Gioachino Rossini - William Tell / Luca Ronconi · Riccardo Muti · G. Zancanaro · C. Merritt · Teatro alla Scala
In its first video recording, the unfamiliar opera that follows the ultra-familiar overture is presented uncut--four hours of music, which seem shorter thanks to powerful conducting, virtuoso singing, and imaginative staging that often suggests more than it actually shows. Instead of scenery, a sense of time and place is evoked by projections of Swiss scenes on three large screens, and well-used props and costumes (of Rossini's era, not the Middle Ages where the action is usually set). The music is uneven but always effective and often splendid. The solo singers are good--particularly Chris Merritt in a very challenging role--and the orchestra and chorus are superb.--Joe McLellan