Christoph Pohl has an athletic frame, and his fast, slick movements make the character of the Count all the more maniacal and menacing. His voice is a little light, but Goldschmidt’s clear orchestration ensures that he never has to compete. Gal James also looks and sounds the part for Beatrice. Johannes Debus leads a convincing account of the score. The Vienna Symphony bring life and color to Goldschmidt’s music.

The Bregenz performance is unquestionably strong, despite eccentricities in Johannes Erath’s postmodern production…Gal James gives a moving performance as Beatrice, her tone bright and wonderfully secure…The Vienna Symphony play beautifully for Johannes Debus, who propels the score forwards with considerable force, all the while mindful of its lyrical beauty and the myriad details of Goldschmidt’s striking orchestration.

The Bregenz team hit the bullseye by lightening the lurid tone and letting the story speak for itself. There is never a dull moment…Pohl takes the brave route with Cenci…With his baritone in lustrous form, this is a performance to savour…Seventy years on from its inception, this bold revival, aided by intelligent video direction, does timely justice to [Goldschmidt’s] magnum opus.

The Bregenz cast, led by Gal James as Beatrice, with Dshamilja Kaiser as her stepmother Lucrezia and Christoph Pohl as the swaggering, monstrous Francisco Cenci, complete with diamante codpiece, is a very decent one, and Johannes Debus makes sure that Goldschmidt’s whirling, churning orchestral writing gets the attention it deserves.