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Sheer Brilliance
Rossini's 'William Tell',
reviewed by ROBERT HUGILL
For the second Prom at the Albert Hall (BBC Proms, London UK, Saturday 16 July 2011), Antonio Pappano brought his other ensemble, the Accademia di Santa Cecilia, to perform Rossini's Guillaume Tell, in a performance designed to tie in with their release of a CD of the work based on live performances given in Rome. [Read Giuseppe Pennisi: An Epic Opera -- Rossini's 'William Tell', From Rome to the BBC Proms.] The cast of the Prom was very similar to that of the recording with John Osborn's Arnold, Matthew Rose's Walter Furst, Malin Byström's Mathilde, Frederic Caton's Melcthal, Celso Albelo's Ruodi, Elena Xanthoudaki's Jemmy being common to recording and live performance and only Michele Pertusi's Tell, Patricia Bardon's Hedwige, Nicolas Courjal's Gesler and Mark Stone's Leuthold being new.
Pappano opened with a brilliant account of the overture, which took the final galop at quite a lick and crisply banished any thoughts of cowboys and Indians.
Guillaume Tell is a curious work by modern standards, with a long leisurely first act which is almost entirely devoid of plot and provides local colour and background...
Copyright © 18 July 2011
Robert Hugill,
London UK
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