Bretón - La Dolores / Domingo · Matos · Lanza · Beltrán · Ros Marbá
Tomás Bretón'sLa Doloresfrom 1895--in which all the male characters love the heroine, Dolores, who works in an inn--is anopera espagnola: a full-blown opera, not a zarzuela, and its plot, characters, mood, and music could belong to no other country but Spain. Bretón's musical idiom is late romantic, and he's a fine composer. The opera's acts build with good intensity, and throughout he keeps the local flavor alive with dances and rhythms that are peculiarly Spanish. Elisabete Matos is a good, colorful singer, but since Dolores is so easy to fall in love with, so should her voice be; the role could have used Victoria de los Angeles's combination of earthiness and purity. The supporting roles are well, if occasionally roughly, taken.Tito Beltránmakes the most of the second-tenor role of Celemin, but the plum role of Lazaro goes to Placido Domingo, who is in good, generalized-ardency voice and demeanor. Antonio Ros-Marbá leads a lively, completely idiomatic performance. This is a worthy addition to the catalog.--Robert Levine