5/5 BEETHOVEN- Fidelio
  by Carlos Ivan Grimas Acosta (David, Panama)
Beethoven's unique opera work is really a great musical and drama development of the stage art. In this case, one of the greatest moments of the german master is performed by a great cast of singers, actors and of course, the musical direction by one of the best american directors of the twenty century: maestro Leonard Berstein. This 1978 version is unique in all details. The stage production by Otto Schenk have the closest aproximation to Beethoven original ideas of the drama set in Seville, Spain rather than other modern and fancy productions. All the performance is full of great pasion and dramatic force, excellent singers like Gundula Janowitz and the beloved Lucia Pop have just gone at the highest point of the german vocal art. Maestro Berstein impressed us with his marvelous and carismatic way of conducting and keep us from the opening oberture up to the finale with any hesitation or boring whatsoever. Its really gorgeous! The Chorus and Viena State Opera Orchestra put the right complement of sublime beauty, pathos, joy and hope which caracterize the all escense of the Beethoven 's only opera. We highly recomend this version on dvd to all Beethoven music lovers and must be in the collection of all opera fan. Thanks Amazon for having this video on your records!

5/5 One of best Fidelios available
  by Gayla McDowell (Orange, CA United States)
This is a live performance and is not the same as the studio recording made with almost the same cast and issued on CD. If offered a choice, I would get this video because it's a video, but I have the CD set too and wish to keep both. It is one of Bernstein's best performances and features Gundula Janowitz as Leonore, Lucia Popp as Marzelline, and Rene Kollo as Florestan. Among the videos currently available, this would be my first choice. Bernstein made a slight rearrangement for the Leonore overture No.3 so that it is just a continuation of the vocal duet before it. My only criticism is that the spoken dialogue was shortened too much, and especially I would have liked to hear the brief words of Florestan and Leonore just before the "O namenlose Freude" duet, where Florestan asks: O, meine Leonore, was hast du fuer mich getan? (Oh my Leonore, what have you done for me?) To which she replies "Nichts, mein Florestan" (Nothing, my Florestan).

5/5 Wow!
  by Kenneth Cooper (Albuquerque)
I've been a Fidelio nut ever since experiencing a wonderful performance at Tanglewood several years ago.

This Fidelio grabbed hold and wouldn't let go: It held on fully and completely all the way through to the end. For me that's really unusual. Typically there's some element that breaks the emotional spell, some individual performance that doesn't ring true, or music that doesn't hold continuity of emotional intensity. When this was all over I found myself clapping and Bravoing right along with the rest of the audience.

Reading other comments, it looks like Bernstein's antics don't hold well with some of the more diagnostic reviewers; but watch and you can see where Bernstein's emotions transfer beautifully to the very sole of the musicians which in turn transfers right to the heart of the listener.

I LOVED this performance. And .. It looked and sounded great on my system. The next version of this I buy will be when it comes out on Blu-Ray or HD-DVD where the audio will be in one of those much improved SACD like lossless formats (e.g. Dolby True HD).

5/5 BERNSTEIN LEADS A GREAT PERFORMANCE
  by Jesse Knight (woburn ma usa)
This performance is far more than the sum of it's parts. Several reviews have found valid things to complain about. Janowitz has not got quite a big enough voice for Leonora, yet she brings a humanity to the role that evaded Flagstad and Nilsson. Benackova has the voice for Leonora, but is not visually credible. Benackova is wonderful as the Bartered Bride. If we accept the concept that Leonora is a real person who is an extension of the mythical Pamina in the Magic Flute, a smaller voiced Leonora becomes very credible. Read Zizek and Dolar- Opera's Second Death. Janowitz was my favorite Pamina until I heard Hartelius.

Popp is possibly the greatest Marzelline ever, making this DVD a great tribute to her tragically short life. The men are very credible in their roles as well. Audiophiles will find the sound a bit colored with a small degree of dynamic compression, but no distortion. Most people I suspect will find nothing about the sound to complain about, as it is good sound even by more recent standards. Only the chorus is muddy sounding in places.

Personally I feel that Bernstein and Furtwangler owned this opera. Both Conductors made studio recordings of Fidelio. Bernstein in the studio is more cautious, and of course all the minor flubbed notes have been replaced by retakes. As good as the studio recording is, This live DVD has an electric atmosphere that no studio recording can create, even if we ignore the picture. Picture quality is excellent, far better than my expectation. Video directing is also very good. There is no regietheater. Marzelline uses a old fashion iron, which does not have a line cord. Rocco does not take pictures with a "one use" flash camera. There are no communist era uniforms either. I for one enjoy some regietheater productions but have yet to find a regietheater version that holds a candle to this traditional production.

As one who attended many Bernstein concerts at the then Philharmonic Hall in New York, I cannot think of a better way to grasp the excitment he brought to music. Highly recommended and long overdue DVD.

5/5 Fidelio
  by Elena Novitskaya (Russia)
I am not the fan of an opera Fidelio, but for a long time wanted to buy this opera on DVD. I am very glad that I have bought this record! Fine scenery and suits,especially I was struck with a dry tree at a wall in 1 act, it as if speaks that in this prison there is no place to anything alive! And the bridge in the ending which opens towards to the sky, to the sun, freedom! Fine performance, not simple singing, and good works of actors. Leonore-Janowitz is the strong and resolute woman, little bit sad, but purposeful. Florestan-Kollo is humiliated,at him a sight of the torfured animal. For the greater expressiveness of an image of hero Rene Kollo even has offered of vocal, in the beginning 2 act he sings an aria hoarsely, it shakes! Don Pisarro-Sotin is the present vaniac, he is pleased blood and suffenings of prisoners. Lucia Popp is one of my favorite singers, at her is not present unsuccessful roles. Leonard Bernstein conducts ingeniously! It is fine performance, it can not leave indifferent anybody.