Gilfry probably the best Don Giovanni ever for acting, interpretation, vocal control and perfect Italian. He's not just into the part, here he becomes the part.
Rodney has so much better control than many other singers I've heard singing this; it's relaxing, soothing, and smooth as silk, while others bring too much vibrato so that things become too bumpy and overpowering. Liliana is great as well and has good chemistry and harmony
He's wonderful. Elegant singing and he so smoothly projects a predatory - actually Dracula-like quality...She's wonderful also - overcomes conventional scruples pretty fast and goes for it!
Rodney Gilfry is honestly the best Don Giovanni I've ever seen and listened to. I've seen and listened to dozens of productions of Don Giovanni, and none of the Dons come even close to the perfection of Gilfry's voice OR acting.
Mozart is an absolute genius and this masterpiece has one of the most beatiful "songs" of the story of music (stolen hundred times!!), the execution is wonderful and very sexy!!!
This is such a good version of the duet, Rodney is just fantastic! His acting and singing and they both have chemistry, they're both feeling the situation.
This production in particular is my favorite Don Giovanni. All of the Actors are excellent and the Orchestra is spot on! Perfezione! Grazie, amici miei, per l'eccellente performance!
The brief string aside at 5:28 is literally all the proof you need that Mozart was a bajillion years ahead of his time. Just that little touch makes all the difference... you simply do not hear anything like that in other music from the time. To me sounds totally contemporary.
for real! The text says they'll partake in "innocent love", but Mozart presents an element of sleaze in the orchestra to show the irony in that statement
I relistened to it in this context. That embellishment hints at the Don being untrue- it goes into a more villainous minor tone compared to the rest of the piece. Very very smart.
There is a lot or other splendid ones but yes he seems to come across with that realistic ultimate aggro charms that many stagings do not dare to display but that is truly portraying the original libretto/music drama...He is the kind of guy Da Ponte and Mozart had in mind.
beppi blabla what other splendid ones nowadays? I went to see mozart opera on the Vienna opera house and it sucked. Only the mezzo can remotely sing mozart. It was so bad that half of the people left after the second act. This woman here who sings zerlina is quite horrendous btw, typical of modern singers who can't understand how to sing mozart properly
Well, the Prague 2016/17 winter one was quite ok, we saw an ensemble of really-into-mozart-talented singers who quite souvereignly mastered a quite difficult set with ease and modern colour. And..the Gran Mo would have loved it.
what would you say is the perfect way to sing mozart? can you describe it in any way? i just started studying opera two semesters ago and i would like some input. even if it's just from a stranger on the internet :D
Annick Mörth listen to Arnold ostman's mozard recordings religiously!! :P he is so faithful that apparently even the instruments used are faithful to they period In general, mozart is about perfection of harmony, which means that you need to listen to the music as well as your voice. Most people just sing like a pop star-it's all about them, but to really sing mozart, the perfect harmony of voices and instruments is key. Mozart is sung right when in a harmony of voices, you can hear each individual voices as perfectly as the effect of harmony. That means usually, sing it how it's written and don't do any weirdly creative stuff, that's already very difficult to do. In puccini for example if your vibrato is not as well controlled, if you break up legatos, because of the nature of he music that focuses more on individual voices rather than harmony you can get away with it and lead people into thinking it's "your own musical interpretation." You can't do that with mozart, any small mistake is blatantly obvious. That's why there are many professional musicians who say: when you can really sing/play Mozart, you can do everything. Good luck!
Leslie Diaz I honestly find this to be the best performance of don I have come across of. The vocals are smooth and seductive, the acting is on spot and yeah, even I can tell he is attractive.
Rodney Gilfry is certainly one of the best interpreters of Don Giovanni ever (and Thomas Allen is also up there with the very best). The tempo here is just a tad on the slow side for my liking, but it is a wonderful performance with Liliana Nikiteanu just fabulous as Zerlina too!
Have a look at Frank Sinatra wooing Kathryn Grayson (ethnically Italian herself) in the scene from the 1947 film It Happened in Brooklyn (here in "Frank Sinatra Sings Opera) one of the most delightfully charming moments I have ever seen (including Peter Lawford's wistful glance at her as he accompanies them on piano)
Wow, what a gorgeous, seductive voice he has. Wonderful acting from these singers too. I just wish the costume designer had been a bit creative. I mean, Don Giovanni in beige? Really?
I dont mind that its beige, but it has very little fabric texture/details and that bothers me from an artistic stand point. Like, he looks good in the costume, and it seems to suit this actor's interpretation of the character well, but the result not super interesting to look at.
Ich glaube, Oberhaus Zürich, 2001: Die schönste Inszenierung und Aufführung, die ich bisher gesehen und gehört habe!! Rod Gilfrey verkörpert perfekt den Charakter des verruchten Verführers und Liliana Nikiteanu jenen, der naiven Schönen, die sich von ihm überreden lässt. Bravi!!!
Là ci darem la mano, Là mi dirai di sì, Vedi, non è lontano, Partiam, ben mio, da qui. : Vorrei, e non vorrei, Mi trema un poco il cor Felice, è ver, sarei, Ma può burlami ancor. : Vieni, mio bel diletto! : Mifa pietà Masetto. : Io cangierò tua sorte! : Presto, non son più forte! : Andiam, andiam! (Zerlina): Andiam! (Don Giovanni et Zerlina): Andiam, andiam, mio bene, A ristorar le pene D'un innocente amor
I agree. I love the facial expressions of Zerlina. She manages to convey her emotions so that one understands even if one does not know the story. This is the best performance that I have seen.
Wow --- thanks to Listener's Club for including this in his post today. I agree with everything everyone has already said. I'm going to copy in again the info I wanted, given by David Leist below: 2001 - Zurich Opera House Orchestra and Chorus. DVD: Arthaus Musik Cat: 100 328. Available on eBay. Gilfry was a terrific Don Alfonso in Santa Fe Opera's 2019 Cosi -- his entrance in that weird production may remain my favorite forever. I had never seen or heard him earlier in his career and wow!!!! Thank you.
Aimée, thank you so much for posting this! By far the most seductive performance of this scene I've ever seen. Could you (or anyone else) please tell me which production this is, i.e. which DVD it's from? If the rest of the production/performances is as excellent as this one, it's a definite must-buy for me!
I had actually posted the opera on RU-vid with my own subtitles but it was taken down because it was not my content. I don't know if you can find it online unless you buy it.
2:48 "La ci darem la mano" Italian Lyrics Don Giovanni: La ci darem la mano, La mi dirai di sì Vedi, non è lontano, Partiam, ben mio, da qui. Zerlina: Vorrei e non vorrei, Mi trema un poco il cor, Felice, è ver, sarei, Ma può burlarmi ancor! Don Giovanni: Vieni, mio bel diletto! Zerlina: Mi fa pietà Masetto. Don Giovanni: Io cangierò tua sorte. Zerlina: Presto... non son più forte. Don Giovanni: Andiam! Zerlina: Andiam! Duet: Andiam, andiam, mio bene, a ristorar le pene D’un innocente amor. "La ci darem la mano" English Translation Don Giovanni: There I'll give you my hand, There you'll say yes See, it is not far, my love, let's leave from here. Zerlina: Should I or shouldn't I, my heart trembles at the thought, it's true, I would be happy, I can still have fun! Don Giovanni: Come, my beloved beautiful! Zerlina: It makes me pity Masetto. Don Giovanni: I will change your fate. Zerlina: Soon ... I am no longer strong enough to resist. Don Giovanni: Let us go! Zerlina: Let us go! Duet: Come, come, my darling, to restore our pleasure of an innocent love.
