Worse he seems to want to own the big scenes. The cameras are in the hands of Brian Large and he’s in one of his more self indulgent moods. It’s not bad enough to ruin the show but it could be a lot better. The recording though is a bit problematic. It’s a fine performance and it’s good that it was recorded for posterity. Solti, of course, conducts and produces a very beautiful but never draggy reading of the score. Notable among the rest of the large cast are Robert Tear as Valzacchi and Jonathan Summers in a very fine cameo as Faninal. Aage Haugland is an old fashioned, buffoonish Ochs but quite effective. The final trio featuring all three is quite lovely. She captures the youthful impetuosity and doubt of the character perfectly and sings with the most beautiful tone. A very young Barbara Bonney (she’s 29 but looks much younger) is an excellent Sophie. At first I thought she came off as a bit too feminine but I warmed to her interpretation. She’s not the mostt expressive actress but she sings beautifully and she does dignity well. The Marschallin in Kiri Te Kanawa and I think this is one of her best roles. The singing and acting is all first class. For example, at the beginning of Act 2 fake books are being installed in the Faninal “library”. There are a number of small touches that help set the tone too. The chemistry between the principals is good and the nonsense at the beginning of Act 3 is deftly handled. The opening scene stars one of the largest beds ever seen on an opera stage. We are in 1740s Vienna and both costumes and set are highly elaborate. It’s an essentially traditional production. In 1985 the Royal Opera House staged film director john Schlesinger’s production of Der Rosenkavalier to mark the 25th anniversary of Sir Georg Solti’s house debut.
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