This release serves up a brilliant pairing of Christoph Willibald Gluck's two operas based on the Greek myths about Iphigenia, the daughter of King Agamemnon, as dramatized by Euripides. The earlier piece, Iphigénie en Aulide (1774), is about the struggle between her father and her fiancé, Achilles, over whether Iphigénie should be sacrificed—as demanded by the goddess Diana—so that the famed expedition to Troy can proceed. The second, which premiered five years later, deals with the dilemma Iphigenia faces when, as the high priestess of Diana, she's confronted by an order to execute her brother, Orestes, who has killed their mother, Clytemnestra. Musically, the 2011 performances from the Nederlandse Opera could hardly be improved upon: the orchestral work by the original-instrument group Les Musiciens du Louvre Grenoble is masterly, with conductor Marc Minkowski eliciting the scores' stateliness and vigor. The singing is equally splendid, with Véronique Gens and Mireille Delunsch both excellent as the younger and older Iphigenias and strong supporting vocalism from Frédéric Antoun (Achilles), Anne Sofie von Otter (Clytemnestra), Nicolas Testé (Agamemnon), and Jean-François Lapointe (Orestes). As is often the case, the staging—here directed by Pierre Audi—is not as pleasing. While the stark sets and modern costumes are tolerable, Audi resorts to what has become a cliché in contemporary productions—the employment of modern military equipment (a bomb belt for Iphigenia in the first opera, assault weapons brandished by soldiers in the second). Still, this remains a standout in other respects. Presented in DTS 5.1 (DTS-HD 5.1 on the Blu-ray release) and LPCM stereo, extras include cast galleries and behind-the-scenes featurettes. Highly recommended. (F. Swietek)
Iphigénie en Aulide/Iphigénie en Tauride
(2011) 229 min. In French w/English subtitles. DVD: 2 discs, $39.99; Blu-ray: $39.99. Opus Arte (dist. by Naxos of America). Volume 28, Issue 4
Iphigénie en Aulide/Iphigénie en Tauride
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