Considering that Rossini’s opera buffa “La pietra del paragone” (The Touchstone) is hardly ever staged and that its title is not even known through its overture, like “La scala di seta” or “La gazza ladra,” music lovers can be forgiven for being in the dark about this sparklingly luminous work. One of Rossini’s first operas, it was written for Milan’s La Scala and premiered there in 1812. It was a resounding success – in spite of its standard libretto filled with disguises, mistaken identities and trials of love and loyalty. But it boasts a splendidly varied orchestral writing, which includes dramatic hunt and storm scenes, and betrays a love of language and wordplay which presages Rossini’s later works. For this alone, it deserves an above-average treatment.
The least one can say about this magical, multi-media and often side-splitting production by Pierrick Sorin and Giorgio Barberio Corsetti – and its video recording by Philippe Béziat presented here – is that Rossini’s “Touchstone” is given an incomparably special treatment here! Known for his video installations and live video performances, Sorin magnifies Rossini’s buffo humor by having the singers recorded live on stage by five cameras, integrated into decors filmed elsewhere on the stage, and having the result projected onto three large screens. The visual gags and optical illusions are as sweetly mischievous and cleverly absurd as Rossini’s libretto and musical setting.
Conductor Jean-Christophe Spinosi has just the right exuberance and contagious energy to entice his Ensemble Matheus into giving its best with boundless good humor and stunning virtuosity. He has brought together a team of young singers who have already proven themselves in a variety of Rossinian roles and who bring to their performance a pronounced talent for acting – indispensable for this innovative production. Premiered at Parma’s Teatro Regio in December 2006, the production was reprised at the Théâtre Musical de Paris (Châtelet) in January 2007, when this recording was made.
Cast:
Il Cavalier Giocondo – José Manuel Zapata
La Marchese Clarice – Sonia Prina
La Baronessa Aspasia – Jennifer Holloway
Donna Fulvia – Laura Giordano
Il Conte Asdrubale – François Lis
Macrobio – Joan Martin-Royo
Pacuvio – Christian Senn
Fabrizio – Filippo Polinelli
Coro del Teatro Regio di Parma
Ensemble Matheus
Jean-Christophe Spinosi
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