Hi-Fi News Album Choice

“…In the title role, Amanda Majeski is an ideal Janácek heroine, vulnerable and resilient, astonishingly radiant in her top register … everyone is cast to wring the last drop of feeling from the piece. Rattle’s direction brings revelatory focus to the Czech-verismo idiom …”

“… The interplay between orchestral phrases and the sung text has the feeling of a subconscious dialog, and he [Rattle] guides the score with such restrained lyricism that moments of high drama (the menacing chords that end Act I, the eruption of romantic passion that caps, Act II) are all the more powerful by contrast. Rattle finds yet another tone, intense and sharply rhythmic, for the Act III storm, a metaphor for Katya’s inner turmoil that drives her to a public confession…”

Performance *****      Recording *****

“… Rattle and his recoding engineers have produced a Katya that sounds magnificent both in its attention to detail and in those sudden orchestral climaxes that seem to sweep nature itself into the concert hall…”

Editor’s Recommendation

Interpretation *****      Sound Quality ****    Repertoire Value *****      Booklet ****

“…Rattle's interpretation of 'Kát'a Kabanová' is brutally beautiful and convincing across the board. He is supported by a first-class ensemble, a brilliant orchestra and the two SACDs leave nothing to be desired in terms of sound. What more could you want?”

“A good cast and excellent sound …”

“… Accorded magnificent sound, this recording of Katya Kabanova, one of the composer’s most distinctive pieces, becomes nigh definitive.”

***** 

“… Here now is a compelling account whose performers have clearly considered Janácek’s conception as a whole and brought us a recording to live with because it brings out the essence, subtleties and beauty of Janácek’s operatic genius.”

Editor’s Choice – April 2024

“Bristling with passion and pathos, Rattle delivers the finest of Kát’as …Realistically caught and beautifully engineered, this gorgeous new Kat’a is a clear first-choice for this most subtle of operas.” *****

"...Rattle is absolutely on fire, drawing from his singers and players musicianship of incredible subtlety and force ... A triumph." ***** 

Recording of the Month

“… Rattle builds the tension gradually and cumulatively, though the yearning and menace characteristic of the performance as a whole are very much present in the string phrases and timpani motto heard at the start. The LSO are on tremendous form throughout, and what follows is an unflinching journey into both beauty and darkness, as sensuousness repeatedly collides with incipient violence

“…Simon Rattle’s conducting is full of tension and does justice to the score’s lyricism as well as its drama … Amanda Majeski sings the title role with a magnificent and richly luminous voice, wonderfully expressive… Katarina Dalayman’s portrayal of Kabanicha is oppressive, and Magdalena Kozena is convincing as the sensual Varvara. Simon O’Neill sings Boris with great intensity, and the other male roles are also superbly cast. This makes the opera an experience that will stay with the listener for a long time.” *****

Presto Recording of the Week

“…So much of this unsettling, comfortless drama is carried by the orchestra, and Rattle does a masterful job of conveying both the claustrophobia of the environment and the elemental forces of nature which combine to destroy Katya’s sanity. Majeski made for a riveting Katya at Covent Garden back in 2019, and if anything she’s even more compelling here: the voice has taken on extra weight and colour in the intervening four years, and she deploys it with the utmost emotional intelligence throughout…”

Performance *****      Sonics (Multichannel) ****½

“… In all aspects, this recording stands out as a vivid and compelling rendition of one of Janácek’s masterpieces. Devotees of the composer will find this performance a must-listen, capturing the essence of one of his finest operatic works. Recommended without reservation.”