Verdi: Ernani - Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino (2022) [Blu-ray]

Based on a play by Victor Hugo, Verdi’s Ernani was an immediate success, and as his most popular and frequently performed opera it became a cornerstone of his burgeoning reputation in the mid-1800s. Contemporary critics remarked that ‘coming out of the theatre, people were already singing [those] catchy tunes … Few scores have made a stronger, more powerful impression.’ Ernani is a dramatic and intensely memorable tale of rebellion and romance – the chilling presence of the man in black and the drama of a joyful wedding turned to intense tragedy remains one of Verdi’s most compelling operatic creations. This acclaimed production was the first to be staged at the Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino since 1965.

“A dazzling conduction, therefore, guided by an airy and precise gesture, attentive to details and to the quality of the sound, rich in images without ever falling into the imaginative, analytical in the concerted passages where one can notice the detail without however losing the whole…. … Ernani performed by Francesco Meli. Clear and robust voice, always sonorous, winged ability to color, shade, dexterity in transmitting what the interpretation commands.” – TOSCANAEVENTINEWS.IT

“On the musical level, there is the appreciation for the direction of James Conlon, with his always so well breathed and nobly romantic Verdi, who has had many appearances in Florence, and the good performance of the orchestra and choir.” – Giornale della musica.it

Recording place: Sala Zubin Mehta, Teatro del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, Florence, Italy
Recording date: 10 November 2022