Friday 15 April 2011

Tsar's Bride = the movie


Sobakin, Marfa, Dunyasha and Vanya Lykov are heading forth into what they think will be a glorious future.  But we know what really lies ahead. I'm still on a high from Rimsky-Korsakov The Tsar's Bride at the Royal Opera House tonight, Please read my REVIEW HERE   and playing the Mansourov recording from 1973 with Galina Vishnevskaya. But here is a clip from the 1983 film from the Bolshoi (Yuri Simonov conducts). Isn't it gorgeous- wide open spaces, Marfa's complexion so perfect it's like a baby. Now we see why the oprichniks are singing about Germany, where there are "tall mountains, big cities" and other exotic things. In Russia, what they knew were open plains, wide rivers and "the wind of freedom". Bomelius, the crooked chemist, "isn't one of us" sing the chorus. He's a German. Enjoy the film, it's beautifully made and the singing is good. It's available in the ROH shop, I just discovered. FULL REVIEW of the performance at the Royal Opera House to follow

1 comment:

Unknown said...

The voices have the intimacy and blend of a string quartet on the still waters. Thank you