The Orchestra Sings

La Traviata, opera Libiamo libiamo
Composed by Giuseppe Verdi
Conducted by Carmen E. Dragon
Il barbière di Siviglia (The Barber of Seville), opera Largo al factotum
Composed by Gioachino Rossini
Conducted by Carmen E. Dragon
La bohème, opera Quando men vo
Composed by Giacomo Puccini
Conducted by Carmen E. Dragon
Faust, opera Gloire immortelle
Composed by Charles Gounod
Conducted by Carmen E. Dragon
Martha, opera M'Appari
Composed by Friedrich von Flotow
Conducted by Carmen E. Dragon
Pagliacci, opera Vesti la giubba
Composed by Ruggero Leoncavallo
Conducted by Carmen E. Dragon
Madama Butterfly (Madame Butterfly), opera Un bel di...
Composed by Giacomo Puccini
Conducted by Carmen E. Dragon
Rigoletto, opera La donna e mobile
Composed by Giuseppe Verdi
Conducted by Carmen E. Dragon
Madama Butterfly (Madame Butterfly), opera Love duet
Composed by Giacomo Puccini
Conducted by Alfred Newman
Sadko, opera in 3 (or 5) acts Song of India
Composed by Nikolay Andreyevich Rimsky-Korsakov
Conducted by Carmen E. Dragon
Samson et Dalila, opera in 3 acts, Op. 47 Mon coeur s'ouvre a ta voix
Composed by Camille Saint-Saens
Conducted by Carmen E. Dragon
La bohème, opera Love Scene
Composed by Giacomo Puccini
Conducted by Alfred Newman
Tannhäuser, opera, WWV 70 O du mein holder Abendstern
Composed by Richard Wagner
Conducted by Carmen E. Dragon
La Traviata, opera Amami Alfredo
Composed by Giuseppe Verdi
Conducted by Carmen E. Dragon

The Orchestra Sings,Friedrich von Flotow,Charles Gounod,Ruggero Leoncavallo,Giacomo Puccini,Nikolay Andreyevich Rimsky-Korsakov,Gioachino Rossini,Camille Saint-Saens,Giuseppe Verdi,Richard Wagner,Alfred Newman,Carmen E. Dragon,Angel Records,Classical,French Romantic Opera,German/Austrian Romantic Opera,Italian Romantic Opera,Miscellaneous Music,Opera,Russian Romantic Opera

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THE Best of Two of the Best........
It is what it is, and I like it
faking and industry crass commercialism
A treasure
Best of the Best

Ray Sings, Basie Swings
Ray Charles , and Count Basie Orchestra
Manufacturer: Concord Records
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Duets: An American Classic
Before Me
Bring It on Home... The Soul Classics
From This Moment On
Half the Perfect World

ASIN: B000H0MNOE
Release Date: 2006-10-03

Tracks:

Oh What A Beautiful Morning
Let The Good Times Roll
How Long Has This Been Going On?
Every Saturday Night
I Can't Stop Loving You
Cryin' Time
Busted
Come Live With Me
Feel So Bad
The Long And Winding Road
Look What They've Done To My Song
Georgia On My Mind

Amazon.com

To fake or not to fake: That is the question consumers must answer for themselves in assessing this feat of aural Photoshopping: an "imaginary concert" created by combining recently discovered soundboard tapes of Ray Charles's vocals from a mid-'70s European show and newly recorded backing by the Count Basie Orchestra--the "ghost band," still on the road 22 years after Count's passing. Charles is in exceptional voice, singing the heck out of standards like "How Long Has This Been Going On?," Genius classics like "Busted," and pop covers like Melanie's "Look What They've Done to My Song." His performance is a thrilling corrective to forgettable posthumous albums like Genius Loves Company, designed to cash in on the new audience created for him by the movie Ray. But as competently as the Basie band fill in the blanks under the direction of Bill Hughes, with Joey DeFrancesco guesting on organ, most of the new arrangements are rather pallid, and the ensemble lacks the personality of both the Basie orchestra and Charles's best groups. And as attractive as Ray Sings, Basie Swings may be for the casual listener, the gimmickry will appall serious fans, particularly since neither Charles nor Basie--who never collaborated in life--was around to lend his approval. Is The Doors Sing, Woody Herman Swings next? --Lloyd Sachs

From Amazon.ca

Ray Sings, Basie Swings proves not only that there's a market for Brother Ray's every last recorded utterance (and a breathless one at that), but that musical grafting can reap some seriously satisfying rewards. After Concord Records A&R chief John Burk mined his label's vaults in 2005 and came across tapes labeled "Ray/Basie," he made a move to re-record the songs, originally performed in the 1970s; the result is these 12 tracks, in which Charles's whiskey-weathered, old-soul vocals are laid over arrangements by the current Count Basie Orchestra. Charles fans couldn't ask for a classier pairing or more seamless studio wizardry: The classics, from "I Can't Stop Loving You" to "Busted" to "Georgia on My Mind," play as though orchestrated by the Genius himself--tight, nuanced, and intimate-sounding. Less familiar tracks, like the down-home deep-South number "Every Saturday Night" and a couple of covers ("Look What They've Done to My Song, Ma" and "The Long and Winding Road") offer so much in the way of novelty it's tempting to forget that what's playing is mostly the result of modern experimentation. Deep as the disc runs--and no one who who hears the broken-hearted "Cryin' Time" will deny it runs deep--the most essential track on Ray Sings, Basie Swings may be its most lighthearted one: There is no hearing Ray Charles sing "Oh What a Beautiful Morning"--even if it's four in the afternoon, even if it's raining torrentially--without agreeing. --Tammy La Gorce

Album Description

The producers of this CD discovered archival reels of Ray Charles and the Count Basie Orchestra performing live together in 1973. Although the vocals were superior, the remaining elements were or extremely poor quality. They decided to bring the current Count Basie Orchestra into the studio and, using the latest technology, they carefully and painstakingly laid down a new musical backdrop for Charles' towering vocals.

More from Ray Charles and the Count Basie Orchestra

Genius Loves Company
Ultimate Hits Collection
Ray!
Soundtrack

America's #1 Band: The Columbia Years
Count Basie at Newport
Swing Shift

Customer Reviews:

THE Best of Two of the Best...............2007-07-03

Ray Charles' songs and the Count's music...an incredible combination that truly showcases the best work ever put together by these two timeless artists. Thanks to technology and a lot of painstaking work, Charles and Basie's "recording" with each other will top the "wish-list" of all jazz/R & B collectors for many years to come!!!!!!!!!!!!

It is what it is, and I like it.......2007-06-11

I was standiing in a well known book store a while back, suffering through Rod Stewart's Still the Same...Great Rock Classics Of Our Time, when finally a young employee put me out of my misery with this great recording. What a breath of fresh air! Compared to Rod's yawning, lifeless, "the tape is full, when do I get paid?" sounding recordings, here is Ray belting it out with all the soul and power that few could ever possess. Sure, I found out later, that we had been a wee bit had, that this was a bit of "aural Photoshopping". but what a great job it was. As a graphic designer, I have created many pieces by splicing 2 or 3 separate photos together. This CD is sort of like that. As long as the purchasers of this work know this before they buy it, I see no problem. It is what it is - a beautiful piece of music, and I like it.

faking and industry crass commercialism.......2007-05-30

This is the recording that never was. One will never know what the original ray charles tapes sounded like--all we know from the liner notes is that much was unuseable and that through the genius of modern technology, ray charles' lyrics were improved and melded with an improvised new basie (after the Count) band's music. Whether Ray would have wished it his way or did it this way is an unknown and the effort, in the circumstances, exploits an artist and his public to improve the bottom-line of a recording company. That, in my view, is a sad commentary on the state of today's music "industry."

