recordings, but these are in-house affairs, and the sound quality of this Figaro from 1962 is vastly superior to Covent Garden’s Don Giovanni under Solti from the same year. Two singers are common to both sets: the miraculous Mirella Freni, a Susanna in a thousand, and the recently deceased Turkish diva Leyla Gencer, as a grand Countess. It is the ensemble under Varviso’s inspired baton that counts here: one can only dream of a cast including Edith Mathis’s delicious Cherubino and Heinz Blankenburg’s feisty, resonant Figaro at Glyndebourne today. This production crackles with theatricality, and the orchestra is superb.” Sunday Times, 15th June 2008 ****
“A memorable night in the summer of 1962: it’s Glyndebourne at its best. As heard here, everything takes its place with a delightful combination of freshness and assurance.” Gramophone Magazine, July 2008
“Listening to this performance of Figaro, recorded 46 years ago, one feels that it is 'historic' but in almost no respect 'historical'. The sound is miraculously clear and full. The conducting of Silvio Varviso is a wonder of lucidity and grace… the cast is uniformly first-rate. No matter how many Figaros you have, this is an essential addition, with fresh insights bubbling to the surface every few moments.” BBC Music Magazine, July 2008 *****
