Jules Massenet (1842-1912)
Le Cid (1885)
Plácido Domingo – Rodrigue (tenor)
Grace Bumbry – Chimène (soprano)
Jake Gardiner – Le Roi (baritone)
Arnold Voketaitis – Le Comte de Gormas (baritone)
Paul Plishka – Don Diegue (bass)
Eleanor Bergquist – L’Infante (soprano)
Theodore Hodges – Don Alonzo (bass)
Clinton Ingram – Don Arias (tenor)
Byrne Camp Chorale
Opera Orchestra of New York / Eve Queler
rec. live, 8 March 1976, Carnegie Hall, New York City
Sony Classical 88697454942 [2 discs, 145]

For better or worse, this is probably going to be the only complete recording of Massenet’s Le Cid that will ever surface. It has owned the field for some 48 years, with no sign of any other surfacing to challenge it.

Massenet’s heroic opera served as the vehicle in which the legendary Polish tenor Jean de Reszke had his first major success in Paris when he created the title role in 1885. The opera itself is a surprisingly uneven affair for Massenet. There are some heroic scenes, combined with others that are more intimate, and a score which boasts a colourful and inventive orchestration. The characters are fairly wooden, except for the central female role of Chimène. Her internal conflict and growing desperation are the emotional fulcrum around which everything else revolves.

In the title role, we have Plácido Domingo singing a role that could well have been written with him in mind. His Rodrigue has the benefit of highly polished tone, with no shortage of fearless attack on the high-flying vocal lines. Domingo doesn’t offer much in vocal characterization, but he sings with passion and thrust, and it comes as no surprise that he makes a convincing Spanish hero to boot. One of the problems on this recording is that singers are much too close to the microphones, frequently it is Domingo who is affected the most from this. His big aria “Ô souverain, ô juge, ô père” is one instance; you would be forgiven for thinking that both he and John Adams (who sings the heavenly apparition of St Jacques) were intentionally bellowing into the listener’s ear. Now and then, Domingo steps slightly away from the microphone, which has the effect of making his voice suddenly ring out impressively throughout the hall. When it happens, it is quite thrilling.

Grace Bumbry is a Chimène of no ordinary class. This was a singer at the very peak of her powers who illustrates more about her character than anyone else onstage. Her burnished copper sound is a perfect match for Chimène’s stormy emotional journey. She sings her big aria, “Pleurez! Pleurez mes yeux…” with lavish tone and communicates the combination of vulnerability and outrage that Chimène experiences.

Eleanor Bergquist’s floating soprano is a gentle contrast to the dramatic sound of Bumbry . Her sweetly poised account of the Infanta’s “Alleulia” is one of this set’s highlights. Paul Plishka is a grand and noble sounding Don Diegue, while his aggressor is sung with firm tone and velvet smoothness by Arnold Voketaitis (although he could do with adding a dash more intensity to his portrayal). The King of Spain is sung by Jake Gardiner, who has a firm, reliable voice but not the vocal stature, or a regal enough manner, to convey an impression of Royal authority.

Eve Queler was a remarkable woman who kept the Opera Orchestra of New York organization going almost single-handedly for 40 years. As a conductor, she had the ability to inspire everyone around her to give their finest in very spare circumstances. Several of her performances with this group led to the sole recordings of some very rarely performed operas including Boito’s Nerone, Verdi’s Aroldo, and this one. Here, she shows her complete dedication to getting a highly-charged interpretation of this work at the sinister-sounding music that opens the Prelude. She conducts the famous ballet sequence, alternating grand sweep with a more delicate approach as required by the music. Unfortunately, everyone is let down by what is often too coarse an approach to the sound engineering in this live recording. The soloists are frequently too close to the microphones and tend to sound somewhat boxed-in as a result. The engineers do a better job with the orchestra and chorus. Some parts come off better than others, such as the aforementioned “Alleluia”, and the ballet. The other failure here is the inability of nearly everyone to sing in idiomatic French. Perhaps had this been a full staging rather than a one-off concert performance, the greater amount of rehearsal time might have brought about an improvement to the standards of pronunciation.

As it stands, this is a decent document of what must have been a very exciting night in New York 48 years ago. Despite the blemishes, this recording still has the ability to provide a few thrills for the listener. In the case of Ms Bumbry, the poignancy of her interpretation registers as thoroughly as ever.

Mike Parr

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Other cast members
Peter Lightfoot – L’Envoye Maure (bass-baritone)
John Adams – St Jacques (baritone)