Search - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Theodor Guschlbauer, Orchestre de l'Opéra de Lyon :: Natalie Dessay: Mozart: Airs de Concert [Concert Arias / Konzertarien]

Deserving Diva...

DP | Ottawa, Canada | 12/26/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Ms. Dessay combines fluid lyricism with sensitive musicianship in this compilation of concert arias. Her coloratura is crystal clear, yet her instrument remains fluid and flexible. She posseses a distinct sound capable of drama as well as ease even in the highest possible ranges, in combination with extremely accurate mastery of all technical passages. My new favorite..."

The Finest Mozart Concert Arias Album

Akimon Azuki | 03/24/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is by far the absolute best Mozart Concert Arias. I've always found the Concert Arias more interesting than the opera arias and they could easily have replaced any of the major ones like Dove Sono or Come Scoglio. Her vorrei spiegarvi is unsurpassed and popoli di tesaglia has the highest note ever written on a vocal score; she hits it flawlessly. This is a great buy and the reason it's amazing is because she sings in Italian. She can not sing in German, so don't waste your money with any of her Mozart German recordings. She makes a terrible Queen of the Night because of diction, but she is phenomenal in French and Italian, even sometimes English. German requires a native born unfortunately which is why Edita Gruberova dominates that field."

Mozart arias of the high order

Akimon Azuki | 09/02/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"... though not the highest. Kudos to Nathalie for even taking these daring pieces on- this is some of Mozart's most challenging and stratospheric writing, but while I find Ms. Dessay absolutely sparkling in French repertoire, here she is just little nasal sounding in her Italian. And, this is a singer that can pull a nice, solid high G- and I heard a wicked recording of her doing it live!- but here, the 'Popoli Di Tessaglia' high notes are somewhat strained. Also, her considerable acting chops seem on pause here; I think she is a creature of stage and does not come across as well in the recording studio. Having said that, the long lines of 'Vorrei Spiegarvi' and the coloratura runs in 'No, Che Non Sei Capace' are close to perfect and the whole album is well worth buying if you like high flying Mozart arias, some of which are not even available anywhere else."