Mozart 22 Apollo et Hyacinthus (2006– ) Online

Apollo and Hyacinthus is new to me as an opera. And what a delight it is. Maybe not the most accessible of Mozart's operas, but one cannot deny that it is an achievement for an 11 year old. This Salzburg production was wonderful, one of my favourites of the hit-and-miss Mozart 22 series alongside Il Re Pastore, Il Sogno Di Scipione, Mitridate Re Di Ponto and Idomeneo. The costume and set design are traditional and baroque in style and look very beautiful and elegant. The staging is constantly emotionally engaging with no weirdness in sight. Musically, the production is outstanding, with lively and lush orchestral playing and Joseph Wallnig's conducting keeping things moving seamlessly. The small chorus sing beautifully. The singing is superb, the standout being Christiane Karg, like she did with comedy in Die Schuldigkeit Des Ersten Gebots she conveys tragedy here as Melia and does so in an incredibly moving way. Her singing is just as good with astounding range and precision, at her best in Laetari, Iocari and in her duet with Maximillian Keiner, which is to die for. Keiner's Oebalus is young, handsome and sung with such youthful purity. The Hyacinthus Jekaterina Tretjakova is also a standout even in a role that only has one aria and then gets killed off. Her singing is of powerful beauty with great ability and phrasing and she sings with pathos, I hope to see more of her in the future. Anja Schlosser is an impressive Apollo, especially in the second act duet with Karg. Astrid Hoffer as Zephyrus is not as good as the rest of the cast but is still very good, it's just that the overall standard is so great. The video direction is unobtrusive and used to good effect, at its best in the close ups during the orchestral Intermezzo between the second and third acts. All in all, a wonderful production. 10/10 Bethany Cox