A treasure.......2007-05-26

Of the many wonderful Ray Charles collections, this disk is one that would be a perfect introduction to those who might not have experienced the music from this late genius of his realm. Perfect recording for the upcoming summer months out by the pool, or at the beach!!!

Best of the Best.......2007-04-26

This is one collaboration...well re-mixed, dubbed, whatever CD that you could ever ask for.

Average customer rating:

The Whole Thing
Hauntingly Beautiful
Good-enough readings but outstanding sound
Passionate
Maybe this is THE (one disc-) Peer Gynt album to own ...

Grieg: Peer Gynt

Manufacturer: Virgin Classics
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Pytor Illych Tchaikovsky: The Nutcracker - Complete Ballet

ASIN: B0007Z47JI
Release Date: 2005-06-07

Tracks:

No. 1 At The Wedding (Prelude To Act I)
No. 2 Halling
No. 4 The Abduction Of The Bride
No. 6 Peer Gynt And The Woman In Green
No. 7 Peer Gynt: 'You Can Tell Great Men By The Style Of Their Mounts!'
No. 3 Springar
No. 8 In The Hall Of The Mountain King
No. 9 Dance Of The Mountain King's Daughter
No. 12 The Death Of Ase (Prelude To Act III)
No. 13 Morning Mood (Prelude To Act IV)
No. 15 Arabian Dance
No. 16 Anitra's Dance
No.17 Peer Gynt's Serenade
No. 19 Solveig's Song
No. 20 Peer Gynt At The Statue Of Memnon
No. 21 Peer Gynt's Homecoming. Stormy Evening On The Sea (Prelude To Act V)
No. 22 The Shipwreck
No. 23 Solveig Sings In The Hut
No. 25 Whitsun Hymn: 'O Blessed Morning'
No. 26 Solveig's Cradle Song

Customer Reviews:

The Whole Thing.......2007-05-10

If there's an earlier 'Peer Gynt' recording that's complete (as opposed to just the 'suite') I've never heard of it. This is the entire incidental music to the play, not just the usual 'Dawn', 'The Hall of the Mountain King' 'Solveig's Song', etc.
Jarvi's reading is smooth and incisive and the choral parts are wonderful. I've never heard a scarier version of HOTMK. I never even knew that there was a solo vocal part for Peer himself, but here it is.

My only complaint-and it's a tiny one-is that the selections are not in the order that they would appear in Ibsen's play. But that's picking a very small nit indeed.

Hauntingly Beautiful.......2007-03-11

Conductor Paavo Jarvi does a masterful job of leading the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra. The orchestra plays with great emotion and precision creating an exciting and almost hypnotic effect. Although Beecham's version is very good, his Peer Gynt does not come close to matching the sheer beauty of Jarvi's.
The soloists on this album are outstanding. I consider baritone Peter Mattei to be the most talented baritone of his type today and his rendition of Peer Gynt's Serenade is nothing short of incredible. Soprano Camilla Tilling as Soveig has a lovely ethereal sound to her voice which is used to great effect in her songs. Tilling has the loveliest female voice I have ever heard. Mezzo Charlotte Hellekant has also grown on me as Anitra. Many of these vocal songs are not included on other versions of Peer Gynt, which is a great shame. The choir, something I don't usually enjoy, is very impressive.
I would rate this CD as by far the best version of Peer Gynt and perhaps my favorite CD of all time. The sound quality of the recording should also be mentioned because it is absolutely stunning.

Good-enough readings but outstanding sound.......2007-02-21

I don't find that Paavo Jarvi and his Estonian forces have much to say in the familiar numbers from Peer Gynt. You must turn to Beecham for sheer delight in famous numbers like In The Hall of the Moutain King, Morning, Anitra's Dance, and so on. Where this recording scores is in the unfamiliar numbers; Peter Matteo's excellent rendition of the little-known Peer Gynt's Serenade is one highlight, as is the convincingly crude folk fiddling that begins half a dozen numbers.

Secondly, there's the sound. The engineers have achieved quite exceptinally clear, open sonics that I've never heard the like of in Peer Gynt. Even when Jarvi's conducting is ordinary and his Estonian musician ae playing at far less than virtuosic level, the gorgeous sounds coming out of one's speakers remain alluring. As far as completeness goes, the Ruud 2-CD set from Bis is unchallenged.

Passionate.......2006-08-18

The story line gives the listener a guide to follow the music, but the score leaves out the connections for the listener to only imagine the performance. The music is passionate and descriptive and introduces the listener to the singing voices of parts of the presentation that are left out in the "Suite." I appreciate hearing it over and over.

Maybe this is THE (one disc-) Peer Gynt album to own ..........2006-02-15

... to keep closely beside the gorgeous, incisively intelligent and deeply concentrated performance (also on 1 CD) with Esa-Pekka Salonen conducting the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra and Barbara Hendricks singing the role of Solveig (Sony Classical).
Together with the recordings by Neeme Jarvi (27 cues; DGG), Marriner (only 12 cues; EMI), Tate (17 cues; EMI), Blomstedt (19 cues; Decca), Dreier (the first truly complete recording of all of the original music (1978); 32 cues, including 'Bridal Procession', 'Solveig's Song' and three 'Norwegian Dances' all of them n o t originally written for the play; Unicorn UKCD + NKFCD) and Ruud (the first complete recording with 29 cues plus all of the dialogue, making a total of 51 cues, coming up on 113 minutes; BIS), these two (1-CD) albums by Paavo Jarvi and Esa-Pekka Salonen are as complete as can get concerning this so called 'incidental' music for the Henrik Ibsen play of Peer Gynt. Nowadays, Peer Gynt is Norway's No. 1 national epic, thereby giving this music extra significance and poignancy. Originally, there are in all some twenty-six numbers of incidental music for the play: almost ninety minutes of music, as can be learned from the booklet-essay. And according to the booklet, twenty of those are on this album; No. 5, 10, 11, 14, 18 and 24 are left out of this recording. 'Solveig's Song' wasn't originally written for the stage play but nonetheless included as such on this CD, so actually 19 original pieces from Peer Gynt, op. 23 are on this album, and not 20. But anyhow, such 'criticism' would amount to nitpicking ;-)
Here I would like to warn the reader that this will be a somewhat one-sided review, as I have only ever heard the Peer Gynt-recordings of Esa-Pekka Salonen, Per Dreier (freshly inspired, very natural performances) and this newest one of Paavo Jarvi. So this review is, for what it is worth, a personal and somewhat subjective approach, leaving out many other alternatives ...

