Barber - Vanessa

Eleanor Steber (Artist), Nicolai Gedda (Artist), Rosalind Elias (Artist), Giorgia Tozzi (Artist), Regina Resnik (Artist), George Cehanovsky (Artist), Robert Nagy (Artist), Samuel Barber (Composer), Dimitri Mitropoulos (Conductor), Metropolitan Opera Orchestra & Chorus (Orchestra) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Orchestra: Metropolitan Opera Orchestra & Chorus
• Conductor: Dimitri Mitropoulos
• Composer: Samuel Barber
• Audio CD (February 13, 1990)
• Number of Discs: 2
• Label: RCA
• ASIN: B000003ES5
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #65,361 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #72 in Music > Classical > Opera & Vocal > Languages > English

Track Listings

Disc: 1

1. Vanessa, opera, Op. 32: Act I: Potage crème aux perles

2. Vanessa, opera, Op. 32: Act I: No, I cannot understand

3. Vanessa, opera, Op. 32: Act I: Must the winter come so soon?

4. Vanessa, opera, Op. 32: Act I: Listen!...They are here...

5. Vanessa, opera, Op. 32: Act I: Do not utter a word, Anatol

6. Vanessa, opera, Op. 32: Act I: Yes, I believe I shall love you

7. Vanessa, opera, Op. 32: Act I: Who are you?

8. Vanessa, opera, Op. 32: Act II: And then? - He Made me drink

9. Vanessa, opera, Op. 32: Act II: No, you are not as good a skater

10. Vanessa, opera, Op. 32: Act II: 'Under the willow tree...'

See all 15 tracks on this disc

Disc: 2

1. Vanessa, opera, Op. 32: Act III: The Count and Countess d'Albany

2. Vanessa, opera, Op. 32: Act III: I should never have been a doctor

3. Vanessa, opera, Op. 32: Act III: Here you are!

4. Vanessa, opera, Op. 32: Act III: At last I found you

5. Vanessa, opera, Op. 32: Act III: Nothing to worry about

6. Vanessa, opera, Op. 32: Act IV, Scene 1: Why did no one warn me?

7. Vanessa, opera, Op. 32: Act IV, Scene 1: Why must the greatest sorrows

8. Vanessa, opera, Op. 32: Act IV, Scene 1: There, look!

9. Vanessa, opera, Op. 32: Act IV, Scene 1: Anatol, tell me the truth!

10. Vanessa, opera, Op. 32: Act IV, Scene 1: Take me away

See all 16 tracks on this disc

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

36 of 37 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Someone Revive This....Soon!, June 24, 2002

By 

Christopher Forbes "weirdears" (Brooklyn,, NY) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Barber - Vanessa (Audio CD)

This may be one of the greatest American operas of all time. It is shocking that a work of this quality isn't more widely performed. It is a vocal showcase.

Vanessa suffers perhaps from a bit overwrought libretto. Menotti is guilty of his usual excesses. But Barber more than makes up for this in the sweep of his melodies. Musically, the piece is tonal, but harmonically adventureous. Interestingly, some of the piece calls to mind composers such as Bernard Herrmann or Miklas Rosza...high praise indeed for dramatic music in my mind. The final quintet at the end of the fourth act is rapturous. I find myself listening to it again and again.

The performance is as close to perfect as a composer could wish for. Steber is brilliant as Vanessa and Rosalind Elias is a moving Ericka. Mitropoulos conducts with sweep and power.

I wish opera companies would revive this work. It really deserves it.

32 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very Few "Perfect" Recordings..., December 11, 1999

By 

Daniel Mitrano (Ft. Lauderdale, FL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Barber - Vanessa (Audio CD)

There are only a few of what I would call "perfect" opera recordings. I can happily add Barber's Vanessa to that list. Steber's performance leaves one shaking one's head wondering why she hadn't made more recordings. Hers is that rare combination of pure beauty of tone, perfect technique, dramatic flair, unfailing musicianship, power, and range. Why do we have so little of her on disc? She gives the performance of a lifetime as the title role. That isn't to say the rest of the cast isn't on the same level. Amazingly, Rosalind Elias as Erika almost steals the scenes away from Steber. Her mezzo is rich yet youthful sounding, dramatically and musically as fresh as Steber. The two together is magic. Gedda impresses as Anatol, his English pronunciation is superb. Tozzi is in glorious voice and delivers with relish. That leaves Mitropoulos to conduct with brilliance, savoring Barber's bejewelled score with every stroke of his baton. It's a wonderful score, brilliantly written. The libretto is a bit too kitschy, but no more than any Verdi opera. The sound, even from the 1950's, is clear and fresh, putting some "modern" recordings to shame. I would get this set while it's still available. There is no wonder why it was only recorded once--there's no reason to record it again.

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Masterpiece!, April 29, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Barber - Vanessa (Audio CD)

A truly gorgeous recording. What amazed me the most is the perfect diction of each performer. What a lesson for singers young and old! Barber's score is hauntingly beautiful.The cast is, without exception, brilliant Why isn't this work done at the Metropolitan on a regular basis?