Generally considered Mozart's earliest operatic masterpiece, Idomeneo was long
overshadowed by the composer's later works - Don Giovanni, The Marriage of
Figaro, The Magic Flute and Cosi fan tutte. Idomeneo only began to be
performed in major international opera houses after World War II. What
audiences since then have discovered is a rich bounty of Mozart's music,
applied to a powerful classical plot. During a storm at sea, Idomeneo, King of
Crete, vows to the god Neptune that, if he survives, he will sacrifice the
first human he meets on shore. The victim turns out to be his own son,
Idamante. Mozart revelled in the intense human emotions of the story, creating
finely drawn musical portraits of each character. This 1982 production of
Idomeneo was the first ever mounted at the Metropolitan. An international cast
was assembled that could hardly be bettered. In the title role Luciano
Pavarotti was praised for his "great dignity, impeccable musical taste and
remarkable clarity of tone and diction." Ileana Cotrubas is "wonderful" and
"lovely" as Ilia, and Frederica von Stade in the role of Idamante "sang and
acted a just about ideal performance." Hildegard Behrens received a "show
stopping ovation for her concluding mad scene," while James Levine's
conducting was judged "flawless in pace and idiomatic understanding." This
presentation of Idomeneo is subtitled in English and was taped during the
November 6, 1982 performance at the Metropolitan Opera. No material was taken
from rehearsals, other performances or remake recording sessions.