Track Listings (26) - Disc #1| All Artists: Samuel Ramey, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Anna Tomowa-Sintow, Berliner Philharmoniker, Agnes Baltsa, Herbert von Karajan, Paata Burchuladze, Kathleen Battle, Gösta Winbergh, Chor der Deutschen Oper Berlin, Ferruccio Furlanetto, Alexander Malta Title: Mozart - Don Giovanni / Ramey, Tomowa-Sintow, Baltsa, Battle, Winbergh, Furlanetto, Malta, Burchuladze, Berlin Phil., Karajan Members Wishing: 0 Total Copies: 0 Label: Deutsche Grammophon Release Date: 10/25/1990 Genre: Classical Styles: Opera & Classical Vocal, Historical Periods, Classical (c.1770-1830), Modern, 20th, & 21st Century Number of Discs: 3 SwapaCD Credits: 3 UPC: 028941917928 |
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Search - Samuel Ramey, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Anna Tomowa-Sintow :: Mozart - Don Giovanni / Ramey, Tomowa-Sintow, Baltsa, Battle, Winbergh, Furlanetto, Malta, Burchuladze, Berlin Phil., Karajan
 | Samuel Ramey, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Anna Tomowa-Sintow Mozart - Don Giovanni / Ramey, Tomowa-Sintow, Baltsa, Battle, Winbergh, Furlanetto, Malta, Burchuladze, Berlin Phil., Karajan Genre: Classical
With Herbert von Karajan leading the Berlin Philharmonic in any performance, there are some automatic expectations: the music will be delivered with exemplary polish, balance, and a clear, logically implemented overall con... more » |
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Amazon.com With Herbert von Karajan leading the Berlin Philharmonic in any performance, there are some automatic expectations: the music will be delivered with exemplary polish, balance, and a clear, logically implemented overall concept. These values will be pursued, if necessary, even at the expense of dramatic impact--the kind of impact you expect and get from Muti and Giulini, but there will be a beauty and a coordination in the performance that compensates for any lessening of purely theatrical excitement. As a matter of fact, there is plenty of theatrical impact in this Don Giovanni, and there are moments when the singing lacks the ultimate polish, but von Karajan's touch is evident everywhere, and it makes a tremendous difference. --Joe McLellan Similar CDs
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CD ReviewsA Peerless Recording! J. Anderson | Monterey, CA USA | 08/28/2000 (5 out of 5 stars) "This is a matchless version of Mozart's greatest opera. Everything is in place here in spades!- the finest orchestral ensemble on the planet playing under the irreplaceable guidance of that mystical genius von Karajan, in a recording that exemplifies the recording art with breathtaking sonics employed so wisely, so justly that one thinks only of Mozart! It is a remarkable achievment cemented by as fine a singing ensemble as I've ever experienced assembled for one recording. Sam Ramey's Don is without peer on the modern operatic stage. Such risks! so thoroughly vindicated! And he has grown into this consummate assimilation of the role with such humility and such assurance- there really is nothing comparable to his Don Giovanni. Shining in the role of Donna Anna is the legendary Anna Tomowa-Sintow, a Mozart singer of the highest caliber, so prodigal of voice, and so "Karajan sounding", as the idea goes! Battle, of course, sings with characteristically limpid legato when you least expect it, creating an opulent Zerlina balanced like a sword point against the innocence. Incidentally, the filmed version of the Salzburg rehearsal by Karajan of this cast reveals a great deal of how Karajan achieved the level of musical interplay found in this recording. Furlanetto's Leporello is the perfect foil to Ramey's Don, and the casting of the two is the right one here, known as they are for liking to switch roles when playing this opera together! Agnes Baltsa is a good choice for Donna Elvira, if not everyone's ideal. It is, after all, a difficult role to cast, and one sees Karajan's thinking, in terms of ensemble timbre, the more one listens to the whole playing of the opera. Is it not one of the sterling comforts of our time that in Herbert von Karajan we have been privileged to experience not only a peerless musical intelligence, but to have experienced it at a time when, indeed because of his own extravagantly gifted devotion to the recording art, every nuance of his genius could be captured with an almost hypnotic clarity? Something indeed to be hugely grateful for. This recording comes as perfect art and has no rival." Don't trust the critics! J. Anderson | 01/29/1999 (5 out of 5 stars) "A battle for dilettante critics rages on. With a great insight someone named Iago says to us "io che non sono un critico". I plead to you, don't hurry with your criticism, learn the work, study the performances and even then try to find something that you liked or found intriguing. What credentials do they bring to the table to badmouth late Herbert von Karajan, an undisputed genius of the 20th century? Listen carefully: magnificent overture, smooth tempos, clear transitions, grandiose finales, and carefully refined arias - all this and more makes Karajan's "Don Giovanni" great. The casting is assembled well too, aside from rather weak but still lyrical Gosta Winbergh as Don Ottavio. You could only wish it had been Lopardo or Araiza. Kathleen Battle stands out as marvelous Zerlina, what other singer could sound so much like an innocent country girl? Ramey's portrayal of the title character is what Don Juan is all about - seduction and swagger; an amazing "Fin ch'han dal vino"! What an interesting contrast between his bass and the bass of Il Commendatore Paata Burchuladze! The "Don Giovanni, a cenar teco m'invitasti" scene is haunting. Anna Tomowa-Sintow sounds as robust and powerful as ever. Agnes Baltsa's seductive mezzo is another interesting casting idea for Donna Elvira, the ensembles with the sopranos, therefore, do not sound shrilling and each of them stands out clearly. Furlanetto's Loparello is actually funny without exaggeration. What more could one wish for? Less criticism, perhaps. In the words of Don Giovanni himself "La ci darem la mano."" An excellent choice--my favorite. Timothy Kearney | 06/07/1999 (5 out of 5 stars) "I'm a big fan of Karajan now, and would have been sooner if I hadn't believed all the negative things critics have written about him (although the Pengiun Guide--the classical music collector's "Bible"--generally says wonderful things about his work). Yet even I was surprised when I first heard his "Don Giovanni"--Karajan really surpassed himself on this recording. He does so many interesting things with the music, and yet holds it all together so well, this quickly became my favorite version of the opera. From the overture's opening notes, you know this is going to be something special. The Leporello is the funniest and most musical I've heard (van Dam is great, too--Taddei is overrated). Samuel Ramey is indisputably one of the great Don Giovanni's--his voice is both suave and powerful. Kathleen Battle is (as one would expect) a beautful and flirtatious Zerlina. I prefer Kiri te Kanawa in the role of Donna Elvira, but Baltsa adds a new perspective with her thicker, deeper voice (her "Mi tradi" aria is admittedly not that strong). The Don Ottavio is actually very good, in spite of what another reviewer wrote--better than Luigi Alva's, to my ears. Anna Tomowa-Sintow has an overpowering yet well-controlled voice, not light like Joan Sutherland's, but I think more appropriate for the role of the frenetic and vengeful Donna Anna. The Il Commendatore (I hope that's spelled right!) is exceedingly powerful--his voice in the finale is truly disturbing (in a good way). The recording techniques in this version are great, too. The voices are balanced well, and you can hear more orchestral detail than on many other recordings. In fact, that's what impressed me most about Karajan--I heard things in this version that I never have before. I personally think Karajan's "Don Giovanni" is better than the legendary Giulini version. Not all of the singers are as strong, but the overall concept is more unified. There are really very few weaknesses here, and yet many bursts of originality. I only wish Karajan had recorded another version earlier on, so Gundula Janowitz could have been in the role of Donna Elvira."
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