Search - Elizabeth Vidal, Georges Bizet, Felicien David :: Elizabeth Vidal ~ The Art of the Coloratura (French Opera Arias)

Vidal conquers all

Nicholas Limansky | New York | 03/06/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"For many listeners of today's operatic recordings it remains a mystery why Elisabeth Vidal has been overshadowed by her contemporary, Natalie Dessay. Possessing a warm, rich voice of good size and a range that has remained intact for almost 20 years, on this disc Vidal shows herself to be a true mistress of the French operatic literature. In this recording alone she ascends to at least a top F# and G.



For a balance of the standard and the rare, this is one of my favorite florid albums. Especially noteworthy is the remarkable Meditation from Massenet's Thais sung in key as a vocalise. Vidal's exquisite legato and solid musicianship makes this one of the true highlights of the disc. As is the rare solo arrangement of the Waltz from Faust, dynamically sung. Also welcome are the obscure arias from two Thomas operas that are unfamiliar even to the most learned of listeners. The rarely heard Mad Scene from Bizet's Jolie Fille de Perth is given one of the best performances on disc. This aria is rarely recorded and one can understand why - it is a treacherous aria with its wide leaps and slow coloratura and yet Vidal performs the piece with amazing ease and ends her spectacular version with a beautiful top F. The Fablieu from Manon, a wonderful aria that should not be an alternate in that opera is also given a lovely performance with pointed phrases and eloquent coloratura.

Vidal remains one of the finest florid singers on the international stage today, and it is most unfortunate that American audiences have not had much opportunity to become famliar with her work. I urge anyone interested in this repertoire to buy this CD."