Verdi: Otello – O’Neill, Finley, Schwanewilms, Clayton, Johnson, LSO Choir, LSO, Sir Colin Davis
Verdi retired from opera following the premiere of Aida in 1871 but was eventually persuaded by his publisher to work with the librettist Arrigo Boito. Turning to Shakespeare for inspiration, they collaborated on what would prove to be Verdi’s final two operas, Otello, premiered in 1887, and Falstaff. Otello marked a significant evolutionary development in Italian opera and is widely regarded as one of the great operatic masterpieces.
‘Colin Davis gets the LSO, in shattering form, to play chords like cannon shots. The two male leads are superb: Simon O’Neill is the most complete Otello since Domingo, and some of his grandest passages are deeply stirring; Gerald Finley’s debut as Iago is also a great reading – the most chilling I have ever heard.’
BBC Music
‘Gerald Finley gives a masterful account of the part [of Iago]… the chorus is exceptionally precise and expressive, the playing is alert and sensitive to drama and text.’
‘Editor’s Choice’, Gramophone
Please login to post a review
Reviews
Colin Davis’s conducting is nothing short of miraculous, with an attention to detail that pulls you into the music, which is superbly played by the LSO, yet with an overview of the whole that is full of insight and which, quite simply, is alive; and the London Symphony Chorus is on blistering form. Highly recommended.
Peter Reed
theclassicalsource.com - 17 November 2010
an insightful and revealing account The strong cast offers the virile tenor Simon O’Neill as Otello, the rich-voiced soprano Anne Schwanewilms as Desdemona and the compelling baritone Gerard Finley as an uncommonly intelligent Iago. In his lean, crackling performance Davis offers an alternative to the more typical approach of Verdi conductors who favor richer, darker orchestral textures and weightier voices for Otello and Iago. [The LSO] play brilliantly for him For devotees of the opera it will be a must.
The New York Times
A wonderful recording and a wonderful testament of and to this opera and performance. It must have been wonderful to be at the Barbican and thank God you can get it on CD. And it does sound fantastic - the dynamic range they’ve captured is tremendous.
BBC Radio 3 - CD Review
a spellbinding account, thanks to O’Niell, Anne Schwanewilms’s Desdemona and Gerald Finley’s Iago, but above all to Colin Davis’s warm, urgent but never forced interpretation.
The Observer
Davis’s electrifying conducting keeps the temperature high throughout this gripping performance, recorded live at the Barbican in 2009. SImon O’Neill makes a poerful and confident debut in the title role, well matched against Gerald Finley’s subtle and sneaky Iago a front runner in the field.
The Daily Telegraph
immensely powerful Unlike Domingo, O’Neill sings the repeated A flats of Dio mi potevi as Verdi demands and throughout his clarion tone is thrilling. But the heroes are Gerald Finley, a supremely malignant Iago, the superb orchestra and chorus, and Colin Davis, who makes the terror and pity in the opera almost unbearably vivid."
Sunday Times
Simon O’Neill is the most complete Otello sine Domingo Gerald Finley’s debut as Iago is also a great reading."
BBC Music Magazine
Editor’s Choice
"I find this Otello tremendously exciting. SImon O’Neill sings beautifully and grows in stature Gerald Finley gives a masterful account of the part."
Gramophone
Media Downloads
Whenever possible we provide a high resolution CD cover image and a PDF version of the CD booklet for you to download and keep. These are found in your history if purchased and once you have logged in.