Full on VERISMO... fabulous album!
S. Bernard | Mesa, AZ | 03/01/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)
"First, I couldn't believe there was no review for this CD!?!
I had this same album as a kid, and literally wore the cassette so thin it could no longer play. First and foremost, the selection of arias on this CD are particularly lovely. Maybe part of the problem is that Amazon doesn't list the arias. Here they are:
1) "Amor ti vieta" from Fedora by Giordano
2) "Dai campi, dai prati" from Mefistofele by Boito
3) "Giunto sul passo estremo" from Mefistofele by Boito
4) "La dolcissima effigie" from Adriana Lecouvreur by Cilea
5) "L'anima ho stanca" from Adriana Lecouvreur by Cilea
6) "Apri la tua finestra" from Iris by Mascagni
7) "O paradiso" from L'africana by Meyerbeer
8) "Pourquoi me réveiller..." from Werther by Massenet
9) "Un di all'azzurro spazio" from Andrea Chénier by Giordano
10) "Come un bel di di maggio from Andrea Chénier by Giordano
11) "Si, fui soldato" from Andrea Chénier by Giordano
12) "Ch'ella mi creda libero e lontano" from La fanciulla del West by Puccini
13) "Tra voi belle" from Manon Lescaut by Puccini
14) "Donna non vidi mai" from Manon Lescaut by Puccini
15) "Ah! Non m'avvincinate... No! no! pazzo son!" from Manon Lescaut by Puccini (with Neil Howlett, baritone (capitano))
This is such a cool selection- from the hauntingly memorable "Dai campi, dai prati" (which I hum all the time) to the heart-wrenching, "No...pazzo son!" I have to say that part of the reason I loved this album for so many years & was greatly relieved to see it available, is that Pavarotti's voice is still in full bloom here & he gives it his all. Leontyne Price once said you sing on the interest, not the principle, but I think Pavarotti was singing on the entire bank account the day(s) he recorded this one!
Of particular note (no pun intended) is the aria "La dolcissima effigie" from Adriana Lecouvreur... he does this one with a pianissimo that is in contrast to many of the other more verismo/larger than life arias on this CD. He entirely caresses the music on this aria - and although Carreras' voice is lovelier in the role, even he seemed to have trouble with the high tessitura required by the role and sang louder than I would have liked.
The entire album though is imbued with very strong emotional singing- while of course maintaining wonderful technique that is Pavarotti's alone. I can't stress how much the combination of songs on this album are so special- I guess part of it is the lyrics- such poetry! Especially Illica's Chénier- he's probably most remembered for his partnership with Giacosa as the librettists for the Puccini "holy trinity," but he was a great poet & lyricist in his own right. Btw, this CD includes the booklet with not only translations but summaries of each opera.
Over all a 6 star CD... thank goodness Decca re-released it. :)
"
Track Listings (15) - Disc #1