Between 1810 and 1812 Rossini composed these five one-act "farces" for the Teatro San Moise in Venice. They may be formulaic--even in their plots, most of which concern a young couple fooling an older suitor, or a young couple trying to find happiness, or a Canadian suitor away from his home turf(!)--but each has something to recommend it and none outstays its welcome. And the last of the group, Il Signor Bruschino, is famous for its overture, in which Rossini asks the violinists to tap their bows against their stands--witty, unusual, and apparently annoying to the conservative Venetians.
These recordings have been available for a while--they appeared on the Claves label in the '90s--and they are all good, sometimes better than good, performances. Some of the singers are better than others, but what is consistent is the fine leadership of Marcello Viotti, who understands the style and idiom perfectly, and while going for lightness and humor he never underlines the slapstick. Even this early in Rossini's career he loved emphasizing the woodwinds, and Viotti showcases those special moments too. He paces the recitatives (sometimes a third of the opera) naturally, and his all-Italian casts handle them with ease and poise. The English Chamber Orchestra plays with lightness of touch and vivacity throughout.
In general, the lower-voiced men do the most impressive singing, with Bruno Pratico in both Cambiale and Bruschino and Natale de Carolis in L'inganno felice, Bruschino, and L'Occasione particularly good in their patter music and bright in their characterizations. Alessandro Corbelli shines in La scala di seta (all around the best-cast of the operas, with Ramon Vargas the youthful, golden-voiced tenor).
The women vary, but best are Maria Bayo in L'Occasione and Teresa Ringholz in La scala. Alessandra Rossi is nasty-sounding in Cambiale (there was an old recording of this opera on Mercury with Renata Scotto that's worth seeking out) and Amelia Felle is similarly shrill in L'Inganno felice. The tenors are a real problem: someone named Iorio Zannaro is in two of the operas, and it's no surprise we've heard little of him since; and aside from Vargas, only Luca Canonici in Bruschino is any good.
Librettos are in Italian only, the synopses are clumsily translated, and the track listings appear only on the back of individual slipcases. There's a better Bruschino on DG, and that old Cambiale is more worthy than this one, but over all, and at Brilliant's amazing bargain price, this set, with all five operas in one tidy box, is a very good buy.
--Robert Levine, ClassicsToday.com