Classical Music Forum banner

Regrets, regrets: biggest DVD mistakes

23K views 118 replies 36 participants last post by  Jeffrey Smith 
#1 ·
There are some DVDs that I really regret having purchased



Who needs a lacklustre badly-lit entirely predictable indifferently-sung version when you already have Ruggero Raimondi in a feathered hat striding round beautiful Palladian Villas in the Veneto, Simon Keenlyside shinning up walls and baring his chest, Bryn Terfel working his magic with nothing but an apple, and Thomas Hampson and his mysterious underwear models (nearly a mistake but at least not boring)?



Fine if you want to spend hours listening to a series of totally undistinguished ten minute da capo arias, bewildered by the story and watching a staging that reminds you so much of the snow queen's cave you have to get a warm rug to stop from chilling down too much. I've tried to watch it twice and each time lasted two hours before giving up. I think I'm an exception here though, judging from the Amazon reviews which were what made me buy it in the first place.



Karajan knows a lot less about directing than conducting, and this is obviously under-rehearsed. And they take curtain calls after EVERY SCENE! How are you supposed to suspend disbelief or keep track of what is going on in an already overburdened plot?



I've already banged on about this appalling production on other threads. If you must have it, put a blindfold on and listen to the wonderful singing. Or get a CD.



What was the set designer thinking of? The dining room of a Bournemouth boarding house has nothing to do with Alcina's magic island. I can almost smell the over-boiled cabbage. And several of the singers are so bad I remember having to fast-forward through their arias. Alice Coote is the only bright spot in this.
 
See less See more
5
#2 ·
Hey, you need to watch these things on YouTube before you buy them.
I rarely regret one of my purchases. I read reviews, look it up, watch clips of it...
Another thing I do, I rent them first from Netflix when they're available. If I really fall in love with the production, then I buy it.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Posie
#6 ·
Mamascarlatti - If I went through my collection I'm sure I'd find lots but this is my latest mistake.



Got it as I wanted a new production but didn't like it all. Marcelo Álvarez has a beautiful voice but physically wasn't a very convincing Riccardo. Ditto Violeta Urmana. Marco Vratogna started off tentatively but improved later on. If I'd shut my eyes I would've enjoyed it but that somehow defeats the object of a DVD...

(Subscribing to Metplayer is starting to seem a better option but my favourite charity shop wouldn't he happy)

Have bought a few golden oldies from Premiere Opera. Oh dear but you get what you pay for.
 
#8 ·


I hate the production, but I knew that I would before I bought it. Renée is great though and I buy each of her DVD's regardless of what goes on around her.



My biggest DVD mistake so far. I bought it because I like Langgaard's symphonies and because reviews were very positive. There's some good Strauss-like music in this opera, but I can't figure out what it's all about. I can make no sense of it whatsoever.



Solid production and a good performance, but......I wonder if anyone else here has a copy of this. Mine has really lousy sound quality.
 
#31 ·
I was going to mention this one. The performance is excellent, but the tape hiss is unacceptable. My biggest problem (besides over the top productions) with DVDs is usually production quality. I doubt a cd recording from '79 would be released with sound this bad. The Levine Tannhauser is also burdened by harsh sound quality and an audible prompter.
 
#16 ·
There are some DVDs that I really regret having purchased



Karajan knows a lot less about directing than conducting, and this is obviously under-rehearsed. And they take curtain calls after EVERY SCENE! How are you supposed to suspend disbelief or keep track of what is going on in an already overburdened plot?
I share the indifference for Karajan Il Travatore despite star studded cast...........but have you found any DVD version that is really good, I am having trouble with this opera and need 1 decent DVD version
 
#22 ·
I've got this version with Jose Cura and Dmitri Hovorostovsky.



I know Cura is an acquired taste and his voice is not exactly beautiful but I think he works fine as Manrico - he's very ardent and passionate. Dima makes a rather too attractive Luna so I'm not in the least objective about him. It's so long since I saw it that I can't really remember the women:D. The production is OK but I remember feeling uncomfortable when Azucena is arrested - lots of simulated rape. But that's probably realistic enough. They also have puzzlingly made a big feature of some weird ritual duelling cult.

