"Don Quichotte" at the Moscow Easter Festival

Ferruccio Furlanetto had performed his famous Don Quichotte under the lead of Valery Gergiev with Mariinsky orchestra, soloists and chorus of the Academy of Young Singers at the Easter Festival in Moscow with the great success, standing ovation and stellar reviews.

Moscow had to wait for the “legendary Don Quichotte of our time” (Culture TV): two years ago he was scheduled to sing in Massenet’s opera, but cancelled due to illness. But “this opera looses half of it’s attraction without Furlanetto”, - as Valery Gergiev pointed during press-conference. And at this time Ferruccio Furlanetto indeed rewarded all expectations.

“The concert performance of “Don Qiochotte” with the famous Italian bass Ferruccio Furlanetto in the title part can’t passed unnoticed. Written in it’s time especially for Chalyapin this part became “difficult to crack nut” for the basses, because demands not only vocal show, but pure breed of the voice, noble artistry, ability to turn declamation into the hymn for the beauty of human soul. And this is the most difficult in the art. This is a miracle which was shown by Ferruccio Furlanetto to Moscow public”, - wrote Irina Muravieva the central Rossijskaya Gazeta.

Sergey Hodnev in Commersant added: “…Ferruccio Furlanetto did even more for the dramatic truth and adequacy of what was going on stage…. It was expected because Don Quichotte is one of the gems in his crown, and all nuances of the vocal and acting he is overcoming with ease… His Knight is natural, noble without any pose and masterfully done…”.

«The highest levels of singer’s masterly performance make it possible his vocal line to be very scrupulously calculated from the beginning to the end. Noble behaviour and outstanding actor gift always won him hearts of public. Although a pathetic scene of his death, where he appeared before us as a knight of a Rueful Countenance, in other respects a comic behaviour was not foreign to the genius of his personage. He soulfully whistled, stirred Sancho’s enthusiasm in their conversations, not giving his company to be boring (note that the composer himself considered his opera as a comedy)» - Maria Zilkina, belcanto.ru

The performance was live webcast by Para Classics and available to view here.