American Diva: Verdi, Puccini

Alessandra Marc (Artist), Verdi (Artist), Puccini (Artist), Cilea (Artist), Wagner (Artist), conductor Heinz Wallberg (Artist), New Zealand Symphony (Artist) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (December 11, 1992)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Delos Records
• ASIN: B0000006XU
• Also Available in: Audio Cassette  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #124,929 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars My favourite voice of this generation, November 28, 1999

By 

[e-mail] (Melbourne, Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: American Diva: Verdi, Puccini (Audio CD)

The term "Voice of the Century" has been impossibly overused, but Alessandra Marc belongs in that catergory of singers. At times she reminds me a little of Leontyne Price, but the voice has more power, more dramatic impact. Marc may be a true Wagnerian, and a rare one since she sings, rather than trumpets out the music. A must-have CD and one of my very favourites.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A surprisingly good recital, May 14, 2004

By 

V. Chau (San Diego, CA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: American Diva: Verdi, Puccini (Audio CD)

This disc is very good. After having been severely disappointed with Alessandra Marc's "Opera Gala: Dallas Symphony" CD, I found this CD refreshing and quite impressive. Marc is an uneven singer. I found her singing on the other CD quite bad. She scooped frequently, but what really bothered me was her indifferent diction and lack of dramatic involvement, which compounded my dislike for her rather ugly tone and rapid vibrato. Truth be told, I've heard that since "American Diva" was recorded, Marc's scooping has increased significantly to the point of being a mannerism, and her tone has become far cloudier. This recital shows her voice at its freshest, with beautiful dark tone. She has a unique voice. It has a rapid vibrato, but I found that on this CD, I wasn't much bothered with that vibrato as I was on the other CD. Marc's voice has a dark core from which golden overtones emanate. She is one of those rare opera singers with an instantly recognizable voice. Contrary to what many people think, she is not a dramatic soprano. Rather, she is a large-voiced spinto. Her voice is biggest at the top, but it has a rather weak and colorless lower register.

This recital contains mostly superb singing and real dramatic commitment. Her scooping is mostly kept in check here. She starts off the recital by singing "Pace, pace, mio Dio". She sings this well and has the right voice for it. She cannot adequately float the piano high B-flat at "Invan la pace", but provides a powerful, fortissimo high B-flat at the close of the aria. This high note illustrates a particular problem she has throughout the recital. It seems like she cannot control the volume of her voice on forte high notes, although this just could be the microphone's inability to capture the full power of her high notes. Moving on, she next sings "Me pellegrina ed orfana". She sings this aria quite well. The next aria is "Ritorna vincitor". She gives this aria her all, which is quite impressive. There is real dramatic bite to her singing in this aria. She next sings "O patria mia". She hits the high C at the climax fortissimo. This note is huge, and it gives the microphone a real workout. Unlike Rysanek's high C in this same aria, Marc's is a relentlessly thrusting high note. It doesn't bloom, but rather plows away all before its path. At this point in the review, I should note that her diction is pretty good, though it could be clearer. Some of it borders on mushy, but it is definitely better than her diction on the "Opera Gala: Dallas Symphony" CD. "Ebben? Ne andrò lontana" is next. She sings this aria well and handles the difficult climax ably. "Io son l'umile ancella" is next. She sings this aria well, but it would have been more effective had she floated the final word, "morrà", instead of singing it loudly. "Vissi d'arte" follows. She sings this aria well. She next sings "In questa reggia". This aria shows off her awesome vocal power. The high climaxes of this aria are thrilling. "Depuis le jour" is the next item. She really has a voice that is too big for this aria, but like the liner notes say, it is wonderful to hear a voice as rich and sumptuous as Charpentier's orchestration. "Dich, teure Halle" is the last item on the CD. Marc sings it really well. I love this aria. The orchestration is lush and gorgeous and conveys all of Elisabeth's exultation.

The CD comes with very good liner notes, though they are a bit too laudatory towards Marc. The sound is quite good. The conducting is ambivalent. Much of it is too slow. Near the end of "In questa reggia", Marc waits for the orchestra to get moving before she continues singing. The orchestral playing is not spectacular, but is very able.

I highly recommend this CD.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Power and Beauty - a great Wagnerian in the making?, April 10, 2002

By 

Ed Beveridge (London, England) - See all my reviews

This review is from: American Diva: Verdi, Puccini (Audio CD)

I bought this CD purely because I had also recently acquired Jane Eaglen's recent recording of similar music. I know this isn't the forum to compare the two, but it's great to hear two such great and different voices in this repertoire in an age where we are constantly told that the dramatic soprano is a thing of the past.

The Marc Voice is an enigma. I first encountered her as Elektra and I'm pretty sure that german opera is where her talents are best spent (although she seems to spent most of her time singing Turandot these days which is seldom wise for vocal longevity). The sound is that of a dramatic voice, yes, but it has a sweetness and a slenderness that others lack. She can thus give an impression of vulnerablilty and youth which is rather unusual and a bonus in this repertory. The registers are well blended, she attacks the top fearlessly and without shrillness, and her bottom register is clear and pearly without any "bark". That said, there are some caveats here - firstly, I can't help feeling that some of this music really pushes her to the edge and the fortissimo high notes threaten to skid out of control, and she lacks a true piano.

In terms of what she presents here, her Verdi is reasonable but not the equal of less prodigiously gifted singers (Pace, pace isn't the same without a floated B flat). Her Puccini is impressive - one of the best "In Questa Reggia"s I have heard - though she gives it her absolute all which can be unnerving - and a competent Vissi d'arte. The highlight for me is the "Dich Teure Halle" at the end. It makes me really long to hear her as Elisabeth, Senta, Sieglinde. Could she ever be a Brunnhilde? Not yet - and not if she keeps on with Turandot - but it's an enticing prospect.

The cover material for this CD is unappetizing, the orchestral playing unremarkable. But Marc's beautiful voice and strong interpretative gifts are well worth a listed, si I recommend this disc.