Andrea Chénier

Like all the productions from Austria's Bregenz Festival, Keith Warner's 2011 mounting of Umberto Giordano's 1896 verismo opera—a French Revolution drama in which a noblewoman chooses to go to the guillotine with her beloved titular poet rather than surrender herself to the revolutionary leader who might save him—is a spectacular mounting. The vast lakeside stage is dominated by a huge statue rising from the water modeled after David's famous painting of Marat dead in his bath; nearby opulently costumed characters scurry about on scaffolding and stairs, occasionally even falling into the lake as part of the action, creating an overall visually impressive effect. Ulf Schirmer leads the Vienna Symphony in a propulsive reading of the score, and tenor Héctor Sandoval as Chénier, soprano Norma Fantini as noblewoman Maddalena, and baritone Scott Hendricks as nemesis Gérard all deliver strong performances, with fine supporting work from Tania Kross as Maddalena's servant. Despite a couple of discordantly modernist interludes by David Blake and conspicuous head microphones on the soloists, this is an effective version of one of the better second-tier operas in the repertory. Presented in DTS 5.1 (DTS-HD 5.1 on the Blu-ray release) and PCM stereo, this is recommended. (F. Swietek)