Bellini: Norma (complete opera) EMI's Great Recordings of the Century with Maria Callas, Tullio Serafin, Chorus & Orchestra of La Scala, Milan [Original recording remastered]

Vincenzo Bellini (Composer), Tullio Serafin (Conductor), La Scala Theater Orchestra (Orchestra), Ebe Stignani (Performer), Maria Callas (Performer), Mario Filippeschi (Performer), Nicola Rossi-Lemeni (Performer), Paolo Caroli (Performer), Rina Cavallari (Performer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: Ebe Stignani, Maria Callas, Mario Filippeschi, Nicola Rossi-Lemeni, Paolo Caroli, et al.
• Orchestra: La Scala Theater Orchestra
• Conductor: Tullio Serafin
• Composer: Vincenzo Bellini
• Audio CD (October 7, 2003)
• Number of Discs: 3
• Format: Original recording remastered
• Label: EMI Classics
• ASIN: B0000CG8EK
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #306,232 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

Disc: 1

1. Norma, opera: Sinfonia

2. Norma, opera: Act One. Scene One. Introduzione (Andante grave)...

3. Norma, opera: Act One. Scene One. Dell'aura tua profetica

4. Norma, opera: Act One. Scene One. Svanir le voci!

5. Norma, opera: Act One. Scene One. Meco all'altar di Venere

6. Norma, opera: Act One. Scene One. Odi? I suoi riti a compiere

See all 17 tracks on this disc

Disc: 2

1. Norma, opera: Act One. Scene Two. Allegro agitato...Vanne, e li cela Entrambi

2. Norma, opera: Act One. Scene Two. Adalgisa!... Alma, costanza

3. Norma, opera: Act One. Scene Two. Oh, rimembranza!

4. Norma, opera: Act One. Scene Two. Ah sě, fa' core, abbracciami

5. Norma, opera: Act One. Scene Two. Ma di: l'amato giovane

6. Norma, opera: Act One. Scene Two. Oh, di qual sei tu vittima

See all 8 tracks on this disc

Disc: 3

1. Norma, opera: Act Two. Scene One. Introduzione (Allegro assai moderato)

2. Norma, opera: Act Two. Scene One. Dormono entrambi!

3. Norma, opera: Act Two. Scene One. Olŕ! Clotilde!

4. Norma, opera: Act Two. Scene One. Mi chiami, o Norma?

5. Norma, opera: Act Two. Scene One. Deh! con te, con te li prendi

6. Norma, opera: Act Two. Scene One. Mira, o Norma

See all 20 tracks on this disc

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

37 of 38 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars EMI Reissue: The Reluctant First Choice., August 6, 2004

By 

Haas "haasenpfeffer" (Brooklyn) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Bellini: Norma (complete opera) EMI's Great Recordings of the Century with Maria Callas, Tullio Serafin, Chorus & Orchestra of La Scala, Milan (Audio CD)

No opera collection should be without one of the Callas NORMAs. There is a surprising number from which to choose; each is deeply flawed. I agree with critic and Callas biographer Michael Scott when he suggests that her two best recorded NORMAs are the 1952 Gui and the 1955 Votto, both live. The former showcases her in top vocal form, albeit less sensitive and nuanced, while the supporting cast is adequate; the latter captures her tremendous characterization while it still enjoyed relative vocal health, and features a fine supporting cast (maybe even as good as her second Serafin?), but Votto's support is mostly dull and unsympathetic. Not to mention: sound quality!

This 1954 is admittedly less than ideal, but I couldn't live without it. EMI's new GROC reissue is much more reasonably priced than before, and it has been digitally remastered for even greater impact. Most importantly, Tullio Serafin remains Callas's greatest partner-in-crime, a brilliant conductor, particularly in the bel canto repertoire. He makes the most out of this "big guitar" music, which oddly enough can become too beautiful for its own good. Bellini was perhaps the best composer of vocal music (besides Handel), and there is a reason why NORMA was an inspiration for Wagner and his "gesamtkunstwerk." The collaboration of Callas and Serafin is a singular representation of Bellini's visionary music drama.