Anyhow, as for the one-CD albums of Peer Gynt, op. 23, the merits of the Salonen/Oslo Philharmonic album (aside from the artistic ones, which are huge, as well as spot on as far as the 'Nordic' atmosphere of the music is concerned) lie in the fact that - up to now - it has been as near 'complete' a rendering of the music for Peer Gynt - as much as fits on one CD - as one might wish, covering the whole dramatic arc of the play from beginning to end (but without any of the spoken dialogue). I believe that this new recording with Paavo Jarvi is even more complete - as could be fitted on one disc - and gives the listener an even better feel of the drama of the play, if only because there is more singing here, namely by Peer Gynt (in the delightful 'Peer Gynt's Serenade'). Also, one hears here seldomly recorded, but wonderfully evocative pieces, such as 'Peer Gynt and the Woman in Green', 'Peer gynt: you can tell great men by the style of their mounts', 'Peer Gynt at the Statue of Memnon' (similar to 'Prelude Act III: Deep in the Coniferous Forest' on the Salonen/Oslo Philharmonic album. Actually it is the same piece, but it was never intended as the prelude to act III) and 'The Shipwreck'. Simply delightful, all this! As are all the soloists - truly, the best one could wish for! - singing in this recording. If I may steal a quote from Tim Ashley, The Guardian, May 13, 2005: "Peter Mattei is the swollen-headed Peer, Camilla Tilling a dignified, unsentimental Solveig and the incomparable Charlotte Hellekant a camp but lethally seductive Anitra." But although Camilla Tilling's Solveig is superb, IMHO she is not as completely involved-sounding or as convincing in the projecting of the troubled mind and heart of (especially the elderly) Solveig as does Barbara Hendricks for Esa-Pekka Salonen.
Even more than Esa-Pekka Salonen's performance with the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra, this recording offers the listener a more 'true to the letter-performance', as the music is here performed as heard during the play, as witnessed by 'Solveigs vuggevise' ('Solveig's Cradle Song'), where her singing is interlaced with the 'Whitsun Hymn', which, to the ears of this listener, only heigtening the sense of drama and storytelling.
All in all a fantastic album, I believe, and one that brings into focus the drama even more than other recordings of this music. Even though the orchestral playing of the Estonian National Symphony Orchestra is maybe a (slight) nodge below that of the Oslo Philharmonic under Salonen and missing out on the deepest or finer layers of melancholy and dramatic tension (which are indeed touched upon by Salonen, I think), it is warmly sympathetic and more lush (as is the acoustics of the recording venue).
The really adventurous or Peer Gynt-completists (and once taken this step, the all too brief Suites will never be an option again!) should really go for Dreier or Ruud - this last one is said to be simply magnificent (music as well as acting) - but this generous one disc album, with some of the most gorgeous playing and singing, is warmly recommended (at least, in my opinion) to anyone who loves this wonderfully evocative music. Delightful!

Average customer rating:

Beautiful waltzes conducted by a master of the genre.

Lehár: Waltzes

Manufacturer: EMI Classics
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Viennese Violin: The Romantic Music of Lehár, Kreisler & Strauss

ASIN: B00005NPJC
Release Date: 2003-03-25

Tracks:

Gold And Silver, Op.79
Ballsirenen (On Themes from 'The Merry Widow')
Where The Lark Sings
Giuditta
Luxembourg (On Themes from 'The Count Of Luxembourg')
Gypsy Love
Eva

Customer Reviews:

Beautiful waltzes conducted by a master of the genre........2003-08-31

Franz Lehar is most famous for his operetta "The Merry Widow," but he wrote several other tuneful operettas -- including "The Count of Luxembourg" -- as well as many delightful waltzes, the most famous of which is the great "Gold and Silver Waltz." This CD presents the "Gold and Silver Waltz," plus a collage of tunes from "The Merry Widow" and another from "The Count of Luxembourg," and other waltzes. The performances are by the Johann Strauss Orchestra conducted by the great waltz conductor Willy Boskovsky. If you love fine waltzes or simply are one of the few people who still appreciate the great music of the Romantic era, please get this delightful bargain CD while it's still available. Unfortunately, EMI CDs are often withdrawn shortly after their release. Please don't let this one get away from you.

Average customer rating:

a voice teacher and early music fan
An American Voice of the Century
An Essential Barber Disc
Price sings songs and arias written for her!!!
Fab voice, OK music

Leontyne Price Sings Barber

Manufacturer: RCA
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Price, Leontyne | Divas | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

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R. Strauss - Ariadne auf Naxos / Schwarzkopf · Seefried · Streich · Schock · Prey · PO · Karajan
Hermit Songs: High Voice
In Concert

ASIN: B000003FNF
Release Date: 1994-05-10

Tracks:

Hermit Songs, Op.29: At Saint Patrick's Purgatory
Hermit Songs, Op.29: Church Bell At Night
Hermit Songs, Op.29: Saint Ita's Vision
Hermit Songs, Op.29: The Heavenly Banquet
Hermit Songs, Op.29: The Crucifixion
Hermit Songs, Op.29: Sea-Snatch
Hermit Songs, Op.29: Promiscuity
Hermit Songs, Op.29: The Monk And His Cat
Hermit Songs, Op.29: The Praises Of God
Hermit Songs, Op.29: The Desire For Hermitage
Sleep Now, Op. 10, No. 2
The Daises, Op. 2, No. 1
Nocturne, Op. 13, No. 4
Nuvoletta, Op. 25
Knoxville: Summer Of 1915
Antony And Cleopatra: Give Me Some Music
Antony And Cleopatra: Give Me My Robe

Amazon.com

Early in her career, Leontyne Price formed an artistic liaison with Samuel Barber that resulted in his composing the female lead in Antony and Cleopatra for her. The disastrous premiere of that opera prevented Price from making a complete recording--a tragic loss in my opinion. She did record excerpts, however, and we at least have this disc to document these and the many other Barber works that she performed with incomparable artistry. Opera singing being what it is, Price didn't often have the chance to sing in English, so these performances are not only historically important, they are uniquely communicative as well. --David Hurwitz

Customer Reviews:

a voice teacher and early music fan.......2007-02-28

Samuel Barber(1910-1981), an American composer who studied piano, composition and singing at the prestigious Curtis Institute in Philadelphia, Pa. His works adhered largely to a lyrical, Romantic style within a loosely Classical framework. He left a rich legacy of more than 100 songs(only 37 published) and 3 operas in addition to many instrumental works...
Only a few of Barber's song texts come from American sources; more often he chose the work of Irish or English writers. He was drawn to 'Knoxville: Summer of 1915', a reflection of the American poet James Agee, because for him it vividly evoked his own childhood. With hints of blues and gently shifting rhythms, "Knoxville" is a mature expression of Barber's artistry as a musical poet and a master of orchestral color.
"The Hermit Songs" were first performed by Leontyne Price, soprano, with the composer at the piano at the Library of Congress, Washington,D.C..pn October 30, 1953. They are a setting of anonymous Irish texts of the eighth to thirteenth centuries written by monks and scholars. They are small poems,thoughts or observations, some very short, and speak in straightforward, droll, and often surprisingly modern terms of the simple life these men led, close to nature, to animals and to God.
I think a brief quote from one of my favorite of these Hermit songs sums up the kind of prose contained in most all of them: from 'The Monk and his Cat' :Pangur, white Pangur, How happy we are Alone together, Scholar and cat. Each has his own work to do daily; for you it is hunting, for me study......'
The music on this disc is well executed, and if you are a Barber advocate, it's a great collection of his song material. I happen to like MOST of his music, but it's for me a 'mood ' thing. He was born very close to where I live, so I guess I feel a kinship of sorts. I do think that he is one of the 'greats' in contemporary music!

An American Voice of the Century.......2005-10-09

While there is no question that Leontyne's opulent voice - here young and lustrous in the "Hermit Songs" recital (1953!) would have been a magnet for any composer, her affinity for Barber is clear, and his for her. The studio recording of the "Hermit Songs" has a better acoustic, but this one is just as thrilling in interpretation, and a bit less studied - and it has the two James Joyce settings, as well.
The "Knoxville" is beautifully judged - soft and swinging to start, then opening up into the drama and poetry of the middle and late sections. The Eleanor Steber original commission will always set the standard, but Price expands it that much farther, with longer phrases, and an ineffable langour that both she and Steber identified as the "Southern" stamp on this music. It's universal, as far as I am concerned, but it exalts and breaks the heart at the same time. Agee and Barber drink from the same fountain here.
I have never heard the entire "Anthony & Cleopatra", again written for Price, so I can't judge the work as a whole, just these two numbers. I have a special affection for the first scene, however - "Give Me Some Music" shows Price, in her absolute vocal prime, complete mistress of color and mood, and the motive, "My man of men" reappears in her final, regal, death scene. When she sings "O happy horse/ who bears the weight of Antony!" - I swear, my hair curls, no matter how many times I hear it.
In short, gotta have it.

