Charles Dutoit - Fauré: Pénélope (2009)

Fauré’s second opera, Pénélope (yes, he wrote two, though Prométhée is hardly ever heard and doesn’t seem to have received a complete recording) is a late work (1913), but although his late chamber music has established themselves pretty firmly in the repertoire, Pénélope has not fared so well, despite being described by e.g. Copland as one of the best operas written since Wagner. One of the reasons may be that the music is, overall, “distinctly non-theatrical” – indeed, the musical style is distinctly written in the flowing, ever-changing and dreamy style of his late chamber works – no big arias or easy excerpts here – and Fauré seems to have deliberately avoided much in terms of stage action until the very end (a pity, then, that the libretto is otherwise rather uninteresting). That said, the work does employ leitmotifs, and the two main roles may perhaps require something of a Wagnerian quality – apart from that, the music ha preciously little to do with Wagner. Oh, well – it is a beautiful, powerful score, and if it is hard to imagine it working very well on stage that matters little when listening to an audio-only set like this.

The warmly lyrical rather than dramatic music requires a bit expressive shading and tenderness from the singers, and Jessye Norman in the title role succeeds marvelously, with radiant, warm singing that is especially impressive in the upper register. Equally impressive, however, is her expressive range and thoughtful characterization - some has said that she's a bit emotionally distant but if that's so, isn't that a very valid interpretation of the character? Alain Vanzo is perhaps less convincing in terms of convincing characterization, but at least his singing is beautiful. As a matter of fact, it is hard to find a weak link in the cast (at least among the more major characters). The orchestral playing is first-rate as well, and although the sound is a bit cavernous it certainly does little to ruin the experience. Which is, of course, fortunate given the absence of much serious competition in this work. Strongly recommended.