I certainly prefer it to the Met one which is best heard not seen, and have no regrets whatsoever about having acquired it. But it's definitely idiosyncratic and would not be to everyone's taste.
 
#27 ·
But it's definitely idiosyncratic and would not be to everyone's taste.
Definitely. I found this one so incredibly bad, that I literally threw it in the garbage. No kidding, I did. And I love Il Trovatore, just couldn't stand this version. The orchestra was too slow, the acting was unconvincing, they managed to take the anvils out of the anvil chorus, and I didn't care for the singers either. This is the only case in my life of my throwing a DVD in the garbage can. The only reason I didn't include this one in my list of four mistakes was the fact that I didn't pay for it, I recorded it from TV.
 
#26 ·


Fine if you want to spend hours listening to a series of totally undistinguished ten minute da capo arias, bewildered by the story and watching a staging that reminds you so much of the snow queen's cave you have to get a warm rug to stop from chilling down too much. I've tried to watch it twice and each time lasted two hours before giving up. I think I'm an exception here though, judging from the Amazon reviews which were what made me buy it in the first place.
Was L'Olympiade that bad? I was planning to get that at some stage. Reviews have been positive, for a relatively less performed composer that Galuppi is. Might just buy a copy anyhow.

Agree about the Rinaldo above, as discussed earlier. Horrible.
 
#28 ·
Was L'Olympiade that bad? I was planning to get that at some stage. Reviews have been positive, for a relatively less performed composer that Galuppi is. Might just buy a copy anyhow.
.
The thing is that it wasn't really bad at all. In fact the singing was great. The music is totally undistinguished though - to me it pretty much sounded all the same. You might well enjoy it and I know others on this forum have. But I personally was bored stiff, and can't face the thought of ever watching it again.
 
#29 ·
EMI Wagner - Tannhauser

Stage director Jens-Daniel Herzog

Conductor Franz Welser-Möst

Landgraf Hermann Alfred Muff
Tannhäuser Peter Seiffert
Wolfram von Eschenbach Roman Trekel
Walther von der Vogelweide Jonas Kaufmann
Biterolf Rolf Haunstein
Heinrich der Schreiber Martin Zysset
Reinmar von Zweter Guido Götzen
Elisabeth Solveig Kringelborn
Venus Isabelle Kabatu
Ein junger Hirt Martina Janková

Edelknaben Kathrin Brunner, Sandra Kundert, Rebecca Rüegger, Katharina Gebauer

Chor und Orchester: Oper Zürich

Stage design: Bernhard Kleber
Costumes: Ann Poppel
Chorus master: Jürg Hämmerli & Ernst Raffelsberger

Filmed 2003

The camera work is awful. Spoiled it for me...
 
#30 ·
Hm, for Trovatore... I bought the (overpriced) ROH version and it's worth it, but only for Hvorostovsky's gorgeous Luna. Cura sings badly and acts like it was Cavalleria Rusticana. And smokes cigars. Where's the noble, elegant knight? Girls are ok vocally. Leonora behaves like a ****. There's a very good Ferrando - yes, the guy whom everyone forgets about! Here played by a fairly young, bald Icelander with a badass scar. This Ferrando is not the good old sidekick but pretty much Luna's bad spirit. Oh, and finally a Trovatore where at the end the camera focuses on Luna's reaction and not Azucena's "yay ur pwnd!!!1!!!11one!" squee. It's heartbreaking how Luna embraces dead Manrico.

The Karajan version would be very good if it wasn't for the curtain calls and the cuts. How dare he to cut precious Verdi music!

A great film is an old b&w version from the 50's, it has Del Monaco, Gencer, Bastianini and Barbieri. They sing like gods, chew scenery happily and make it all work. Yes, it's a crazy story, but it's so over-the-top OPERATIC and passionate!

