Stars: Claudio Abbado, La Scala Philharmonic Orchestra, La Scala Chorus, Montserrat Caballe, Cecilia Gasdia, Lucia Valentini-Terrani, Peter Dvorsky, Samuel Ramey

Summary: Another from the 'In Rehearsal' series in which conductor Claudio Abbado is seen working on Verdi's Requiem.

In this rehearsal program, Claudio Abbado, internationally acclaimed as one of the finest conductors of the day, is seen working on Giuseppe Verdi's Requiem. Recorded in the Church of San Marco in Milan, the original venue of the world premiere of Requiem, the film shows rehearsals for this grandiose musical creation taking place in three different locations: at the Chiesa di San Marco in Milan with some or all of the soloists, choir and orchestra; on the main stage at Teatro alla Scala with the orchestra on its own; and, thirdly, in one of the rehearsal rooms of the opera house, in some cases with different singers who were involved in a second performance. The result is an opportunity to directly compare the performances of two sopranos and two tenors.

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Claudio Abbado in Rehearsalhas the eminent conductor rehearsing Verdi's Requiem Massboth at the La Scala Opera House and the church of San Marco in Milan where Verdi's choral masterpiece was first performed. This new performance was given in 1985 to mark the 200th birthday of the Italian national poet Alessandro Manzoni, with whom Verdi shared aspirations for a united Italy.

The camera dwells a good deal on Abbado, whose concentration seems well nigh tangible as he raises his arms and throws out his chest to communicate the power of Verdi's music. Abbado takes much care with his soloists, gives strong leads, checking the reverberant acoustic of San Marco with a lift of the head during the thunderous "Dies Irae". We eavesdrop on a piano rehearsal with two of his soloists as he keeps the rather musically wayward mezzo on course and works with Samuel Ramey, his bass, to intensify his hushed delivery of "More stupebit" ("Death and nature stand aghast"). We also see Monserrat Caballe, who can float a note pianissimolike no other soprano, have an unexpected fit of the giggles when beginning her "Libera me".

Some reservations in director Norbert Beilharz's treatment of the "Lux Aeterna" require comment. His concept of juxtaposing a well-dressed audience with pictures from tombstones and statues as a reminder of the transience of human life grows wearisome after a while, as does his commentary and translation of the Latin, already on screen as subtitles, which masks some of the most poignant music in the score.

On the DVD:Claudio Abbado in Rehearsalhas one major disappointment: the lighting. Neither the San Marco Church or the interior of La Scala is well lit. There are brief trailers for three other ArtHaus Musik productions, including a film about Callas and Abbado conducting the Mozart Requiemin a splendid baroque church in Salzburg where the brilliance of the picture, stunningly lit, really shows up the deficiencies of this film. To hear Abbado conduct the Verdi Requiemwhere everyone performs as though their lives depended on it, try the version he recorded with the Berlin Philharmonic in January 2001. --Adrian Edwards

Aspect Ratio:	4:3
Main Language:	English
Region:	Region 0
Subtitles:	English, French, German, Spanish
Year:	1985
Release Date:	July 1, 2002
Runtime:	119 minutes
Certification:	Exempt.
Catalogue Number:	101 124
Keywords:	Music, Requiem, Orchestral, Verdi, Rehearsal, Claudio, Classical, Abbado, Performing, Missa, Misa, Arts, Verdi's
Genre:	Music/Performing Arts