"As with the Pappano version, one exhausts superlative on these two Rondines. The principals are marvelous, the sound is superb, although the Pappano version possibly profits from newer technology in the years between them, with the orchestral and vocal voices more distinct and separable in the Pappano. Gheorghiu and Alagna are just a bit more intimate and fresh, where Te Kanawa and Domingo more polished, but there is no way to choose between these two invaluable sets. A solid investment for anyones opera library."
Domingo and Te Kanawa , at the top of their game...
Kenneth Neill | Memphis, TN USA | 03/04/2000
(5 out of 5 stars)
"I have several recordings of La Rondine, undoubtedly Puccini's most underrated opera, but this one, just acquired, is far and away the best. The final duet ("Ma come puoi lasciarmi") is delivered with such power and majesty that you can practically "see" Domingo and Te Kanawa on stage. A real treat!"
Domingo and Te Kanawa connect beautifully.
Kenneth Neill | 08/16/1999
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This recording of Puccini's semi-popular opera is absolutely fantastic. Te Kanawa's pianissimo high notes in "Chi'il bel sogno di Doretta" are brilliantly done, showing she was able to fully master the difficult, yet beautiful, challenges of the role. Domingo's performance is, as usual, outstanding. Although the opera lacks any tenor arias, Domingo passionately and beautifully expresses his voice throughout the opera like no other (his opening to "Bevo al tuo fresco sorriso" is phenominal). Overall, this recording is a must-buy for the opera fan, especially for those who love Puccini's intimate melodies."
Sumptuous . . . well-sung . . . exasperating
L. E. Cantrell | Vancouver, British Columbia Canada | 08/02/2005
(3 out of 5 stars)
"Source: Studio recording issued as a CBS Records Masterwork.
Sound: Perfectly satisfactory DDD stereo.
Documentation: Libretto in Italian, English, German and French. Photographs of Domingo, Te Kanawa, Nicolesco, Maazel and Puccini. Essay on the creation of the opera by Barrymore Laurence Scherer. Nothing on the circumstances in which the recording was made. No date is provided, not even a copyright symbol.
Format: Disk 1 - Act I, one track, 38:15; Act II, one track, 29:45. Disk 2 - Act III, one track, 35:17.
This recording appears to be out of print, just as the opera is inexplicably out of the standard repertory. "La Rondine" is a marvelously good opera that would be regarded as a masterpiece from any composer less identified with the profitable operatic mainstream than Puccini. As a Puccini opera, alas, it is sadly lacking in hit tunes.
"La Rondine" is commonly regarded as Puccini's operetta and discounted for that reason. However, anyone listening to this in the hope of hearing an Italianate "Merry Widow" will be quickly disabused of that notion. Puccini, himself, is quoted as saying that he would never write an operetta, but that he would do a comic opera on the lines of "Der Rosenkavalier." He did, in fact, catch at least one quality of "Rosenkavalier," the long, dying fall of an extended farewell.
D. L. Scherer's accompanying essay advances the interesting notion that "La Rondine" is in some ways a sequel to "La boheme." The time is twenty years later. Rodolfo, now called Prunier, has become a prosperously successful poet. (Hacking out libretti for for Donizetti and Verdi, perhaps?) He has achieved much, but is uncomfortably aware that he has also lost much of what he was. Musetta (Magda here) has achieved comfort, security and even a form of love, but she yearns for the taste of a final romantic fling--if not necessarily the whole messy adventure. Magda inevitably finds herself sitting in a popular cafe while flirting with an attractive young man. As Scherer aptly points out, "Puccini must have had a devil of a time setting ... the second act ... for the temptation to indulge in self-borrowing must have been great."
The big names among the cast are Tiri Te Kanawa and Placido Domingo, with Leo Nucci in a supporting role. All three sing very well, as expected. All three are, at best, generic in their performances, as also expected. The remaining cast members are all good-sounding professionals and wholly forgettable.
The Ambrosian Opera Chorus and the LSO sound fine.
Maazel's conducting is admirable and self-consistent, but I could wish for a little more of "Boheme's" raucousness and a little less of "Rosenkavalier's" wistfulness.
Even with my minor reservations about the singers and the conducting, I would normally assign this recording five stars. I have not done so because this is one of the most exasperating operatic packages I've ever encountered. Look at the track list: three tracks for three acts! Sony or CBS (or whoever) seems to be laboring under the impression that the opera is on audio cassette, not CD. Look at the timing. If ever a second disk demanded a filler, this one does! And yet there is nothing.
Things that otherwise would be nitpicks loom large in this set. What is with the date? I suspect that the set comes from the late 1980s, but why aren't we told? And the cover illustration! It is clear that the opera is set in the Paris of Louis Napoleon, about 1860. Why, then, do we see a young man in a three-cornered hat and a woman dressed appropriately for, say, 1770? (Starveling little Opera d'Oro regularly inflicts that kind of silly error; a self-respecting, major recording company should not.) The whole thing smacks of an indifference to the buying public that boarders on contempt."
Oh my!!!
Good Stuff | 01/26/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Yes, yes, yes. I know. There is a "track problem". One track per act, spread over two discs. Early digital. CBS was stupid. Sony should reissue it properly tracked, but it never will. So that's that.
However, what a magnificent recording! Dame Kiri and Domingo at the absolute pinnacle of their considerable talents. And Maazel's conducting is a model of appropriateness.
This is one of those occasions when it all seemed to go right, sort of like Beecham's "La Boheme". Yes, it's that good!
Do not deprive yourself. This is a recording that, even taking into account the caliber of the esteemed principals involved, will surprise you."
Track Listings (2) - Disc #1