I looked into the Met/Pavarotti version on youtube. No thanks. They spend most of the time standing like statues on a big staircase.

Also, there's another movie, perhaps from 76? Kabaivanska, Bonisolli, Zancanaro and a an unknown mezzo. Avoid it like plague unless you want a good laugh. No matter how good they sing, the acting is wooden, the tricks awful and Bonisolli's hair would make David Bowie jealous. And there's projected flames behind Azucena. It looks hilariously fake. Positive: Zancanaro is very young and has a beautiful voice. Also, Leonora just walks into Luna's room because no-one guards the castle. Favourite WTF: there's fishing nets in the gypsy camp scene. In the mountains, for Wotan's sake! I begin to think all opera film in this era had them. '76 Flying Dutchman was also full of fishnets but at least that was reasonable...

Now THAT Dutchman is another fun thing. I bought it for young, hot McIntyre. Bad lypsinc. No sight of the sea. Hollander wears all black leather (it's a traditional production apart from this). Senta jumps into the pool and gladly swims to the Hollander at the end, and they sink while kissing. It's LOL. Best part? Green-painted zombie crew of the Hollander. No, really. You have to watch to believe it.

Oh, and - while musically great - the '69 Grimes movie is also horribly directed (or rather un-directed). Sea? Forget it. You get a Fanciulla-style set, bad lighting, and absolutely nothing for the interludes. Apart from a Space Odyssey-style color/light mess that looks like the cameraman was on LSD. And the chorus grabs wooden rakes instead of pitchforks. Very menacing...
 
#32 ·


This was the first Poppea I ever saw. I knew Nerone was normally sung either by a woman or countertenor and I was curious to see my then favourite tenor Richard Croft in it. However after I've seen one Poppea production live and heard another with a great cast, this just falls short - plus I noticed there are scenes missing (like the whole prologue plus the relationship between the servant & maid whose names escape me), act 1 ends before it's supposed to according to the libretto, and there's not as much as a cough from the audience at any point which makes me suspect it's either filmed as a TV production without a live audience, or very badly edited. Patricia Schumann plays Poppea with no fire or sensuality about her and Jeffrey Gall sounds terrible as Ottone, more like a strained high tenor than a countertenor. Richard Croft is I think the best singer in the production but the rest....nah. Now I just wait for the version with Danielle DeNiese, Philippe Jaroussky and Max Emanuel Cencic to be released on DVD.:cool:
 
#34 ·
I've been very lucky so far and haven't come across any duds yet. I may have had some
quibbles with some of the director's staging ideas, but none was outrageous enough to ruin my enjoyment of the performances as a whole. My only wish is to see an awfull lot more of all kinds of operatic repertoire.

So far I've seen : Wagner. Die Meistersinger,Hamburg State opera,Leopold Ludwig,
Giorgio Tozzi.
Parsifal. The famous Hans-Jurgen Syberberg film .
Richard Strauss: Die Frau Ohne Schatten,Solti/VPO,Salzburg.
Mozart: Don Giovanni. The famous Joseph Losey film.
Donizetti:La Fille Du Regiment,Dessay,Florez,Covent Garden.
Dvorak: Rusalka. The Paris production with Renee.
Rossini: Guglielmo Tell,La Donna Del lago, Maometto Secondo, Muti,La Scala,
Le Comte Ory,Glyndebourne.
Verdi: From La Scala with Muti, I Vespri Siciliani, Attila.
Giovanna D'Arco, Chailly/Bologna.
Salieri: Falstaff. Schwetzingen festival. Don't underestimnate this composer !
Busoni: Doktor Faust. Zurich opera,Thomas Hampson.
Carl Nielsen: Maskarade. Royal opera,Copenhagen.
Debussy: Pelleas &Melisande, from Vienna with Dessay.
Janacek: From the House of the Dead. Boulez
The Makropulos Case. Anja Silja,Glyndebourne.
Prokofiev: War And Piece. Gergiev,Kirov opera.
Giovanni Pergolesi: Lo Frate Nammorato.Muti,La Scala.
Offenbach: La Belle Helene. Minkowski,Paris.
Berlioz:Les Troyens,Gardiner,Paris,Orchestre Revolutionaire&Romantique.
Massenet: Manon,Dessay,Barcelona. Werther, Marcelo Alvarez, Elena Garanca,
Vienna State opera. Thais, La Fenice,Venice ( has some nudity ,so not for the prudish).
Jean-Philippe Rameau: Zoroastre. Drottningholm.
Handel: Giulio Cesare, William Christie, Glyndebourne.
Mussorgsky: Khovanshina. Abbado,Ghiaurov, Vienna State opera.
Gluck: Iphigenie En Tauride. Zurich opera, William Christie.
Schubert: Fierrabras. Jonas Kauffmann, Zurich opera, Welser-Most,conducting.