An Essential Barber Disc.......2002-03-13

What a fabulous collection of music by Samuel Barber. Leontyne Price is at her absolute best in the songs. The entire Hermit Songs are here with four others. These recordings are of particular interest since Ms. Price performs with Samuel Barber at the piano. It is interesting to compare these recordings to the latter ones sung by Cheyrl Studer with John Browning at the piano for tempo changes.

The recording of Knoxville: Summer of 1915 is arguable the best of those available. Ms. Price sings with great sensitivity and Thomas Schippers and the New Philharmonia provide excellent support. Ms. Price said that Knoxville reminded her of her own childhood, and her commitment to the music comes through. I have the recording of Knoxville sung by Eleanor Steber, who commissioned this work, but I have always regarded the Price recording as the one to have.

The two excerpts from Antony and Cleopatra are of great interest since Ms. Price sang the role of Cleopatra at the premiere in 1966. Her performance here, also conducted by Schippers, is wonderful. The transfer to CD of these recordings is excellent. Perhaps the only down side is that the Hermit Songs were performed before an audience so there is applause between each song. After a while, this becomes monotonous. This disc is a must for anyone interested in Barber's music, and in particular for Knoxville.

Price sings songs and arias written for her!!!.......2001-12-05

This CD on which Leontyne Price memorializes many of the songs and arias composed by Sam Barber with her in mind should be in every collection of those who appreciate Barber's vocal music and the magnificent voice of one of the world's greatest singers of the 20th century. The collaboration of Barber and Price on the "Hermit Songs" and others reveals the composer's affection for the singer and the singer's understanding of the dramatic intent of the word and music. Alone, Price's interpretation of "Knoxville: Summer of 1915" is worth the price of the CD; it is singularly exquisite and cannot be matched! Price brings unmatched beauty, power, and understanding to the arias from "Anthony and Cleopatra" -- an opera composed with her voice in mind. It is indeed sad that Price never recorded "Vanessa," nor the song cycle "Despite and Still," nor the hauntingly beautiful "Sure on this Shining Night." You will not be disappointed if you buy this CD.

Fab voice, OK music.......2001-08-07

What is it that everyone seems to adore about Samuel Barber's music for voice. The man clearly wrote some absolutely divine orchestral pieces, there's no disputing that. But his vocal work seems to be lackluster. Hermit Songs is an example of modern classical music at it's worst. Disjointed, unmelodic, and difficult to follow. Price who's diction is fabulous on the later Knoxville piece is mushy durin the Hermit Songs, her voice is young and fresh, but not particularly glorious. She does deserve praise however for her promotion of American Music

Knoxville 1915 is a much better piece than Hermit songs and has more lyrical moments, but it still sounds so modern. If it has just been an orchestral piece it might've been fabulous but that is unfortunately not the case. It's almost as if Barber wrote a piece for orchestra and wrote a seperate piece for voice and just joined them, whether they made sense together or not. Unlike Hermit Songs, Price's performance more than makes up for the lack of brilliance in the music. Her diction is amazingly clear, even Callas would be jealous and her voice soars, where the music allows her to at least.

Tracks:

The Seven Deadly Sins: Prologue: Andante sostenuto
The Seven Deadly Sins: Idleness: Allegro vivace
The Seven Deadly Sins: Pride: Allegretto, quasi andantino - Schneller Walzer
The Seven Deadly Sins: Anger: Molto agitato
The Seven Deadly Sins: Gluttony: Largo
The Seven Deadly Sins: Lust: Moderato
The Seven Deadly Sins: Avarice: Allegro giusto
The Seven Deadly Sins: Envy: Allegro non troppo - Alla marcia, un poco tenuto
The Seven Deadly Sins: Epilogue: Andante sostenuto
The Threepenny Opera: 'Moritat vom Mackie Messer'
The Threepenny Opera: 'Barbara-Song'
The Threepenny Opera: 'Seerauberjenny'
Aufstief und Fall der Stadt mahogany: 'Havanna-Lied'
Aufstief und Fall der Stadt mahogany: 'Alabama-Song'
Aufstief und Fall der Stadt mahogany: 'Denn Wie Man Sich Bettet'
Happy End: 'Bilbao-Song'
Happy End: 'Surabaya-Johnny'
Happy End: 'Was die Herren Matrosen sagen'
Das Berliner Requiem: 'Ballade vom ertrunkenen Madchen'
Der Silbersee, Ein Wintermarchen: 'Lied der Fennimore'
Der Silbersee, Ein Wintermarchen: 'Casar Tod'

Amazon.com essential recording

Whether playing Anna in The Seven Deadly Sins or singing "Moritat vom Mackie Messer" ("Mack the Knife"), Lotte Lenya helped define the music of her husband, Kurt Weill. The duo literally created the soundtrack for the prewar Berlin of our fantasies--an exotic land of nicotine and nightlights--where cabaret, jazz, and the odd American instrumental influence all coexist happily. Now remastered, this collection gathers Lenya's legendary 1957 recordings of Sins and her 1955 recording Sings Berlin Theatre Songs. Forget subtlety--Lenya is all about emotion. On cuts like "Pirate Jenny," Lenya's voice sounds fluttery and frantic, and on "Surabaya-Johnny," her German sounds fragile and sweet, but mostly she's just herself--bittersweet, raw, and (most of all) human. In spirit, Marianne Faithfull, PJ Harvey, and a host of others all kept the torch of Lenya's style going. But after listening to these Berlin theater songs in classic form (and in their original tongue), you'll never hear them the same way again. --Jason Verlinde

Customer Reviews:

One of the greats.......2007-04-17

When I was a student in 1965, the turntable in my college apartment was kept busy spinning The Beatles, Bob Dylan, Broadway show cast albums, Nina Simone and Lotte Lenya. Lotte Lenya? Yes, the widow of German composer Kurt Weill and the star of the legendary 1950s off-Broadway revival of THE THREEPENNY OPERA, who also played James Bond's adversary Rosa Kleb in the movie FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE. (Rosa Kleb was a martial arts expert with poison knives in the toes of her shoes.) But my theory is that Lotte Lenya enjoyed great cachet with the baby-boomers primarily because of the cover of Bob Dylan's 1965 "Bringing It All Back Home" album. That cover shows Dylan and a brunette woman in a rather elegant setting crammed with books and phonograph records. Prominent among the stack of recordings is Lenya's "Berlin Theatre Songs of Kurt Weill" album. Even though this was the age of "Don't trust anyone over thirty," if Bob Dylan liked Lotte Lenya, then she was okay. I loved everything about her Berlin Theatre Songs album, from the expressionistic cover portrait to all the unfamiliar songs sung in quavery German.

