Il ritorno d'Ulisse in patria discography

These lists show the audio and visual recordings of Il ritorno d'Ulisse in patria ("The Return of Ulysses to his Homeland") by Claudio Monteverdi. The opera was premièred in Venice in 1640, initially in five acts, and was then performed in Bologna before returning to Venice for the 1641–42 season. The music was subsequently lost; modern productions of the opera have been based on editions derived from the sole manuscript score, a three-act version discovered in Vienna in the 19th century. Performances were rare until the 1970s, when after stagings in Vienna and at Glyndebourne, both of which were recorded, the work entered the operatic mainstream. Since that date recordings have been issued regularly, in five-act, three-act and two-act versions.[1]

Recording history

The first recording of the opera was issued in 1964, a version incorporating substantial cuts.[2] The first complete recording was that of Nikolaus Harnoncourt and Concentus Musicus Wien in 1971, the first of three Harnoncourt versions in audio and video. Raymond Leppard's 1972 Glyndebourne version was recorded in a concert performance in the Royal Albert Hall; the following year the same Glyndebourne cast was recorded in a full stage performance. These recordings were issued many years later, in compact disc and DVD format. Leppard's third Glyndbourne version was issued in 1980, the heavy orchestration with strings and brass drawing some critical comment.[3]

In 1978 Roger Norrington, with Kent Opera, recorded the only English language version of the opera. A two-act version prepared by the German composer Hans Werner Henze was performed under Jeffrey Tate at the 1985 Salzburg Festival and issued on videotape. After an interval of several years, the 1990s and 2000s saw a proliferation of recordings in audio and video formats, including performances under Alan Curtis, René Jacobs, Sergio Vartolo and William Christie. More than thirty years after his first recording, Harnoncourt produced his 2002 version in DVD format, a live recording from Zurich Opera.[4]

Audio

Year Cast
Ulisse, Penelope, Telemaco,
Minerva, Eumete, Iro
Conductor
Opera house/Orchestra
Label and year of issue Notes
1964 Gerald English
Maureen Lehane
William Whitesides
Antonia Fahberg
Helmut Kretschmar
Bernhard Michaelis
Rudolf Ewerhart
Santini Kammerorchester (Münster)
LP: Vox DLBX211 (1965) First recording of the opera but with significant cuts, including the Prologue; Iro's monologue; the scenes with Melanto and Eurymaco.[2]
1971 Sven Olof Eliasson
Norma Lerer
Kai Hansen
Rotraud Hansmann
Max van Egmond
Murray Dickie
Nikolaus Harnoncourt
Concentus Musicus Wien/Junge Kantorei
LP: Telefunken SKB23T (1971)
CD: Teldec 2564 69614-2 (2008)
1972 Benjamin Luxon
Janet Baker
Ian Caley
Anne Howells
Richard Lewis
Alexander Oliver
Raymond Leppard
London Philharmonic Orchestra and Glyndebourne Chorus
CD: Oriel Music Society OMS099/3
(2001)
Live recording of concert performance, Royal Albert Hall, 3 August 1972
1978 Werner Hollweg
Trudeliese Schmidt
Francisco Araiza
Helrun Gardow
Philippe Huttenlocher
Arley Reece
Nikolaus Harnoncourt
Monteverdi Ensemble der Zürcher Oper
CD: Teldec 8 35807 (1989) Recording of a TV film
1978 Neil Jenkins
Sarah Walker
Neil Mackie
Anne Pashley
Wynford Evans
Jack Irons
Roger Norrington
Kent Opera
CD: Oriel Music Society OMS018/3 Sung in English. Recording of live performance at Guildhall School of Music 26 July 1978
1979 Richard Stilwell
Frederica von Stade
Patrick Power
Ann Murray
Richard Lewis
Alexander Oliver
Raymond Leppard
London Philharmonic Orchestra and Glyndebourne Chorus
LP: CBS Masterworks 79332 (1980)
1985 Thomas Allen
Kathleen Kuhlmann
Alejandro Ramirez
Delores Ziegler
Robert Tear
Curtis Rayam
Jeffrey Tate
ORF Symphonie-Orchester (Wien); Tölzer Knabenchor: Ensemble Spinano
CD: Orfeo C 528 003 (2000) Recorded at the Salzburg Festival, 18 August 1985 (Hans Werner Henze version)
1991 Leroy Villeneuva
Gloria Banditelli
Mark Tucker
Guillemette Laurens
Giovanni Battista Palmieri
Gian Paolo Fagotto
Alan Curtis
Orchestra - Sonotori de la Gioiosa Marca
CD: Nuova Era 7103-5 (2004) Live recording of a performance in the Teatro dei Rinnovati, Siena
1992 Christoph Prégardien
Bernarda Fink
Christina Högman
Lorraine Hunt Lieberson
Martyn Hill
Guy de Mey
René Jacobs
Concerto Vocale
CD: Harmonia Mundi (France) HMC 901 427-29 (1992) Five-act version
1998 Furio Zanasi
Gloria Banditelli
Jean-Paul Fouchécourt
María Cristina Kiehr
Roberto Abbondanza
Gian Paolo Fagotto
Gabriel Garrido
Ensemble Eufonia/Coro Antonio Il Verso
CD: K617 K617091/3 (1998)
2005 Loris Bertolo
Gabriella Martellacci
Makoto Sakurada
Angela Bucci
Giovanni Gregnanin
Davide Cicchetti
Sergio Vartolo
Instrumental ensemble
CD: Brilliant Classics BRIL 93104 (2006) Five-act version
2009 Kobie van Rensburg
Christine Rice
Cyril Auvity
Claire Debono
Laura Coronado
Robert Burt
William Christie
Les Arts Florissants
CD: Premiere Opera Ltd. CDNO 3525-3 (2009) Live recording of a performance in the Teatro Real, Madrid, 25 April 2009