I can recommend all of these.
 
#36 ·
This is a fictionalized story of the great Zarathustra of ancient Persia, known as Zoroaster by the Greeks, founder of the Zoroastrian religion which was dominant in ancient Persia before it was converted to Islam. It's the story of Zoroastre's struggle against the bad guys who are his enemies,and to win the love of an ancient Persian princess.
It's prime Rameau, and I recommend the DVD highly. William Christie also has an excellent CD of it on Erato,I believe,with his Les Arts Florissants.
 
#37 ·
This is a fictionalized story of the great Zarathustra of ancient Persia, known as Zoroaster by the Greeks, founder of the Zoroastrian religion which was dominant in ancient Persia before it was converted to Islam. It's the story of Zoroastre's struggle against the bad guys who are his enemies,and to win the love of an ancient Persian princess.
It's prime Rameau, and I recommend the DVD highly. William Christie also has an excellent CD of it on Erato,I believe,with his Les Arts Florissants.
Thanks, Superhorn, I have ordered it, and will post a review once I see it.
 
#42 ·


From the Saltzburg Festival. Sung in engish but the spoken parts are in German. A bit of a grating production as well, I couln'd even finish watching it.. However, for those interested there is nudity so it might appeal to someone.

The only other dvd of this semi-opera has the same language issue but in French. Given that there were so few English opera composers you would think that either the ROH,ENO or Glynbourne would have done more Purcell dvds.
 
#45 ·
Since I very much liked the other Purcell semi-opera (The Fairy Queen), I've been very curious about this DVD. Certainly the nudity aspect helps this boob-lover, I'm not ashamed to say. But now with your negative review of it, I'm hesitant. Would you elaborate more (or maybe comment on the other DVD in French), or would someone else who also saw it say something? I'm trying to decide if it is worth buying. Thanks.
 
#43 ·
I must say, that reading this thread makes me more & more skitty (pardon le mot) to buy a DVD. With regard to Rameau I've got

(This one is OK, I hope...)
but I'm more addicted to

Frans Brüggen plays Rameau with such a syncopated rhytm, that I am inclined to the conclusion: Sorry America, but Jazz came into this world thanks to Rameau and the windmachines of Les Boréades.
 
#44 ·
I must say, that reading this thread makes me more & more skitty (pardon le mot) to buy a DVD. With regard to Rameau I've got

(This one is OK, I hope...).
I love this DVD. I'm particularly fond of the moment when the Boreades suitors sweep in and mow down the field of wild flowers that the queen is standing in. It's such a vivid image.

but I'm more addicted to

Frans Brüggen plays Rameau with such a syncopated rhytm, that I am inclined to the conclusion: Sorry America, but Jazz came into this world thanks to Rameau and the windmachines of Les Boréades.
Rameau often sounds very modern. And he unfailingly makes me want to dance (even William Christie couldn't resist at the end of the Indes Galantes DVD)
 