Now that CDs have made phonograph records obsolete, I've wanted to replace my LP version of the Berlin Theatre Songs for some time. Well, I feel that I've hit the jackpot with this Masterworks Heritage CD reissue which is packaged with the Brecht-Weill THE SEVEN DEADLY SINS, an experimental dance-drama that Brecht and Weill created in Paris after fleeing Nazi Germany. I had never heard THE SEVEN DEADLY SINS. It is a revelation. It could have been written by no one else. The haunting melodies, the offbeat orchestrations and the unorthodox subject matter combine to form a Brecht-Weill classic. I love this music and have played it repeatedly for weeks. Lenya's voice during this period had not yet become raspy and her saucy personality shines through. My German is much better now than it was as a college student and I can at last appreciate Lenya's perfectly enunciated German. I find this recording mesmerizing. The CD is packaged as a foldout album/book, rather than a jewel box. It includes a brief essay by Teresa Stratas and helpful notes by Mario R. Mercado. Also included are more than a dozen sepia-toned photos of the recording session and four beautiful color photographs of Lenya in Hamburg in 1956. And of course, that wonderful Saul Bolasni portrait that graced the original LP is included on the inside cover of the jacket.

I think this CD is essential. For me, it conjures up a whole era, maybe a whole century. Five stars.

I cannot live without this album. .......2006-06-09

The Weill/Brecht "Seven Sins" may not be as famous as the Threepenny, and it's certainly not as long. The songs aren't "catchy"-- no Doors or Darin or David Bowie or Dresden Dolls are going to cover any of the ballet's nine pieces. But, in all its operatic beauty, it's one of my favourite musical works on this planet.

In short: the Seven Sins is unbelievable. It's Brecht/Weill at their very best. It will latch itself onto your brain, stick its claws into your skull, surpass anything you've ever heard before. From the very start -- just three notes that will, I promise, make you shiver -- to the beautiful, melancholy ending; it's what opera should be like, and it's beyond perfect.

Miss Lotte Lenya, who was the smartest woman in the world for marrying Kurt Weill TWICE, sings what's probably the definitive version of Anna-Anna. Yes, it's two octaves lower than what was intended (but if it's high-pitched warbling you're after, I can highly recommend the lovely Anne Sofie von Otter version), and some people seem to be slightly allergic to Lotte's voice. Which I still fail to understand. She embodies everything Weill writes -- every word out of her mouth feels just right, just exactly the way it was intended.

One other version I'm particularly fond of is the one starring Marianne Faithfull. The differences are easy to spot: Marianne sings in English. Marianne sounds more stoic. Marianne's choir is more overwhelming, but smoother, though the pieces don't fit together quite as well. Marianne is just slightly faster, less emotional, slightly sweeter. Lotte, on the other hand, gives it everything she's got -- never holds back -- and fills the part with emotion. Lotte's choir is tinny, Berlin-y cabaret-y. Lotte's orchestra is much more solid. And Lotte toys more with the lyrics. Both versions are perfect, and I would VERY highly recommend buying both if you can afford it, if just to compare.

Just like Marianne's CD, this album is filled up with as much other Brecht/Weill stuff as would still fit on the disc. The final notes of the Seven Sins epilogue are quickly followed with a gorgeous full Mack The Knife (yes, uncensored), an unbelievable (and definitive) Pirate Jenny, an Alabama Song... pretty much everything these people are famous for, and even some rather obsure songs. The orchestra and background singers mix perfectly with Lotte's vocals on every track. There's not a single flaw -- not in the music, not in the recording quality, nothing -- every bit of it is as perfect as these songs get.

Whether you're just starting out collecting Berlin cabaret, or finally look to complete your collection, this album is simply something you can't NOT buy. So buy it. Buy it. Yes. Excellent. And, if you're searching for more excellent related stuff, here's some other CDs I can recommend:

- Die Dreigroschenoper: 1999 version, starring Nina Hagen, Max Raabe, HK Gruber
- The Threepenny Opera: 1954 Blitzstein adaptation (English softened version)
- Jasperina de Jong - Sieben Rosen hat der Strach (Brecht tribute)
- Cathy Berberian - The Unforgettable
- The Tiger Lillies - Twopenny Opera (It's One Cheaper)

And a final note: avoid the Ute Lemper version at all costs. She's a great singer, absolutely, but will never be Anna-Anna.

Lenya and Weill at their best! Buy It........2005-11-04

'Lotte Lenya sings Kurt Weill's The Seven Deadly Sins and Berlin Theatre Songs' is a single CD combining two separate 1955 LPs recorded in Germany, five years after the death of husband and composer, Kurt Weill.

As a lifelong Weill fan who has heard many different interpretations of these songs most notably from Ute Lemper and Maria Stratas, I was struck by how dramaticly better was Lenya's performance of the lyrics. I think this goes far beyond the fact that many of these works were written specifically to be performed by Lenya in Berlin between 1927 and 1933. It is obvious to my ear that even though Lemper is a great cabaret singer, Lenya trumps this with years of performing on the live stage without the aid of electronic amplification.

Lenya does 'Die Sieben Todsunden' with the version done for a lower voice (same as Lemper) rewritten for her by Weill. As other reviewers have noted, this was originally a combination ballet / song cycle commissioned in Germany by George Balanchine where the singer and the ballerina perform two sisters, both named Anna.

None of the individual songs are nearly as popular on their own as the following collection of songs from the German works, 'The Threepenny Opera', 'Mahagonny', and 'Happy End'.

My first encounter with Lotty Lenya's singing was on a Columbia collection done on vinyl in the 1960s, done, probably following on her appearance in the second James Bond movie, 'From Russia, With Love' as the Russian Colonel Klebb. I think this recording is far superior to that issue or to any other recent recording where Lenya does songs she never performed on the stage.

"An important landmark in dancing history".......2001-06-16

The seven Deadly Sins was commissioned as a dance piece for Les Ballets 1933 with choreography by George Balanchine, Balanchine re-staged it at the New York City Ballet with Lenya at 1958. Anna Sokolow who has difficulties to work with Bertold Brecht to close (Galileo), gave her own independent interpretation to this play as a director with Netherland Dance Theatre in 1967 and at Detroit in 1967 (Cleo Laine).

"An important landmark in dancing history".......2001-06-16

The seven Deadly Sins was commissioned as a dance piece for Les Ballets in 1933 with choreography by George Balanchine. Balanchine restaged it at the New York City Ballet with Lenya in 1958. Anna Sokolow who had difficulties working with Bertold Brecht closely (Galileo), gave her own interpretation to this play as a director with Netherlands Dance Theatre in 1967 and in Detroit in 1976 (Cleo Laine, Mary Hinkson), and in Boston in 1990.

Always in My Heart-Domingo sings Songs of Ernesto Lecuona

Average customer rating:

Gran album y gran señor.
Domingo con Lecuona: Combinacion maravillosa!

Always in My Heart-Domingo sings Songs of Ernesto Lecuona

Manufacturer: Sony
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Binding: Audio CD

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Por Amor
Lecuona Sinfónica / Morton Gould and His Orchestra
Ernesto Lecuona: The Complete Piano Music, Volume 1

ASIN: B0000029YA
Release Date: 1997-07-15

Tracks:

Siboney
Noche azul
Andalucia
Por eso te quiero
Siempre en mi corazon
Maria la o
Canto karabali
Juventud
Malaguena
Damisela encantadora
La comparsa

Customer Reviews:

Gran album y gran señor........2007-03-29

Un super album de Domingo, para los amantes de la musica de Ernesto Lecuaona con sus mejores temas un gran disco para el romance.

Domingo con Lecuona: Combinacion maravillosa!.......2003-02-04

Glorious combination: Ernesto Lecuona and Placido Domingo!
Ernesto Lecuona was a virtuoso pianist and a composer of both classical and popular music. He wrote compositions for piano, opera, zarzuela (Spanish light opera), movie scores, and popular songs. He incorporated the rhythms of Cuban popular song (including afro-cuban) into his music. Placido Domingo and the Royal Philharmonic Orquestra provide a wonderful introduction to Lecuona's music. Songs like "Siboney," and "Malaguena" are standards in the repertoire of opera singers and require great voices to do them justice. "Maria la O" is from Lecuona's zarzuela of the same name. The songs on this CD are gorgeous, Placido Domingo sings them beautifully, and the accompaniment is wonderful. The two songs with more pronounced afro-cuban rhythms--"Canto Karabali" and "La comparsa"--are less suited to this kind of production, but the other 9 songs are so wonderful, I can overlook this. A real bonus--this CD includes liner notes and complete lyrics in Spanish, with translations into English, French and German.

