Product Description Sir Georg Solti, the great Hungarian maestro, conducts Bartok's only opera with an all-Hungarian cast. This film version also features the London Philharmonic Orchestra and celebrated soprano Sylvia Sass as Judith. .com Béla Bartók’s sole opera, Bluebeard’s Castle, is a masterpiece well-served by an all-Hungarian cast and conductor in this filmed studio version. It’s a dark, brooding work peppered with dramatic moments; less a retelling of the Bluebeard legend than a journey into psychological depths and the impenetrability of the human soul. Bluebeard and his bride, Judith, arrive at his castle and as they enter the subterranean fortress whose walls sigh with tears, she notices seven locked doors and insists that Bluebeard give her the keys to unlock them. Reluctantly, he agrees. She opens the doors, one by one, to reveal a torture chamber, an armory, a room of treasures, a secret garden, his vast domains, a lake of tears, and, behind the seventh door, his former wives, frozen in immobility, whom she joins, consigned by Bluebeard to his past and his frozen soul. "All is darkness," he says, and the orchestra fades away in Stygian gloom. The third character in the opera is the orchestra, commenting upon and describing the scenes in Debussy-influenced colors and imaginative scoring. The orchestral sighs, its stabbing figures delineate the "blood motif" that runs through the work, and when Judith opens the fifth door that reveals the glories of Bluebeard’s kingdom, its radiant climax is one of modern opera’s most thrilling moments. Sir Georg Solti was a great Bartók conductor and his dynamic, idiomatic reading is a major asset of this production. His singers are excellent too. Sylvia Sass acts well as Judith, wheedling and imperiously demanding at turns, and if her top notes are shrill at times, her rich lower register more than compensates. She’s costumed in a flowing mauve nightgown fringed in a darker purple, giving the impression of a bird in flight when she moves. Bass Kolos Kováts is a commanding Bluebeard, deep of voice, noble in demeanor, though somewhat stolid as an actor. He’s costumed in an outfit more fitting for a B movie about alien planets, with a campy black leather outfit, a high collar framing his head. Set designer Gábor Bachmann’s gloomy castle is well portrayed. He lets us enter each of the secret rooms with variable results; the shining treasury and the garden come off well, the vast kingdom is anything but vast or even impressive. Director Miklós Szinetár does what he can to introduce movement to an inherently static opera, and having Sass portray all three of Bluebeard’s former wives in the final scene is a neat touch. The prerecorded sound mix favors the singers to the detriment of orchestral detail, though enough shines through to leave us in awe at both Bartók’s genius and Solti’s mastery. --Dan Davis Bluebeard’s Castle, is in 4:3 ratio. Sound options include PCM Stereo and DTS 5.1 Surround. Sung in Hungarian with subtitles in English, French, German, Spanish, and Chinese. No extras are included.
M**N
Blood in the shadows, the soul's secret doors
Bela Bartok's masterful one-act nacht-oper, based on the original Barbe-Bleue story by Charles Perrault (1697), composed between February and September 1911 and finally performed at the Royal Opera House in Budapest 24 May 1918 with a substantially revised finale, was his only opera. There were further alterations of the vocal score in 1921 and still further adjustments to the score's vocal declamation during the 1930s. It represents, in its electric novelty, a forceful new creation in Hungarian opera: avante-garde in comparison to Bartok's contemporaries Puccini and Strauss, heavily influenced by Debussy, the symbolist drama features a superb libretto by Bela Balazs that exposes the blood-soaked, brooding essence of an aesthete and murderer, rumored to have killed his previous young wives in grisly fashion.Their bodies as yet undiscovered, new wife Judith is determined to enter the castle's seven sealed doors, forbidden her by Bluebeard, in an attempt to resolve her doubts and solve the mystery. The dark-enshrouded castle, its damp walls weeping moisture like tears of sorrow in the gloom, broods like Bluebeard's soul, resolved to guard his secrets. Judith, seeking the solace of more light, asks Bluebeard why the doors are bolted. When he responds that no one is to see what lies behind them, she pounds on the first of the seven bolted doors, a pitiable sigh echoing through the castle. Judith asks for the key and more sighs pierce the darkness as she turns the lock. One-by-one, the hidden secrets of the forbidden doors are revealed.Kolos Kovats is a Byronic Bluebeard, singing and acting the role with taste and style. The beautiful Sylvia Sass, dressed with ethereal delicacy in diaphanous flowing robes, wanders the castle fluttering her silk covered arms with bat-like grace. She is a vision of nobility, struggling for illumination where none is available without terrible cost. Her voice is lovely, with a dollop of mournful, fading strength as more of the dread castle is revealed. This is a studio production, the music and voices are well matched. Sir Georg Solti conducts the London Philharmonic with a blend of mystery and power. The sets, given the static nature of this 56 minute opera, are important to the opera's success and they are effective. The 1981 film is clear, the sound in PCM stereo and DTS 5.1 is full. This is a short disc, however, lasting only 56 minutes and with no extras. Some extras or even another short opera should have been added. This rarely performed opera makes us take what we can get, unfortunately.A strong, brooding performance coupled with the opera's rarity makes for a strong recommendation.Mike Birman
K**D
Spellbinding!
