Gluck - Orfeo ed Euridice / Baker, Speiser, Gale, Leppard, Glyndebourne Opera - Region 1 DVD

Orfeo ed Euridice makes enormous demands of the mezzo-soprano, which Baker fulfills precisely, but it is not quite a one-woman show. Elisabeth Speiser (Euridice) and Elizabeth Gale (the God of Love) are not quite up to her level, but they provide adequate support. The chorus of demons is vividly scary in its finest moments; the blessed spirits are rather static and the concluding dances rather long, but they precisely embody the spirit of Gluck's limpid music. Raymond Leppard conducts with a detailed knowledge of the proper style. --Joe McLellan