Great Recordings Of The Century - Janet Baker Sings Mahler / Barbirolli, et al

Average customer rating:

Highest level of collaboration
Forever Dame Janet Baker
Deeply sympathetic, lavishly beautiful Mahler ...
What else can I say?
Five Stars for Songs of a Wayfarer

Great Recordings Of The Century - Janet Baker Sings Mahler / Barbirolli, et al
Sir John Barbirolli , Janet Baker , and Halle Orchestra
Manufacturer: EMI Classics
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Mahler: Das Lied von der Erde
The Very Best of Janet Baker
Strauss: Four Last Songs/12 Orchestral Songs
Des Knaben Wunderhorn
Great Recordings Of The Century - Schubert: Die Schone Mullerin / Fischer-Dieskau, Moore

ASIN: B00000IOBY
Release Date: 1999-05-04

Tracks:

Kindertotenlieder: Nun will die Sonn' so hell aufgeh'n
Kindertotenlieder: Nun seh' ich wohl, warum so dunkle flammen
Kindertotenlieder: Wenn dein Mein tritt zur Tein
Kindertotenlieder: Oft denk' ich, sie sind nur ausgegangen!
Kindertotenlieder: In diesem Wetter, in diesem Braus
5 Ruckertlieder: Blicke mir nicht in die Lieder!
5 Ruckertlieder: Ich atmet' einen linden Duft!
5 Ruckertlieder: Um Mitternacht
5 Ruckertlieder: Liebst du um Schit
5 Ruckertlieder: Ich bin der Welt abhanden gekommen
Lieder Eines Fahrenden Gesellen: Wenn mein Schatz Hochzeit macht
Lieder Eines Fahrenden Gesellen: Ging heut morgen ubers Feld
Lieder Eines Fahrenden Gesellen: Ich hab' ein gl Messer
Lieder Eines Fahrenden Gesellen: Die zwei blauen Augen von meinem Schatz
5 Rlieder: Ich bin der Welt abhanden gekommen

Customer Reviews:

Highest level of collaboration.......2007-02-24

I would only add that the orchestral accompaniment on this recording is just astoundingly sensitive, spontaneous and full of life. These are musicians who know how to listen. The responsiveness of the orchestra to the soloist reminds me of some of the greatest jazz improvisations. I've listened to this recording for 30 years and it continues to amaze me.

Forever Dame Janet Baker.......2006-04-19

Certain artists have become closely identified with the music of Gustav Mahler, especially singers who have not only the vocal technique required to make it through his tough pieces, but who also have a majesty of poetry that allows Mahler's angst to sing. Chief among the growing throng of Mahlerites remains Dame Janet Baker. Baker may not possess the most beautiful of voices ever created, but her intelligence, technique, and sensitivity to text and musical line is unmatched.

These recordings of three of Mahler's song cycles are radiant examples of Baker at her peak. Accompanied by Sir John Barbirolli conducting the Halle Orchestra, this is Mahler 'as good as it gets'. Baker makes the 'Kindertotenlieder' as poignant as any singer ever has. Her performance of the 'R?ckert Lieder' (this time with the New Philharmonia Orchestra under Barbirolli's tender leadership) is staggeringly beautiful: "Ich atmet' einem linden Duft" floats in the ether of Mahler's most tender writing.

But in this recording the bravas belong to Baker's interpretation of 'Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen', a performance so near perfection that it challenges recall. Listen to 'Die zwei blauen Augen von meinem Schatz' and see if tears can be avoided. The marriage between Baker and Barbirolli is as fine as any ever recorded (and there are many excellent recordings from which to choose!). This recording is a Mahler lover's delight, but it is also a recording to introduce music lovers who may not embrace Mahler's music yet. It truly merits inclusion in this Greatest Recordings of the Century collection. Highly recommended on every level. Grady Harp, April 06

Deeply sympathetic, lavishly beautiful Mahler ..........2006-02-27

Dame Janet Baker, that name is legend in Mahler, and one could never doubt the towering artistry of her singing here, especially as combined with the lavish orchestral playing under Sir John Barbirolli on these classic recordings. All the artists on this recording really revel in the beauty and emotions of Mahler's music, Sir John and Dame Janet both making the most of all the notes, really making the music bloom to the full. Dame Janet's singing is as full of tone and as emotionally involved as is humanly possible in these songs. Only a few other singers could ever match her intesity and beauty, but to this listener, the renderings of all of the same Lieder by Anne Sofie von Otter (with Gardiner and Boulez) are certainly on par with Dame Janet Baker's. As for the baritones, I have a special affection for the warmly affecting renderings by Andreas Schmidt (with Jesus Lopez-Cobos on Telarc).
If the reader would allow me to make a point by comparing this album with another album to (re)affirm (if that would ever be necessary!, but please allow me to indulge ...) its gigantic stature, then these Mahler songs as recorded here by Janet Baker are certainly the equivalent of the equally famous and equally gourgeous Schwarzkopf/Szell/Strauss Lieder-album.
Be that as it may, if you love, or even just 'like' Mahler, the this album is essential hearing ...

What else can I say?.......2004-03-04

This is truly an incredible cd. Dame Janet Baker was a great artist, who some reviewers said was a singing actress on the level of Callas, but without the ugly top notes. When she undertook a role or a song, she completely invested herself in it. Her retirement was, for me, a very sad day.

In the Kindertotenlieder, she is a bereft mother, crushed by the loss of her children. While each song is heartbreaking in its own way, she still manages to reach even deeper in the final song, "In diesem Wetter, in diesem Braus" in which the mother, driven mad by her loss, laments that her (dead) children should not be out in the storm raging outside.

In the Lieder eines fahrenden Gesellen, she is a completely different character, a lonely wanderer, encompassing a wide range of emotions. Most striking to me was the distraught "Ich hab' ein gluhend' Messer", where, even if you don't know German or have the translation in front of you, you know that this is a person in pain.

To me, however, the greatest triumph on this cd is the Five Ruckert Lieder, in which Dame Janet goes from strength to strength. "Um Mitternacht" is absolutely soul-stirringly magnificent, but the crown jewel is "Ich bin der Welt abhanden gekommen", which is incredibly moving. It is otherworldly in a way that only one who has forsworn the world could know.

If you don't know the artistry of the great Dame Janet Baker, there are few better places to start. Be warned, however, that this is not music to be played when you are depressed!

Five Stars for Songs of a Wayfarer.......2004-01-29

The Songs of a Wayfarer song cycle is a great entry point into Mahler, and also into classical song. The tunes are simple [yet profound] and easy to comprehend.

Mahler's orchestration of his song cycle is exquisite. It is interesting to listen to Janet Baker's performance of the cycle with Geoffrey Parsons accompanying on piano and hear it both ways.

I think the version with piano only has greater subtlety in both soloist and accompanist's performances, but this is nevertheless a wonderful performance.

Other works that provide a great entry point into Mahler include the Resurrection Symphony [I love the generously packaged Kaplan version on Conifer] and the Song of the Earth.