Video

Year Cast
Ulisse, Penelope, Telemaco,
Minerva, Eumete, Iro
Conductor
Opera house/Orchestra
Label and year of issue Notes
1973 Benjamin Luxon
Janet Baker
Ian Caley
Anne Howells
Richard Lewis
Alexander Oliver
Raymond Leppard
London Philharmonic Orchestra and Glyndebourbe Chorus
DVD: ArtHaus Musik 101 101 (2006) Live recording of a stage performance at the Glyndebourne Theatre, 24 August 1973
1978 Werner Hollweg
Trudeliese Schmidt
Francisco Araiza
Helrun Gardow
Philippe Huttenlocher
Arley Reece
Nikolaus Harnoncourt
Monteverdi Ensemble der Zürcher Oper
DVD: DG 073 4268 (2007) Recording of a TV film
1985 Thomas Allen
Kathleen Kuhlmann
Alejandro Ramirez
Delores Ziegler
Robert Tear
Curtis Rayam
Jeffrey Tate
ORF Symphonie-Orchester (Wien); Tölzer Knabenchor: Ensemble Spinano
VHS (1985) Recorded at the Salzburg Festival, 18 August 1985 (Hans Werner Henze version)
1998 Antony Rolfe-Johnson
Graciela Araya
Toby Spence
Diana Montague
Diana Montague
Alexander Oliver
Glen Wilson
Orchestra, Het Muziektheatre Amsterdam
DVD: Opus Arte OA 0926D (2005) Live recording of a performance in Het Muziektheatre, Amsterdam
2002 Kresimir Spicer
Marjana Mijanovic
Cyril Auvity
Olga Pitarch
Joseph Cornwell
Robert Burt
William Christie
Les Arts Florissants
DVD: Virgin Classics 7243 4 90612 9 3 (2004) Live recording of a production originally given in 2000 at the Festival d'Aix-en-Provence. Winner of Royal Philharmonic Society Opera award, 2003.[5]
2002 Dietrich Henschel
Veselina Kasarova
Jonas Kaufmann
Isabel Rey
Thomas Mohr
Rudolf Schasching
Nikolaus Harnoncourt
Orchester La Scintilla
DVD: ArtHaus Musik 100 352 (2003) Live recording of a performance in the Opernhaus, Zürich, February 2002

References

Notes
  1. Rosand, Ellen (2007). Macy, Laura (ed.), ed. "Ritorno d'Ulisse in patria". Oxford Music Online. Retrieved 7 February 2010. (subscription required)
  2. 2.0 2.1 "Monteverdi: Il ritorno d'Ulisse in patria - complete". Gramophone (Haymarket): p. 100. September 1971. Retrieved 18 February 2010.
  3. Arnold, Denis (December 1980). "The Return of Ulysses". Gramophone (London: Haymarket): p. 106. Retrieved 19 February 2010.
  4. "17 recordings of Il ritorno d'Ulisse in patria by Claudio Monteverdi". Operadis. Retrieved 19 February 2010.
  5. "RPS honours live music". Gramophone (London: Haymarket): p. 8. July 2003. Retrieved 18 February 2010.
Sources