#47 ·
I presume we don't need to be objective about this? I mean - there are DVDs I've wished I haven't bought which I know other people like, but which, for me, were a complete waste of cash. At any rate, that's the spirit in which I join in the game. Here are some of Elgarian's personal Dead Ducks:

The "Most crushing disappointment of all" Award goes to:



Here's one of Handel's greatest operas (and therefore one of the greatest of all operas), containing two of the most powerful arias ever written ('Scherza Infida' and 'Dopo Notte'). And this production goes down like a lead balloon. It's an anachronistic setting (naturally) but to no conceivable purpose. The sets are virtually colour-free zones (WHY?). Ann Hallenberg is totally inappropriate for the role of Ariodante and comes across as someone's worn-out middle-aged uncle. The singing is insipid and lifeless; the only character with any spark of life is Dalinda, and she's not on stage that much, sadly. I've yet to be able to summon the will power to watch this to the bitter (oh so bitter, in my case) end.

Next the "Nearly as bad as Ariodante" Award:



Once more we have a pointlessly anachronistic setting. Once more we have a production that is mostly black, white and grey - an attempt to simulate early film noir, perhaps? We're told the aim is to generate the feeling of 'the silent movie era'. (But how does that come to have anything at all to do with Handel's music, or the plot?) So we get melodrama that comes over as merely hammed-up bad acting, pointlessly exaggerated gesture, and grotesque facial expressions. Rodelinda runs through a whole gamut of expressions raging from anguish to desperation to despair, clearly yearning for the end of it all as much as I was.

I managed to get to the end by sheer determination. It was, I suppose, character-building; but it had the unfortunate side-effect of making me never want to see or hear Anna Caterina Antonacci and Andreas Scholl ever again. (And even that would be too soon).
 
#48 ·
I managed to get to the end by sheer determination. It was, I suppose, character-building; but it had the unfortunate side-effect of making me never want to see or hear Anna Caterina Antonacci and Andreas Scholl ever again. (And even that would be too soon).
But both Scholl and Antonacci sing very well here, Alan, wouldn't this be a redeeming quality?
 
#56 ·
I don't know, but I heard of a male parrot called Chest who sings Christmas carols. You just have to light a cigarette lighter under him between his legs, and he sings: "Chestnuts roasting on an open fire!"
 
#58 ·
Gold Mixed With Trash

This must take the prize.

Mozart, Zaide K.344 (1779), incomplete
Chaya Czernowin (born 1957), Adama

M. Erdmann · Lehtipuu · Reuter · Ainsley · Girolami · Frenkel · Windmüller · A. Fischer · Lorenger · Grawert
Mozarteum Orchester Salzburg
Österreichisches Ensemble für Neue Musik
Conductors: Ivor Bolton · Johannes Kalitzke
Staged by Claus Guth · Directed by Andreas Morell

From the Mozart M22 series.

Before Mozart wrote his great opera Idomeneo, his worked on Zaide, which sadly, he wrote only the first two acts (also lacking an overture). It contained many beautiful arias, including the well known "Ruhe sanft, mein holdes Leben" (Zaide).

Incomplete though it was, the Salzburg production decided to commission Chaya Czernowin (CC) on a modern abstract piece and mixed it in with Zaide, alternating between Mozart arias and CC's instrumental noise, and with a very avantgarde staging. The latter I could tolerate but this mixing of works was really unheard of in an opera, or any genre for that matter. CC's noise/music was clearly no Mozart by any stretch of the imagination, but the producers thought it must have been an artistic endeavour of the highest kind to bridge Mozart's Classicism with our times. But how wrong and how distasteful they were; nobody really cares for eating creme brulee at desert mixed with roast meat gravy.

The actual Mozart parts were nicely sung and performed, not with standing the staging. CC's music/noise was just that - utter noise, not a "note" worth remembering, total junk.

Avoid.

I have this copy, the entire M22 because it was a present for me. I have discovered the price paid, which was a cheap Aust$156 when the set got released here in late 2010. Not bad for the price (assume the Australian dollar on parity with the US dollar).