When I was at SF State I was the Bride of Noon, so I got to know this opera pretty well. Since it was done on the stage each door opened to a shaft of colored light. This is a brilliant production that could only be done on video. The effect of the castle is gloomy and foreboding. The rooms are light and colorful and yet they are sinister in their make-up foretelling of the bloodiness of Bluebeard's life.The principals are great and the singing is terrific. Sir Georg Solti's interpretation of Bartok's dark score is his usual best.I recommend this for opera lovers most highly.
T**A
An outstanding opera, outstanding performance.
This is an outstanding opera through the history of operas. It is amazing that the librettist Béla Balázs could come up with such an insight of a man's whole life when he was only 26 years old. Béla Bartók's music is also excellent. It is a pity that this great opera is not performed more frequently. Among the available DVDs (not many exist), this is by far the best performance and one should have it in one's collection. This is one of the handful operas I would be interested to produce myself. TKOhska
K**R
STUNNING!
This studio production of Bartok's only opera is about as close to perfection as one is likely to see. Solti brilliantly conducts the score, Sass (Judith) and Kovats (Bluebeard) sing and act from deep within their roles, the scenic design captures, and recreates for the audience, the meaning of the drama, while the director, Scinetar, draws together the components into an intense love song plumbing the nature of love, life and death. For 56 entrancing minutes one is spellbound by the beauty, the lust and the suspense. Bartok's music and Balasz's libretto meld seamlessly with the performance. All-in-all this should be in any opera collection.
A**R
Bartok's Castle
Great performance from everyone. Staging and sets were fantastic. Sound and video are not the best but considering the age, they'e more than adequate.
P**S
No subtitles which I personally would like. I have not seen this opera before
This was very interesting. No subtitles which I personally would like. I have not seen this opera before. Both characters were wonderful in their presentation.
D**Y
Bartok's Opera masterpiece
This is a cleverly staged television production of Bartok's Opera masterpiece. Bluebeard is wonderful but Judith is outclassed by most performers that you can get on a CD. Still, it is the only video available of this wonderful Opera and the production itself (not to mention Solti's steady direction) is very clever. Technically the production shows its age -- the sound is a bit shrill (we have gotten used to being spoiled with luscious sound on DVDs).
R**A
mixed feelings emerge
Bluebeard's Castle contains my favorite music by Bartok. But like many composers who really did not have a feel for opera, Bartok failed to make a stageworthy piece. It is tremendously static and film directors can come to grief trying to salvage works with similar problems. Obviously, lots of money was spent on the production but it doesn't really bring the piece to life in my opinion. Sass is a handsome woman with a naturally beautiful voice. Sad to say, she has technical problems in the higher register and the voice is not large enough to cut through the heavy orchestral textures. Kovatz is better with a fine ringing sound but he is as wooden as a tree. At least both performers are native to the language. Many big label recordings use major opera singers who cannot adequatly deal with the pronunciation of the language. There is a stunning simplicity and directness about the libretto to this opera and the english translation does not do it justice. But perhaps this is something that only a Hungarian would be sensitive to. All in all this opera is perhaps better appreciated as an aural experience letting one's own imagination fill in the visual aspect.Because I really enjoy great singing, I tend to shy away from opera films where one cannot see the singer really singing. But in this case there is not other option. Too bad.
G**S
An excellent performance
This is a really good presentation of Bella Bartok's opera. Well sung, very well conducted by Georg Solti, who is after all himself Hungarian and very well staged. It conveys the very sinister atmosphere of the work in a very dramatic way. I strongly recommend it for everyone, including skeptics about Bella Bartok's music.
I**S
Fantastic Fantasy
This is a fantastic opera in the true sense of the word. Bartoks music is as important as the libretto, setting the mood for each room. Let your ears linger on each note and phrase. Sass and Kovats seem custom made for the parts.The studio staging evokes the story in a way that a stage performance would find difficult.The picture and sound quality are brilliant. The booklet is glossy and pretty good with background notes, timings and an itemised synopsis.There is little more to say other than Bartok fans will probably appreciate this even if opera is not their forte.
C**L
Musically perfect but poor video
This does look and feel every inch the dated made for TV production that it is, but it is redeemed by the fantastic musical interpretation. I do admire the attempt to bring in the psychodrama element to screen, so there is an air of surreality to it, but also some dodgy lip-synching. I bought it as a video curiosity because I assumed the interpretation would be spot on given that it was conducted by Solti & I love the opera itself, but also wanted to have add to my opera dvd collection. I wasn't wrong about the interpretation, but I think I would prefer to find a newer production on DVD or BLURAY for repeated viewing, and for now stick to listening to the two sets I have on CD.
R**T
The two voices are excellent and blend well when the occasion demands
if you fancy watching an opera for a little under an hour then you can't go wrong with this one. The two voices are excellent and blend well when the occasion demands.
D**T
excellent performance.
A marvellous work; excellent performance....but I did find the set and direction rather dated: perhaps it is a piece that works best in the imagination!
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