Great Recordings Of The Century - Elisabeth Schwarzkopf Sings Operetta / Ackermann

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Schwarzkopf sings operetta
glittering Schwarzkopf
The Charm Of Schwarzkopf: Vienna Opera
Viennese Pastry
beautiful

Great Recordings Of The Century - Elisabeth Schwarzkopf Sings Operetta / Ackermann
Johann Strauss II , Franz Lehár , Philharmonia Orchestra , Carl Zeller , Carl Millöcker , Franz von Suppé , Rudolf Sieczynski , Otto Ackermann , Elisabeth Schwarzkopf , and Richard Heuberger
Manufacturer: EMI Classics
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: B00000IOBS
Release Date: 1999-05-04

Tracks:

'Der Opernball': Im chambree separee
'Der Vogelhandler': Ich bin die Christel von der Post
'Der Vogelhandler': Schenkt man sich Rosen in Tyrol
'Der Zarewitsch': Einer wird kommen
'Der Graf von Luxemburg': Hoch, Evoe, Engele Didier
'Casanova': Nonnenchor
'Die Dubarry': Ich schenk' dir mein Herz
'Die Dubarry': Was ich im Leben beginne
'Boccaccio': Hab' ich nur deine Liebe
'Der Graf von Luxemburg': Heut' noch werd' ich Ehefrau
'Der Obersteiger': Sei nicht boe'
'Giuditta': Maine Lippen, sie kuessen so heiss
Wien, du Stadt meiner Traeume

Amazon.com

This most serious and studious of German sopranos has a grand time--with no hint of condescension--in this collection of Viennese operetta arias, treating them with a meticulous musicality they rarely receive. In fact, lots of this music written by now-obscure names such as Heuberger, Zeller and Millocker isn't heard at all. But these isolated arias are marvelously lyrical and ingratiating with some deliciously comic counterpoint. One highpoint is the Nuns Chorus from Casanova, in which Elisabeth Schwarzkopf's voice soars above her fellow nuns, longing for her lover to rescue her from the cloister. It's some of the most unbuttoned singing of her career. --David Patrick Stearns

Customer Reviews:

Schwarzkopf sings operetta.......2007-07-15

Schwarzkopf has a voice that I love in anything but it excels in German Operetta where the resonances of her voice seem to suit the subject matter perfectly - nostalgic, bitter-sweet, etc. The recording quality (or presumably transcription to CD) seems very good with no obvious loss of quality or intrusion of extraneous noise. The tracks are clearly separated by several seconds of silence. The only criticism I would have is that 44 minutes is pretty miserly - how much would it have cost to give us a full hour, or indeed more?

glittering Schwarzkopf.......2007-03-06

Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, the most talented and accomplished soprano of her generation, delivers a rich feast of operetta treats on this wonderful album. This recording features arias from seldom-heard or recorded composers (namely Heuberger, Zeller and Millocker), as well as pieces from Lehar and Strauss II. Schwarzkopf was in the prime of her vocal condition here, and easily commands the material.

Schwarzkopf made her name in the Lieder and dramatic operas, but it's marvelous to hear how she sparkles and glitters on this album. Highlights include "Einer wird kommen" (from "Der Zarewitsch"); and "Heut' noch werd' ich Ehefrau" (from "Der Graf von Luxemburg"). There's also a lovely rendering of "Meine Lippen..." (from Lehar's oft-forgotten "Giuditta" score).

This album has been newly-remastered using Abbey Road's Prism SNS Noise-Shaping System, which blends the vocals of Schwarzkopf and the orchestra to create a crisp, clear soundscape, free from analogue distortion and other inherent recording problems. This album was originally recorded at the Kingsway Hall in 1957, but sounds as fresh as a daisy here.

As my fellow reviewer - Rudy Avila - has keenly noted, this album has a perfect companion in Schwarzkopf's disc Strauss: Four Last Songs/12 Orchestral Songs.

[EMI Classics 7243 5 67004 2 0]

The Charm Of Schwarzkopf: Vienna Opera.......2004-04-20

Elisabeth Schwarzkopf was the leading German lyric soprano of her time directly after World War II- the 50's and 60's. Her Marschallin from Strauss' Der Rosenkavalier is unbeaten and the definative best interpretation. This recording features her singing comfortably in the language she knew best, German, in arias from Vienna light operas. There is so much class and elegance, combined with charming warmth and beauty to the singing voice of Schwarzkopff. Another treasure to hear and a great complimentary addition to this album is Schwarzkopf singing German Lieder. Her diction was perfect, her melodic lines bubbly with sincere human warmth. In this album, I think you'll like the opening aria "Im Chambre Separee" from Der Opernball. There is a uniquely French sound to the aria and to Schwarzkopf's rendition, that has sophistication and European aestheticism written all over it. The other arias are beautiful to listen to as well, including the arias from Der Zarewitsch, Grafin Dubarry, Graf Von Luxemburg, Boccacio and Giuditta.

Naturally, since this is taken from the original Long Playing album record, it sounds very old fashioned and dated. I did'nt hear any scratches or disruptions, so for the most part it's highly enjoyable and lovingly remastered for a cd. Schwarzkopf classic voice does seem to fit more suitably on the LP of a phonograph in a stylish salon in Paris or Vienna. I can imagine when she was singing in person and recording these albums, people were goo-ga ga over her. But even if you don't own a record player and you are up to date with the latest sound system technology, this will bring you back to the days when people crowded around parlors,either to their radios or phonographs and had conversations and drank champagne in genuine taste and good cheer. This will definately want to make you drink some fine champagne.

Viennese Pastry.......2003-07-15

For those with a musical sweet tooth, this is the sweetest, richest collection of bon-bons imaginable. Schwarzkopf's singing is without parallel, and this is in my opinion the finest operetta recital disc available.

beautiful.......2003-02-22

This is one of my favorites. Schwartzkopf voice is a stunning and it clear that she has perfected her art. I was so pleased when I bought it and played it for my friends. My favorites are the nun's chorus and Laura's song and Sie nicht bos. You will enjoy this delightful recording.

Giuseppe Di Stefano Sings Neapolitan Songs

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Guiseppe di Strfano sings Neapolitan Songs
Di Stefano e magnifico!
Distefano has spoken!
Come back to Sorrento with Giuseppe Di Stefano.
Without peer

Giuseppe Di Stefano Sings Neapolitan Songs

Manufacturer: Testament UK
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

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Italy
Carlo Bergonzi - Italian Songs ~ Bellini · Verdi · Danza · Tosti · Donizetti · Rossini · Mascagni · Puccini

ASIN: B000003XK0
Release Date: 1997-04-10

Tracks:

'O Sole Mio
Marechiare
Dicitencello Vuje
Tu, Ca Nun Chiagne!
L'te Vurria Vasa!
Core Ngrato
Torna A Surriento
Silenzio Cantatore
Chiove
'O Paese D' 'O Sole
Santa Lucia Luntana
Maria, Mari'!
E Pallume
Fenesta Che Lucive
Na Sera E Maggio
Voce E Note!
Autunno
Santa Lucia
Senza Nisciuno
Piscatore
O Maranariello

Amazon.com

Here's a yummy CD platter, filled to the brim with prime examples of the irrepressible Giuseppe Di Stefano, singing what he was born to sing. The tenor is in close to pristine voice throughout these 1953-7 sessions, with none of the frayed edges and crooning that seeped into his work in the 1960s. More to the point, Di Stefano approaches familiar favorites like "O Solo Mio" and "Santa Lucia" with a kind of seriousness of purpose and elegant restraint that will be revelations to listeners weaned on showboating by the Three Tenors. You may, however, wish to investigate Testament's companion stereo volume, which has better sound and a wider variety of material. But Di Stefano fans will gladly dig in. --Jed Distler

Customer Reviews:

Guiseppe di Strfano sings Neapolitan Songs.......2007-01-09

Neapolitan songs sung by Guiseppe Di Stefano was one of my favourite vynil long play records. I no longer have the facility to play vynil records so I was delighted to be able to acquire this CD version from Amazon. I believe that the original recordings were made in 1953 - certainly my vynil was from that era. The digital remastering is very successful and we aficionados have cause to be grateful. A huge part of the enjoyment is the characteristic Italian accompaniment,flowing,soaring, romantic and full bodied,but never over-intrusive, by the orchestra conducted by Dino Olivieri. I mark the CD 4 and not 5 purely because of the advances, since 1953, in recording techniques.