 
#59 ·
This must take the prize.

Mozart, Zaide K.344 (1779), incomplete
Chaya Czernowin (born 1957), Adama

M. Erdmann · Lehtipuu · Reuter · Ainsley · Girolami · Frenkel · Windmüller · A. Fischer · Lorenger · Grawert
Mozarteum Orchester Salzburg
Österreichisches Ensemble für Neue Musik
Conductors: Ivor Bolton · Johannes Kalitzke
Staged by Claus Guth · Directed by Andreas Morell

From the Mozart M22 series.

Before Mozart wrote his great opera Idomeneo, his worked on Zaide, which sadly, he wrote only the first two acts (also lacking an overture). It contained many beautiful arias, including the well known "Ruhe sanft, mein holdes Leben" (Zaide).

Incomplete though it was, the Salzburg production decided to commission Chaya Czernowin (CC) on a modern abstract piece and mixed it in with Zaide, alternating between Mozart arias and CC's instrumental noise, and with a very avantgarde staging. The latter I could tolerate but this mixing of works was really unheard of in an opera, or any genre for that matter. CC's noise/music was clearly no Mozart by any stretch of the imagination, but the producers thought it must have been an artistic endeavour of the highest kind to bridge Mozart's Classicism with our times. But how wrong and how distasteful they were; nobody really cares for eating creme brulee at desert mixed with roast meat gravy.

The actual Mozart parts were nicely sung and performed, not with standing the staging. CC's music/noise was just that - utter noise, not a "note" worth remembering, total junk.

Avoid.

I have this copy, the entire M22 because it was a present for me. I have discovered the price paid, which was a cheap Aust$156 when the set got released here in late 2010. Not bad for the price (assume the Australian dollar on parity with the US dollar).

Early buyers of the complete Mozart M22 opera boxset paid top dollar @ $500 in USA, but recently it was released again at much lower price @ $150 at Amazon USA........I sold mine after watching about 1/2 the boxset, only kept the M22 Magic Flute as stands alone opera

Alma and Herku have the M22 boxset...........
 
#62 · (Edited)
Going back to singing parrots: unfortunately, poor Menino is dead. His Queen of the night aria is amazing. I have a blue quacker parrot and he sings it too. Actually I think parrots love this Mozart aria. Mine also tries Una voce poco fa, in a personal, jazzy style. His best song though is Alouette, gentille allouette...Unfortunatelly, he is shy and sings only when he is down, inside his cage. And when he sees any camera, iP, he turns silent.
 
#65 ·
Going back to singing parrots: unfortunately, poor Menino is dead. His Queen of the night aria is amazing. I have a blue quacker parrot and he sings it too. Actually I think parrots love this Mozart aria. Mine also tries Una voce poco fa, in a personal, jazzy style. His best song though is Alouette, gentille allouette...Unfortunately, he is shy and sings only when he is down, inside his cage. And when he sees any camera, iP, he turns silent.
:lol:

I believe you!! :D
 
#66 ·
But I'd rather explore first the Mozart operas that I don't know yet, Nat.

Here you have the ones I know, so other than these, what do you recommend next?

Il Sogno di Scipione
Il Re Pastore
Idomeneo
Die Entführung aus dem Serail
Le nozze di Figaro
Così fan tutte
Don Giovanni
Die Zaurberflöte
La Finta Giardiniera
La Clemenza di Tito
 
#69 ·
Agree. There are some jewels in there.

Followed by one of the most beautiful (and period) staging of the whole series, Apollo et Hyacinthus, K38, written by the eleven year old boy. Mozart's first opera, and that says a hell of a lot.

 
#68 ·
OK, it will be the next one. But it's 1:30 AM here, and as much as I'm tempted to pop another one into the laptop (since I enjoyed so much Il Re Pastore, see my full review in the Mozart thread), I guess I'll have to sleep... long day of work tomorrow...

Oh well, I'd love to take a full week off from work and just watch opera DVD's/blu-rays non-stop.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top