Customer Reviews

Angela Gheorghiu - Casta Diva / Pido

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

When I saw this disc, I was very sceptical. Sure, Gheorghiu is a wonderful soprano. But until now, she has focused on Verdi, Puccini, Massenet. Anything BUT bel canto! She is in what I would call 'Callas territory': Sure enough, the disc opens with 'Casta diva'' - Callas was famous for Norma. She sings the notes well, but in regard to the interpretative qualities, it falls. She doesn't convince me fully in the aria, and in the following cabaletta, she exaggerates too much, trying to be too dramatic. Norma is a difficult opera: even Callas said she finds Wagner easier than Norma.
In the other Bellini selections, she fares much better. She digs into the words, giving clear meanings and impressions of clear agaitation, as the drama calls for it(particularly in the Sonnambula aria; pity the finale was not included).
The Rossini selections are wonderful. Of the three composers represented (Bellini, Rossini, Donizetti), she seems to be at home most in Rossini. Her singing in the L'assedio di Corinto is especially moving(listen to 'Giusto ciel!' Her pianissimi are to die for!). 'Una voce poco fa', the only comic representation here, she proves to be a charming comedienne, portraying her Rosina with humour and sharp wit. Her use of words here is impressive again. Right at the end of the aira, where she has a high note, Gheorghiu attacks the note straight - a thrilling spectacle. In fact, I decided to buy the disc, when I listened to the note.
Of the Donizetti offerings, she is more successful in Lucia than Anna Bolena.In the Lucia selection, she gets into the heart of Lucy's character, hinting to the madness that is to follow later in the opera, whereas in the Bolena, she tries too hard again, robbing the music of its simplicity and subtleties- Generally, this is a mildly successful recording. Gheorghiu has some way to go before she is to be fully ready for this repertoire, but as mentioned in the booklet, this will hopefully be 'a taste of pleasures to come'. The LSO and Pido give the most sensitive accompaniment imaginable, and the sound is a winner.

Angela Gheorghiu is a beautiful woman who happens to have a lovely, dark voice capable of many colors. Her voice is immediately recognizable. She dives head first into this recital of technically difficult and dramatically challenging arias. Some arias are performed superbly. Others need more work. She has good Italian throughout this disc. She is a speaker of the language, so to say that she has bad Italian shows ignorance on the part of the one reviewer who said disparaging remarks about her diction. She does not have intonation problems on this disc. Her "Casta Diva" sounds far too studied and detached. She sounds as if she wants to perform the aria brilliantly in terms of simply pulling it off rather than investing her entire dramatic intelligence into it. The arias from "Guglielmo Tell" and "L'Assedio di Corinto" are performed superbly with a lot of dramatic commitment. Her coloratura throughout is secure, but it does not have the same fluidity that Sutherland and Sills commanded. However, to criticize her good coloratura technique is too narrow-minded. She is not a true coloratura. Keep that in mind. The "Anna Bolena" aria is sung well. The first half is done superbly, but the requisite nostalgia in the second half is missing. She tries, but fails to convince. Her "Una voce poco fa" is sung brilliantly, but without any charm or wit. It is too bad. The arias from "La Sonnambula" and "I Puritani" are sung nicely, but the high E's are not really secure. She needs to work on those notes. She also lacks a real trill. Her "Lucia di Lammermoor" excerpt is good, but Sutherland and Sills have sung it better. Sills also sang it with more convincing emotion. Overall, this disc is a good look at what may come from Gheorghiu in the future in the bel canto repertory.

I had originally intended to wait a little longer to review this CD, largely because I like to 'space out' reviews I do of the same artist. However, I couldn't resist the opportunity to wish Angela Gheorghiu a happy 36th birthday and post this review as a present. I also wanted to respond to some earlier reviews that I thought were both unfair and nasty.

Admittedly Gheorghiu, probably the greatest Puccini/Verdi/Gounod/Massenet soprano of our time, is not what one would normally think of as a 'coloratura soprano'. Still, if her fioratura doesn't have the machine gun precision of other singers, it's hardly the mess that has been implied by her detractors. More important is how Gheorghiu uses coloratura for emotional expression - it becomes joyful laughter or ecstatic giddiness instead of just musical notes. Gheorghiu's greatest vocal strength, however, is her spinning out of long, beautiful, cantilena lines. Hers is one of the most astonishingly beautiful voices of our time, with the dark glow of a star-filled nebula, a powerful mezzoish bottom and a radiant top. And of course, dramatic fire and total immersion into her characters have always been what makes her so special. Her phrasing, the sadness and vulnerability at the core of her voice (larmes des voix) and the attention she gives to every word she sings is extraordinarily affecting.

The title track here is a genuine prayer instead of a diva showpiece. To paraphrase one review, the priestess loves the oak trees as much as the woman loves Pollione. 'Selva opaca' has urgency, nobility and longing as well as stunning high pianissimi on the phrase 'alla calma'. How about a complete recording in French with hubby and Thomas Hampson? 'Qui la voce' has minor mispronunciations (coo-ee), but more importantly, the right air of gentle sadness and astonishing dynamic control. 'Vien, o diletta' is filled with overwhelming joy, and she varies each individual run slightly. Unfortunately, that wailed climactic high E flat absolutely needed another retake. She also strongly emphasizes the weeping quality of 'Ah, non credea mirarti'.

Rosina is an interesting choice for Gheorghiu, although I prefer it sung by a true mezzo (she sings in a mezzo key), cheerful and tough like her Adina and definitely not someone who you want to cross in love. By contrast, she makes Pamira's desperate prayer 'Giusto ciel!' (especially the recitative) deeply moving and tragic. I would also like to hear her sing this scene in French. The final scene from 'Anna Bolena', here with the opening 'Piangete voi?' is also a dramatic tour de force. She recorded the aria 5 years ago on her and Alagna's 'Duets and Arias' album, and this shows how much she has grown since. This version is far more expressive with much more individual word painting, undoubtedly helped by slower tempi. No surprise that such a great Violetta is also on her way to a great Lucia, and the 'Regnava nel silenzio' here whets my appetite for even more.

Evelino Pido, a bel canto specialist, is a solid, decent conductor and makes a much better impression than he did in the Gheorghiu/Alagna 'L'Elisir D'Amore'. Still, I don't sense the level of rapport between Gheorghiu and Pido that she has with Antonio Pappano or Riccardo Chailly. Both the Covent Garden Chorus and Orchestra acquit themselves admirably.

The major problem with this disc isn't with what is there but with what isn't. Important cabaletti are missing ('Ah, non giunge' for the 'Sonnambula and 'Coppia iniqua' for the 'Anna Bolena'), and there are internal cuts as well. Also, 'Casta Diva' should have started with 'Sediziosi voci', and 'Qui la voce' with 'Ah, rendetemi la speme'. Because of this, despite Gheorghiu's vocal acting ability and the presence of a chorus, there isn't really the sense, as there is in her 'Verdi Heroines' disc, of these arias as part of complete scenes. This is very unfortunate because so many Rossini interpreters, most notably on the Opera Rara label, are making a real effort to be as complete as possible. I thought that they might have cut the material to make room for the 'Lucia' mad scene, but that is missing as well, a real disappointment, ESPECIALLY as there are almost 20 minutes of blank space on the disc. I think the 'villain' here was lack of recording time. I seem to remember reading that Gheorghiu had to cancel recording sessions due to severe gastritis, and it's quite clear EMI rushed this CD out to coincide with the Gheorghiu's June 2001 concert tour of Britain.

The documentation consists of full texts and translations for all the arias with an essay and explanatory headnotes by John Steane. There are also some very striking (and not exactly 'casta'!) glamour shots of Gheorghiu, including a stunning centerfold of her dressed as Norma.

I'm extraordinarily sick of the personal attacks on Gheorghiu (and her husband!) posing as 'reviews' that I've seen ever since she became famous. Yes, I've read the 'silly' interviews. I can't help noticing, however, that when her interviewer actually cares about MUSIC instead of clothes, superficalities, gossip and politics and bothers to treat her as the deeply serious artist she really is, Gheorghiu comes off marvelously. She certainly struck me as a wonderful person on the three occasions where I met her. Frankly, I would rather have a great singer who isn't always the perfect politician than some artistic mediocrity who always says the 'right things' to critics!

I absolutely hope Gheorghiu eventually starts doing some of these roles on stage. Although I know she has turned down 'Lucia' and 'Sonnambula' because she doesn't find them dramatically interesting, there are still plans for her 'Norma' at the ROH in 2006 or so. I hope she records a disc of mad scenes and eventually perhaps even the 'Three Queens' operas. In the meantime, Gheorghiu's artistic integrity, imagination, dramatic fire, and the sheer beauty of her voice make this CD well worth listening to.

I have only listened through this CD once, and I must say that I found it quite enjoyable. I must also say that the review given by Amazon, is the most acurate amongst the reviews I've read here. Ghoerghiu clearly has a beautiful, well produced voice, and that is in evidence here. She does NOT have intonation problems in this recital, and while at times her vioce feels like it could be more florid and relaxed in places it is generally easily produced. If you enjoy her smokey hued voiced you will enjoy this album, although it is not the most artistically put together recital, in general I concur totally with the Amazon editorial review. I too believe that this CD forshadows directions Ghoerghiu could take herself.

I may be a neophyte, but I found this recording extremely satisfying. I have listened to the great Callas sing a lot of these same arias, and while this singer is not Callas, she has nothing to apologize for. I can only hope she was trying some of this music out before taking on a production of Norma, playing Amina, Lucia. It's beautifully produced. The orchestra does a wonderful job. At no point during any of her performances of these works did I think she was tentative or unsure of herself. I found her presentation commanding. Listening to this makes me want to buy her other recordings and most certainly in the future I will go see her. I got my money's worth with this one. This is not a dainty attempt at this music. But solid, and dead on.

Wow! I bought this CD at the recommendation of the Wall Street Journal and the reviews here on Amazon.com and I'm overwhelmed by the beauty of Ms. Gheorghiu's voice. But more importantly, her interpretations of the arias are superb and the conducting of Mr. Pido is truly inspired. If you're an opera officianado, or know one, this would probably be an excellent addition to a classical music collection.

This represents a major excursion of soprano Angela Gheorghiu into the world of coloratura. First, what is coloratura in opera? The Wikipedia says: "In the bel canto era, all singers had to be coloratura specialists, that is, they had to be able to add ornamentations to the written music." Ornamentation includes trills, runs, and other vocal effects (such as appoggiaturas and acciaccaturas), many of which leave the listener in awe.

Gheorghiu does not appear to be a natural coloratura soprano. While coloratura technique can be used by any singer from bass to soprano, male or female, we normally think of sopranos in this context. We also normally think of coloratura sopranos as having lighter voices that can reach those high notes and have the agility to command the ornamentation called for. Of course, as I recall, Joan Sutherland, one of the great coloratura sopranos of the 20th century, began as a dramatic soprano (although my memory may betray me). Certainly, the voice of Gheorghiu is darker than a Beverly Sills, for example. But the true test: What about the ornamentation and agility?

In short, my answer is "not bad." Her trills are not great, but some who essay the coloratura repertoire ignore trills entirely (listen to Maria Callas, for example); others stun, such as Joan Sutherland. While Gheorghiu is no Sutherland (or Sills), she is on a higher plane than Callas. She shows vocal agility in traversing some of the prime coloratura territory for sopranos. The cabaletta to "Casta diva" (from Bellini's Norma) is nicely done; just so, the cabaletta from I Puritani, "Vien, diletto," is competently done; she is able to show agility in Rossini's "Una voce poca fa" (from Il Barbiera de Siviglia), although her voice is darker and heavier than many others who take this tune on. The great test on this CD: her rendering of Mad Lucy's "Quanto rapito in estasi" (from Lucia di Lammermoor). This is not Sills or Sutherland. But it ain't bad! In cabalettas such as this, it's not the first time through that is of interest for the coloratura soprano. The first time through, the singer demonstrates that she can hit the notes and has some coloratura technique. It's the second time through, when the vocal pyrotechnics should emerge. And Gheorghiu's second time through features more ornamentation and vocal effects. She takes it up a jot from the first time through this great cabaletta.