Di Stefano e magnifico!.......2006-12-25

Giuseppe Di Stefano's magnificent tenor voice was never put to better use than singing these Neapolitan songs. They were written for his type of voice and he was born to sing them. His voice is liquid gold; it combines sustained lyricism with tremendous emotional urgency and power. Sweetness and plaitiveness are all there when they are needed to express the text. Diction is perfect. The orchestral arrangements recorded here are very operatic and Di Stefano's voice fills every corner of them. These songs are treasures and through Di Stefano they are brought to the the heights of musical expression.

Distefano has spoken!.......2006-11-28

I get furious when people like the gentleman from Australia waste their alloted space delving in minutiae when it comes to reviewing this album of Neapolitan Songs sung by the greatest exponent of this genre (according to people like Pavarotti, Delmonaco and Corelli). No doubt these gems call for a beautiful - yes, beautiful - voice that can also sustain diminuendo, stress - where needed, passion, pathos, etc. it's no secret that every singer since Caruso - tenor, baritone or classification-less has attempted this repertoire; but none has ALL these qualities..this is Pippo's domain and he has spoken! Buy this and thank the Lord it's available now!

Come back to Sorrento with Giuseppe Di Stefano........2003-07-07

These little Neapolitan songs, many dating from the C19th, travel well across international boundaries, language barriers, and time divisions. Giuseppe di Stefano recorded dozens of them during his prime, and Testament has gathered together 21 of them, recorded in the 1950s, on this CD. The producer and conductor was Dino Olivieri who, twenty years earlier, had added to the repertoire himself and conducted countless records of Neapolitan songs sung by Tito Schipa and Beniamino Gigli.

Di Stefano sings here with more musicianship than the latter and a more robust voice than the former. Dino Olivieri, who likes swirling strings and problematic counterpoints, contrives occasionally with Di Stefano to enact musically something in total contradiction to the words. My favorite songs here - I' tu vurria vasà - depicts the singer lying beside his beloved at dawn and hesitating even to kiss her lest it wake her. What we hear is a performance that is so loud as to suggest something that might lift the roof off the Festspielhaus at Bayreuth. Perhaps the blame lies with the balance engineers. The sound engineering is of the "zoom lens" type, evening out all the dynamic changes in Di Stefano's singing so that everything is heard at a steady forte volume throughout.

If this is one of your favorite singers, you'll want to have this CD, but if you love listening to these perennial favorite songs, which always start in a minor key and then switch to the tonic major key half way through each verse, then try versions by other singers.

Without peer.......2003-03-26

di Stefano is the standard for singing Neapolitan Songs. There is exuberance, warmth, pathos - everything. He puts it all into these gems. I am extremely glad Testament made these discs available. You can't go wrong with these, they are utterly fabulous!!

Jennifer Larmore Sings Great Operatic Arias

Average customer rating:

The Art of Serious Fun
Larmore at her best again!

Jennifer Larmore Sings Great Operatic Arias

Manufacturer: Chandos
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Classical | Styles | Music

Romantic (c.1820-1910) | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

General | Arias | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

French | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

German | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Italian | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Oratorios | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Oratorios | Vocal Non-Opera | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
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ASIN: B000NY166A
Release Date: 2007-05-22

Tracks:

Star Of the Evening
O My Beloved
Fierce Flames Are Raging
Love Like Mine Is the Light Of Creation
That Ungrateful Man Betrayed Me
Where Was I?
My Beloved
Hence, Iris Hence Away!
Tell Me, My Beating Heart
See, O Norma
O Hated Gift
Juliet's Waltz Song

Customer Reviews:

The Art of Serious Fun.......2007-07-01

While most opera stars are submitting to record label hype and narrow artistic freedom, Jennifer Larmore seems to be flourishing in the recording studio. With Opera Rara and now Chandos behind her, she continues to offer sumptuous recordings that are both entertaining and of great artistic caliber. Certainly Larmore does not have to prove herself as she has been performing for nearly 25 years. Anyone who has seen her live knows she is the real deal and she is in top form on this arias disc. Now, mind you, she is singing both mezzo and soprano roles here. And in English. I was skeptical. Being a huge Larmore fan, I though "uh, oh"...My last Chandos purchase was Elizabeth Futral's arias disc and I was not impressed. But here the translations (sung in delicious theatrical English), top-notch singing by Je La and perfect conducting by David Parry with the Philharmonia Orchestra combine to make a highly addictive disc that will go down in history with Larmore's classics Where Shall I Fly and Call Me Mister. She really sets the bar high for other singers.

Thankfully, Larmore goes out of her comfort zone and sings some arias that one would not normally associate with this fearless singer. The Don Carlos and Trovatore arias will certainly give her naysayers something to chew on, but she does it! Note the last few bars of "O Hated Gift". I was on the edge of my seat.

The opening number ("Star of the Evening" from Adriana Lecouvreur) alone is worth the price of the disc. Orchestra and singer match brilliantly and Larmore's final bars brought tears to my eyes. It's good stuff.

The weak spots are minor. Poor Colin Lee is left on the floor in the Favorita duet. A more experienced tenor would have made this duet electrifying. On the other hand, Larmore alone (track 2) singing "O My Beloved" from Favorita proves (as she did in 2001 with OONY) that she should be singing this role on the stage and in a full recording while we're at it. She is Leonora and the tension she creates is heartbreaking.

I could have done without Hence, Iris Hence Away, heard on her In Performance DVD and Where Shall I Fly cd (surely there are other Handel arias, but perhaps that's another Chandos disc in the works???!!!), but it displays how she can still sing Handel like no other. The Tancredi aria is a nice surprise.

The Gioconda track is a blood and guts duet thanks to Susan Patterson and Larmore's singing. I love how Opera Rara and Chandos recital cds always include duets and more. Larmore is a generous singer and part of her genius is how she works off other artists.

As with every Larmore recital disc, she closes with a treat. Juliet's Waltz Song from Gounod's Romeo and Juliet???? Is she kidding??? Nope. I've heard many a soprano struggle though this aria and merely pull it off with a pinched high note. Should Larmore be singing this aria? Hell, no...Can she? Hell, yes!!! But what's so special is she sings it with pure pleasure; as if she'd sung this song her whole career. Not as a mezzo slumming it in soprano territory. And I think that's what she's trying to tell us here. Have fun, be true to your art form and never pander to your audience.

Larmore at her best again!.......2007-06-01

Jennifer Larmore is my favorite mezzosoprano since the very first time. Such an extraordinary artist! To enjoy!

Jennifer Larmore es mi mezzosoprano favorita desde la primera vez que la escuché. Es una artista extraordinaria y este nuevo cd, a pesar de estar grabado en inglés, muestra, una vez más, la calidad interpretativa de esta maravillosa cantante. Incluso se permite el lujo de cantar el vals de Juliette con más seguridad que muchas sopranos que la tienen en repertorio.

Meditation Music: