Classic CD: Tchaikovsky: Iolanta

Tchaikovsky: Iolanta (Deutsche Grammophon)

If you are searching out a gift for that opera-loving friend who has everything, this new Deutsche Grammophon boxed set should fit the bill.

Tchaikovsky's Iolanta is not to be confused with Iolanthe, Gilbert and Sullivan's romp with parliamentary peers and fairies, complete with an unfortunate hero who is fairy from the waist up and human from the waist down.

In Iolanta, a shortish opera written by Tchaikovsky to form a double bill with his Nutcracker, the men are resolutely 100 per cent male Slavic heroes. After its 1892 premiere Iolanta slipped into obscurity, with the only major recording being a 1984 outing with Mstislav Rostropovich conducting his wife Galina Vishnevskaya in the title role.

This year, however, saw a New York staging in a double bill with Bartok's Duke Bluebeard's Castle. And the same production screened last month in this country as part of the MetLive cinema presentations, which may make the new recording a welcome souvenir for some.

In both cases, Anna Netrebko takes the lead, although the CD recording took place almost three years ago, in a German concert hall, with the Slovenian Philharmonic Orchestra under Emmanuel Villaume.

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Tchaikovsky's Iolanta is a fairytale concerning a blind princess who has her sight miraculously restored through the redemption of love. If it sounds Wagnerian, then so too does some of the music. One of the composer's last works (he died the following year), it has the same sumptuous chromaticism of his Pathetique Symphony.

Netrebko fans will be pleased to have their favourite diva up close and personal. She brings utter authority to this repertoire and is remarkably sensitive in her portrayal of young innocence. Alas, the fine Slovenian orchestra could have had its fair share of the sonic arena.

There are many splendid moments for the men, whom we also hear in close-up, particularly the stirring Sergey Skorokhodov as the noble Vaudemont who provides the heroine's salvation. They make a thrilling pair in their final duet, and those so inclined can play party games recognising the composer's self-quotations, including a stirring march courtesy of his Fifth Symphony.

Tchaikovsky: Iolanta

(Deutsche Grammophon)

Verdict:

"Tchaikovsky's final stage work is more than just an operatic footnote"