BBC Music Magazine

Puccini

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Madama Butterfly (DVD)

Maria José Siri, Carlos Álvarez,

Bryan Hymel, Annalisa Stroppa; La Scala Chorus & Orchestra/ Riccardo Chailly; dir. Alvis Hermanis Decca DVD: 074 3982 167 mins

Visually, this is an attractive but essentiall­y convention­al Madama Butterfly from La Scala. Aurally, however, there are surprises as Riccardo Chailly has reverted to the original version, unperforme­d at the Milanese theatre since it was booed off the stage in 1904.

Puccini tinkered with the score repeatedly, so why revert to the version that received such a catastroph­ic reception? There are undoubtedl­y passages of juvenile stylistic autopilot here that Puccini was right to cut. We can do without the protracted ‘business’ at the wedding, not to mention a rather trite hiatus where Cio-cio San gets cold feet in the middle of the glorious love duet. But it’s genuinely fascinatin­g to hear what the firstnight audience would have heard, and certain aspects of the drama come across as more hard-hitting in this version. (With no remorseful tenor aria at the end, Pinkerton becomes an out-and-out rat.)

The sets and costumes are like those of countless other Madama Butterfly production­s, but the superb musical and dramatic performanc­es make this DVD well worth seeking out. Maria José Siri, a Uruguayan soprano who first came to internatio­nal attention in this very production, is a revelation as Butterfly, blessed both with power and a particular purity in the upper range. She brings a nuanced assortment of emotions to the role: a hint of cheeky flirtation at the beginning; an unwavering poise as Sharpless tries to break the bad news; utter joy with her son. There is a plausible chemistry between her and Bryan ★ymel’s deceptivel­y amiable Pinkerton, and the American gives a velvety, ardent, apparently effortless vocal performanc­e. This Butterfly-witha-twist is up with the best of them in terms of emotional impact. Alexandra Wilson

PERFORMANC­E

PICTURE & SOUND

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