In the end, Angela Gheorghiu is not Sills or Sutherland. But there aren't too many at that level to begin with. She does a pretty good job, and the CD is worth a listen. If nothing else, compare current sopranos who essay the coloratura repertoire with predecessors such as Sills and Sutherland. Gheorghiu need not feel embarrassed with her work on this CD.

I enjoy this cd very much. In my opinion, Gheorgiu sounds like a combinaton of Tebaldi, Bartoli, and Callas. Her voice is warm and velvety like Tebalbi with technique like Bartloi and drama like Mdme. Callas. I am sure she is subject to much criticism, but which of the great haven't been...? I applaude her voice and her interpretation of the music. As an instrumentalist, her voice is one of the few that have made me stop and realize that a vocalist can also have tremendous technical ability while still respecting the authenticity of the score. She may not have the pianissimi as did Callas in her prime, but she definitely adds to the drama of the words, which we sometimes forget are the reason the aria was written. Do we support opera just for the reason its nice to our ears and we can let it pass before us, or do we support it because we are enthraled with the story and the dramatic value it possess which connect us to each character...?

I find Angela Gheorghiu one of my favorite and most exciting of the new ladies to emerge in the last several years (along with Renee Fleming, Jennifer Larmore, and Ruth Ann Swenson). I was raised on Sutherland, L. Price, Caballe, Sills, Verrett, Nilsson and Callas and saw them many times at the San Francisco Opera (except Callas only once) and listened to their recordings. I saw "The Love Couple" Roberto Alanga and Ms. Gheorghiu in 1999 at a Palm Beach Opera fund raiser and they gave quite a show! I have bought all of their recordings and have great hopes for them in the world of opera. This is a sad and almost amateurish sounding release. Ms. Gheorghiu has a distinctive voice with both beauty and drama. However, she doesn't have or hasn't developed the technique for coloratura required for Bel Canto Opera. She doesn't even attempt a trill in any of these works and pushes for the high notes!!! This record should never have been released. I am sure she can do better. What's next a CD of Wagner arias??? Kidding! She will be a great TOSCA. Unfortunately, she is not the "new Maria Callas". This is a bold but embarrassing effort and unwise release.

Ravishing in presence, rich in talent Romanian born soprano Angela Gheorghiu has delighted audiences throughout the world and established herself as an international opera star. A diva with versatility and expressive agility, she has added luster to La Boheme, La Traviata, Turandot, Carmen, Romeo et Juliette, Don Giovanni, Manon, and others.

With her latest CD from EMI Classics she presents songs that represent the acme of the soprano repertoire, the heart of 19th century opera. Included are arias from Bellini's "Norma," "Il Puritani" and "La Sonnambula," in company with Donizetti's "Lucia di Lammermoor," "Anna Bolena" and Rossini's "L'Assiedo di Corinto," "Gugliemo Tell" and "Il Barbiere di Siviglia."

This is a bel canto disc, in translation bel canto means "beautiful singing." It often represents the expressive and lovely Italian vocal style of the 18th century. And, it is a style aptly suited to Ms. Gheorghiu as it allows her to showcase her lithe vocal grace and proficiency in legato delivery.

These arias bridge a wide spectrum of emotions from tragedy to comedy which this soprano mirrors smoothly.
Of this music Ms. Gheorghiu said, "These arias are stunning. They each have beautiful melodies, each one has its own special style and meaning. It's very simple why I chose them, it's because I love them, these are songs that every soprano dreams of singing. It was important for me to record them."

For everyone who enjoys sopranos it is important to listen.

- Gail Cooke