<<  -- 5 --  Roderic Dunnett    Cosseted by Robespierre

Even more amazing, as Scarpia mockingly leans over towards her, do we get a scent of Tristan? This act is simply riddled with subtle detail (the muttering violas at Scarpia's death are another fine instance). Vaness oozes physical passivity to balance her moral ascendancy (it further arouses Scarpia's sado-erotic streak); at the end, she is nearly bent double, like a floppy toy. Her discovery of the knife, and her hesitation on whether to use it, was gripping enough; but even more so, the frantic search for the letter. The final placing, as the orchestra rounds off, of candles either side of Scarpia's head (flute again) -- a gesture which felt as informed by black magic as by shocked respect -- was a directorial touch of genius.

Act III was another triumph. True, López-Cobos's puzzling pacing of the Prelude -- like the slowest of Bruckner adagios -- seemed a little odd. Yet with it descended an extraordinary calm : and if the audience shifted in their seats, why not? The Shepherd Boy (Alex Spinney) was slightly eclipsed by it; but the benefit was a strange serenity to Cavaradossi's exchange with the gaoler (the rather good Bryan Secombe). Both Vaness's and Pavarotti's partly unaccompanied recitatives were beautifully refined (and her low register particularly impressive).

The duet, with its gentle triplet rocking, was glorious; the final farewell, with a fine bassoon obbligato mimicking its attendant ironies, flute chirruping off the departing firing squad, and its superbly timed passage of vocal unison, was genuinely moving. The orchestra played like heroes, best of all where López-Cobos wooed from them a sustained quadruple piano (virtually an al niente) at the key moment in the exchange. And the great man fell like a trooper. Great opera, and a feast for the spirit.