Customer Reviews

Bellini: La Sonnambula

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

Maria Callas was a supremely great artist, as was Joan Sutherland, Montserrat Caballe', etc. For people to throw brickbats at any of them is to show great ignorance of music. I am enthralled by all three of them, and know that each brought something uniquely wonderful to opera. That said, I find this Callas "Sommambula" quite impressive. Callas is in great form here. If the natural timbre of her voice disturbs you, you merely can pass on this recording. Others will appreciate its merits. Callas' phrasing here is exemplary, her technique completely secure, and her dramatic instincts right on target. Cesare Valletti is a lyrical Elvino. Leonard Bernstein's conducting is exciting, but perhaps too fast in certain sections. This is a live performance, taped at La Scala in March, 1955. It preserves what must have been a spectacular occasion, which has been validated by critics who have written about it. The sound of this recording is not anywhere near state-of-the art, but it is listenable, and provides a good documentation of what an evening at La Scala with Callas was like. For Callas fans, of course. For those who don't appreciate her, there's always Sutherland, who was equally great in her own way.

While Sutherland sang Amina with great beauty, she does not convince the listener as Callas does. This live recording captures La Divina on a truly magical night at La Scala. The voice, the trills, and the embellishments are breathtaking. She starts on a high plane and builds her miraculous performance with each scene. Just listening to "Ah Non Giunge" (final scene) as she climbs higher and higher, finally sending that miraculous voice out into the auditorium and ENCIRCLING the audience (WOW!) will absolutely bowl you over. The audience on the recording simply raises the opera house roof with applause and bravas! Live recording-ok sound, but a LEGENDARY performance. BRAVA MARIA!

This performance marked one of the most spectacular evenings of the Callas career. She is in stupendous voice here, taking on the most taxing and difficult coloratura embellishments and tossing them out as though they were trifles. Callas takes all kinds of vocal chances here and gets away with all of them. Her legato singing is meltingly lyrical and beautiful as well. Her duets with Cesare Valletti (who is himself in great form) an object-lesson in great bel canto singing. The La Scala audience doesn't hesitate to show its approval. This was a golden period for Maria Callas at La Scala, and to have this performance documented, in aceptable sound, is something to be cherished.

This is a beatiful opera, one of Bellini's best and most beloved. I would love to have a translation of the libretto (it's only in Italian), but I have several synopses of the plot...and it's the music and the singing, anyway. The booklet is well produced and contains nice photos of the cast, conductor, and Maria Callas. I can only give the CD a "4" star rating due to the average, monophonic sound quality. However, there are two bonus tracks from a performance in Cologne with Votto conducting, and the quality of these tracks is very good, indeed. Bernstein conducts at his not unusual slow tempo, and this brings out the inherent beauty of the opera in every detail. It really works with the finale because it allows Mme. Callas to create beautiful decorative embellishments at what appears to be a rapid pace. This brings the audience at La Scalla to their feet with many bravos. One caution: I own an excellent CD player which only has 2x oversampling, and the first disc would not play.

As Amina, we find Callas as the supreme coloratura. Her Ah! non giunge is a lesson in the art of bravura singing. All of her high notes are colossal in size. Bellini would have been inspired by her had he heard her.Also, Maria Callas grows on you. I admit,when I first heard La Divina, I didn't like what I heard. But Because I'm deeply in opera, I had no choice but to hear her on many, many occasion. I am now huge fan of the great diva, and consider her to be the greatest operatic phenomenon of all time. Her voice is very beautiful to me. It is large, dark, full of character. And she has the great ability to color all her phrases so well that gives one goosepimple. As for her greatest in the bel canto reportoire, she is without peer. She has such precise technique that each note of a scale is distinct like a pearl in a pearl necklace. That can't be said about the other coloratura great of our time, Joan Sutherland. And Callas has as good a trill as Sutherland. As for Callas ability to act. Well, no one can come within a million miles of her in that category. She is simply sublime, miraculous, believable! As Lucia, she is the ultimate musician. She makes every coloratura line magical as well as thrilling. She really has no rivals in the bel canto reportoire, and that includes the great Joan Sutherland. But the most miraculous thing about La Divina is her extreme acting ability. No one, and I mean, no one can touch her in that department. She can may you cry in one moment, laugh at another, and she can even make you hate her! But of course, Callas is without question the most famous opera singer of the century, and perhaps the most loved. She IS OPERA!

Callas is the only singer that I know of who can sing both Wagner and Bellini. I feel that she is unique among singers of the twentieth century becaucse of this. I love this Sonnambula, it has everything to make it great. Callas sings all of Amina's arias with warmth and ease. Wow! I feel that Callas will go on history as one the wonders of the operatic world. As for the non-Callas lovers, leave them alone, don't talk to them, and they'll go away. I think that if I was to have only one recording of Sonnambula, it would be this one.

if you do not like Callas in this, what do you expect from Medea then. This was a thrlling performance .Has anybody heard recently, in the last 20 year a good live performance somewhere?Would you think that Olivero,Rysanek,I have heard them,would have satisfied you.Where do you have today this exitement in an opera house, with the Flemings,Vanesses etc. category?

This a real bel canto gem. I love Callas in Bellini. It took a little getting use to, but when I got it, I GOT IT!! The coloratura of Callas is very clean and precise. And her phrasing just first rate.

This is a perfect recording! Callas' detractors don't even understand of bel canto art and technique. For God's sake Galli-Curci is gone! She is NO MATCH for Callas!

The recording I have of this 'event' is unfortunately not remastered so this particular recording is well worth a puchase either by Callas fans or those seeking to hear the young Berstein or a Bellini masterpiece done true justice. Dispite a rather thin and unengaging story, the music here is glorious, Callas reinvents the character of Amina from the opening few bars, her voice lighter than normal but no less descriptive. Her voice is steady and thrilling, the coloratura dazzling. She and Berstein wrote some breathtaking cadenzas many of which cannot be heard in full on the EMI studio recording. Callas at her best, spontaneous, daring and utterly in control. Only drawback is no matter how good the remastering, there is a limit to what can be done to a live recording. I loved it