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Getoonde hoesje is van de CD opname, DVD komt nog uit in 2012.

Rossini Stabat Mater - Conductor Antonio Pappano

Groszen Festspielhaus Salzburg
Anna Netrebko - soprano
Marianne Pizzolato - mezzo soprano
Matthew Polenzani - tenor
Ildebrando D'Arcangelo - basse

This work, in its entirety by Rossini (an earlier version, with additions by another composer, had been previously performed), was premiered in Paris in 1842 and then played in Bologna (with Donizetti conducting); it was a gigantic success, and indeed, it is a masterpiece. It is wonderfully operatic and requires great voices and a great conductor to do it justice. There are more than a dozen recordings of the work available, but this new one is the best yet. 

The four soloists are among the greatest stars of the new generation of opera singers. Soprano Anna Netrebko is in ravishing voice in her big solo, "Inflammatus" ("Set on fire, may I be defended by you, O Virgin, on the Day of Judgment"), with fine trills and a pair of huge, ecstatic high Cs, and she blends gloriously with mezzo Joyce DiDonato in the duet "Quis est homo", with its odd, chromatic, unison scales. DiDonato shines in her solo and in ensembles as well. Tenor Lawrence Brownlee, whose voice becomes more appealing with each recording, leads off the soloists in the opening with great tenderness and makes his solo, "Cujus animam" ("Her soul, searing.was pierced by a sword"), sound easy, including an ascent to a solid, handsome high D-flat. Bass Ildebrando D'Arcangelo's solo is sung with great feeling and attention to dynamics, and his part in the a cappella "Eja mater" with chorus is potent and prayerful. 

Pappano sticks rigidly to Rossini's dynamic markings, which can move dramatically from piano to forte in a bar of music and that ask for several of the sections to end slowly and at a true pianissimo, heightening the tension. He also gets the brass to shine brilliantly in the "Inflammatus". The chorus is spectacular, varying between a prayerful whisper and full throttle in the "Eja mater" and perfectly keeping up with the double fugue that ends the piece. The recording occasionally favors the soloists but is faithful to both the eerie, quiet sections and the Rossinian free-for-all.