Janacek Katya Kabanova Benackova, Rysanek, Ochman, Haugland, Mackerras New York 16 March 1991

Act 2: 00.38.06 Act 3: 01.09.02
Martin Myer wrote in Opera: "Everybody was beyond praise. Benackova's voice is pure, virtually without vibrato and absolutely without whine, airy, yet rich in overtones; a unique instrument. She is also a fine, grave actress. Rysanek has been with us for 33 years in New York (she made her debut vice Callas as Lady Macbeth), and she gets steadily better; the lower register is firm and smooth, and that is, of course, what she needed here. Susan Quittmeyer was Varvara, lean and lithe, correctly cast for once: her voice blended marvellously with Benakova's All three tenors were first-class: Allen Glassman as the put-upon husband; Wieslaw Ochman as the cowardly lover; and Peter Straka from Czechoslovakia, another debut, as the free-and-easy boyfriend who will take Varvara away from all this. Aage Haugland was simply wonderful both vocally and dramatically as the besotted merchant. And Mackerras is everyone's first choice as a conductor of Janácek operas."

[@fecpnr]

Live opera, great sound - at its electrifying best.

[@neilmurphy7554]

Was fortunate to see this production. Mackerras conducting (with a sensitivity surpassing his earlier much celebrated recording of this work), in late style with an immaculate luminosity and searing tenderness. Robert Israel set design stunning, beautiful. Benackova utterly gorgeous. It is a great shame and outrageous fail that the Met neglected to film this production. So, we have this document at least, and I remember recording this to cassette during this broadcast but had since sadly lost, so very pleased that I can indulge my senses once again. Final scene Act 2 with the young lovers set against the torments of their elders is one of the very few times I have been moved to tears during a live performance of any opera. The opening of the final act with the cast being drenched in a rain storm still stays in my mind as one of the most exhilarating experiences I have ever experienced in the theatre. Rysanek following up from her Carnegie Hall heart stopping performance of the other Jamacek masterpiece, Jenufa, cond. Eve Queler ,for which she received the longest standing ovation in the history of Carnegie Hall a record she still holds to this day in 2022. ( this ovation after act 2 was recorded and is available on UA-cam) Thank you Starman22 for bringing a treasured experience back to life for me after years hoping that someone managed to record and keep this incredible document. Incredibly, it does not appear on the Met playlist.

[@barrydavis987]

This is an upload of the highest quality. There isn't a single cue 'blip' to he heard. It is a valuable sound document for everyone to appreciate. Many, many thanks for this.