So, you may ask, what about the 1960 set? Good question. It's brilliant -- without a doubt!-- but no self-respecting discophile would recommend it as the premiere NORMA. Even with its supporting cast, one of the finest on record, and Serafin's mature conducting, it remains the essential complement to the 1954 (or, for that matter, the 1952 or '55). Why? Because Callas's Norma -- one of her greatest roles -- should be heard in its vocal prime. So, by default, we make due with her first studio session (as with Furtwangler's TRISTAN or Cellini's TROVATORE, both from 1952). What's wrong with it? Well, everything and nothing. The supporting players: Stignani, a grande dame of Italian opera and expert Adalgisa, is terribly old-sounding, especially in her characteristic middle register; additionally, Mario Filippeschi is gruff and unmusical, the undeniable weak link of the recording. Both possess merely adequate dramatic skill. Two good singers past their prime. Still, they're BY NO MEANS worth neglecting this set.

Callas sings Norma -- the soprano Hamlet -- with ardor and responsiveness, though at times lacking the spontaneity of a live performance. Still, the sound is vibrant and stunning. One must make compromises; record collecting ain't easy. Serafin's leadership of the La Scala forces -- as well as the fine chorus work -- makes this an indispensable recording of great Italian opera. Some listeners will want to own one of the Sutherlands (probably her 1964) and possibly a Caballe (with Vickers?), but this 1954 is Amazon's top pick for a good reason. A classic.

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Wondrous recording, March 30, 2005

By 

BDSinC "Music lover" (Calgary, Alberta, Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Bellini: Norma (complete opera) EMI's Great Recordings of the Century with Maria Callas, Tullio Serafin, Chorus & Orchestra of La Scala, Milan (Audio CD)

This is one of a number of recordings I have with Callas, including one where Joan Sutherland plays Clotilde (this is a live recording and the sound is not great, but the performance simply sizzles and again Stignani is the Adalgisa). However, to this recording. At first I was not impressed with it like I felt I would be. Of course, Callas didn't disappoint at all, but the rest of the cast sort of bothered me. Norma's father was sung in a way with virtually no legato at all and sort of shoved out note by note. There was no characterization to speak of, but the voice was full (perhaps recorded very closely miked and forward). Pollione really sort of bothered me, as he is the first really important lead we hear. Of course, this role was sung by Mario Filippschi. He sounded old, but his high C was wonderful. I had to consult the booklet that came with the recording to learn a thing about him (which was precious little) but it did give his birth and death dates. The man was OLD when he recorded the role. He may have been a wonder in his younger days, as he was considered for the longest time the only tenor who could successfully sing the role of Arnoldo in Rossini's William Tell. However, when he recorded this opera, he was, well, nearing the age most tenors gladly stop singing. That said, with repreated listenings, I started to really see what he was offering the role. He had heart, he had masculinity, he had passion. And he did sing the notes. I found his diction much better than Stignani's and he sang the correct sound for most of his vowels (Stignani has a terrible habit of singing all the "e" vowels, said in Italian as an "AY" sound to those who speak English, with all sorts of vowel sounds, and it didn't matter if the vowel occurred in the passagio or not, so covering or darkening the tone for the passagio was not the reason). I also found he did play off Callas' Norma well. He could act with his voice, but in all truth, it is one of those non-descript voices that serves the music well and drifts out of the hearer's memory. No, he is not a Corelli, but he sings with far more finesse than Corelli does, and he never had to SCOUP up to his higher notes, and he followed the timing of the music perfectly. I really learned to appreciate his contribution to the opera.

Then there was Stignani. I have many recordings of her, some made way back when (back with Gigli) and she was electrifying in them. She had better diction as well and didn't distort her vowels as she does in this recording. However, as with Filippischi, she is no spring chicken. She is a "great dame" by this point in her life. Her legato line was not as it should have been (or as it was in the live recording I have), but it was by no means bad. One could tell hers is a huge voice, and well, they never record well. There was a super strong "squillo" to the sound (incredible ring, which is what a singer wants, even Callas has it, though her production is far too forward) which in and of itself gives excitement to whatever she sings. Personally, I felt she was far too old for Adalgisa by this point in her career, even though she sings it well (though to those who don't know, the duets are sung in the lower keys used by Ponselle when she sang the opera, not in the published keys in the score). I really doubt her ability to sing higher notes was the reason for the lower keys, for at that time period, it was normal to use the lower keys.

However, Stignani does dodge the high C in the first act duet with Callas, and it is sad, but not a loss. I am not sure about the characterization of her role, for I really didn't feel for a moment I was listening to the fears and loves of a young vestle virgin wondering what to do with her first love. At times, I almost thought she should be giving Callas advice on love, she seemed old enough to be her mother.

Yet, that said, I came to really love the performance. It is said that Stignani sounds "old fashioned" and that is quite a good desciption. She sings the role as it was sung in the olden days of opera (some call the golden age) and many of her methods and approaches to singing the role were also sung by Telva when she sang the role against Ponselle's Norma. That was how the world saw the opera then. We see it differently, and partly because of Callas and her new approach to things.

Now we get to the NORMA of the opera, Callas. I have a number of recordings of Callas in this role, this and another studio recording, and two live performances, one at Covent Garden with the Clotilde of Sutherland, and the Paris opera performance near the end of her career (where she flubs a High C in the last act, stops the performance and resings the phrase getting the note, and by the way, I was at that performance in person, so I had the opportunity to witness a Callas Norma, even if it was at the end of her career).

Though I agree with everyone when they say they find more subtleties with the later recording (and you will find even more in the Paris performance), Callas' basic understanding of Norma never changes. She knows what Norma is all about right from the get go. Maybe that was her work with Serafin that did that (after all, she very openly attributes her way with a recitative directly to him, and that he taught her how to make coloratura make dramatic sense, and she certainly does make it make dramatic sense). Whatever it was, this was a role that will forever be associated with Callas, and like many say, she is the only real Norma out there. Sutherland, Sills, and Caballe may have sang the notes more beautifully, but they didn't grasp, or if they did they couldn't convey it in their voices, the depth of character, nor the emotional distress of the character. Everyone sings her "angry moments" well, but what most forget is this is a woman who has lived a life of a lie for years. She is not the virgin she pretends to be. And that personal disappointment, that knowledge of self, that inner knowing of one's own hypocrasy, is there, even when Callas opens her mouth to begin the recitative that will lead us into the Casta Diva. As when Callas sang Violetta, we knew she was sick right from the get go, we know that Norman is a tormented creature right from the first notes, which makes her caballetta after the Casta Diva meaningful, for after all, she is not wanting her lover to be destroyed.

This recording has much to offer, and much joy to give. I rated it only 4 stars because of my reservations with the cast (it seems more often than not, Callas is paired with far inferior casts in her recordings, which is such a shame; imagine if she had singers, both men and women, equal to her in presentation, coloratura, musicianship, and in dramatic interpretation). However, having seen Norma many times by various artists, I tend to agree with one reviewer who stated that we sadly see anyone get up there and sing this opera really ruining it because they have no business being up there singing it, even if they have all the notes.

Callas may have not had the most beautiful voice, but she had far more than all the notes, she had the entire soul of the character; Callas is Norma.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Greatest Norma On Record And Calla's Greatest Role, February 2, 2005

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Bellini: Norma (complete opera) EMI's Great Recordings of the Century with Maria Callas, Tullio Serafin, Chorus & Orchestra of La Scala, Milan (Audio CD)

This is the best version of Bellini's Norma on record because of the power and beauty of Maria Callas' voice which was at its prime in this recording. Maria Callas in her legendary 1954 performance as Bellini's epic character Norma..what more can you ask for ? Fans of the great late diva will be pleased. She has the best voice on this recording than all the subsequent late 50's and 60's recordings. It benefits from having conductor Tulio Serafin, who knew how to work well with Callas, as the force behind the music. Serafin made Callas a star actually, because he knew how to effectively bring out the best in her.

Maria Callas in this Norma is fresh, powerful and complex. She is plaintive and spiritual in the serene "Casta Diva" aria, dazzling in the coloratura "A Bello A Mi Ritorna" and she changes from love-struck woman to a volcano of fury and revenge in the later scenes to finally noble and resigned in the finale. Only Callas could most dramatically portray Norma. It is true that Callas's singing technique emphasized the dramatic intensity more so than the beauty. She wanted for audiences to be treated to real drama. She strained her voice so hard that it can be a gritty ugly voice. Even like this, there are moments in which Maria Callas sounds absolutely beautiful. The weak cast supporting her are indeed inferior when compared to such singers as tenors Franco Corelli, Mario Del Monaco and mezzo soprano Christina Ludwig which Callas worked with in later recordings. But this doesnt matter seeing how Maria is the real star anyways.

Other Normas of great calibre include Shirley Verrett and Montserrat Caballe. Both these sopranos once visited Callas and sought advice for how to sing a sensational Norma. Callas told them not to overdo it or to oversing it. Shirley Verrett sang a fine Norma and is indeed closer to Callas than Caballe but Caballe did the role numerous times and seemed to master the role quite well. If you are looking for the best Norma look no further.