Customer Reviews

Bizet: Carmen / Price, Corelli, Merrill, Freni; Karajan

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This Carmen probably has the most distinguished cast on records -- Leontyne Price, Franco Corelli, Mirella Freni, and Robert Merrill, plus the conducting of Herbert von Karajan. Everyone is in good voice, and the Vienna Philharmonic plays beautifully, attending lovingly to the many fine details of Bizet's score. All in all, it's a very grand affair. And that's the problem. Carmen is not Lohengrin or Don Carlo; it's really an intimate drama about simple people, soldiers, gypsies, peasants, and smugglers. That intimacy doesn't survive the star treatment and deliberateness of von Karajan's approach. Much of the drama does come through, since the leads were all highly accomplished in their art, but I am never able to shake the feeling that I'm listening to superstars act like Merimee's characters. This is not a bad Carmen by any means; it's simply a bit off the mark.

This is a must have carmen by all means! I'll start with the best reason to run and buy it - there's no Michaela like Freni's (who by the way named her daughter Michaela...) She's the perfect Michaela with sweet soaring notes. I've heard many Michaelas, none gets anywherwe near. Freni simply makes you want to listen to Michaela's parts over and over again, and her duet with Don Jose "Parle moi de ma mere" - is a real treat to the ear and soul. Michaela's aria - shear pleasure.

Price, though not a Mezzo-soprano, gives a sexy seductive Carmen who sends shivers down one's spine, with a voice that's thick, dark, rich and a little hoarse, in a way most becoming the role.

Corelli is an electrifying Don Jose, and in the last scene every note of his goes down to your heart. Merill - an exallent Escamilio.

The orchestration is simply so right and every note is briliant and clean. The secondary roles are sung wonderfully as well.

For all Carmen lovers or ones getting to know it - this is a must have.

For those who want to get to know opera, this is the ideal opera to start.

This recording of "Carmen" isn't very subtle, or very elegant, or very idiomatic. The French pronunciation of the four principals is often unbelievably atrocious. Bizet probably wouldn't have recognized this as the tragicomic opera-comique that he wrote. But boy, is this recording ever entertaining!

The principals may have terrible French, but they also have glorious voices, and that, combined with the playing of the Vienna Philharmonic, makes the recording absolutely gorgeous as sheer sound. Price, who never sang Carmen on the stage, here plays the part as a sort of cousin to Bess from PORGY AND BESS, and she sort of makes it work. Corelli's French is the worst of all, but his Don Jose sounds truly tortured and, in the final act, fearsome in a way that more stylish tenors can't match. The young Freni sounds magnificent in the thankless role of Micaela, and the ubiquitous Robert Merrill sounds, as usual, like a gorgeous-voiced All-American lunkhead.

Karajan is Karajan: more concerned with beautiful sound than with anything else. Beautiful sound is what he gets, and the recording, produced by the great John Culshaw, is just plain fun to listen to. A guilty pleasure, perhaps, but a pleasure nonetheless.

This studio recording could almost pass for the soundtrack to a film version of the opera Carmen. It is treated as grand opera in the Italian manner. Karajan conducts his Vienna forces, Leontyne Price is Carmen, Franco Corelli is Don Jose, Robert Merrill is Escamillo and Mirella Freni is Micaela. Detractors constantly bash tenor Franco Corelli's sloppy French diction and inadequacy as Don Jose, but I find his performance sexy, masculine, passionate and dark. His Don Jose is a man driven to jealousy and obscession and it SHOWS in every note Corelli sings. Fans of Franco Corelli will definately enjoy this performance. He had previously recorded Don Jose with Giuletta Simionato as Carmen. Corelli is a fine Don Jose so stop bashing him please. I find his performance nuanced and well-characterized dramatically even if vocally he may lose to the likes of Mario Del Monaco, Placido Domingo and Jon Vicker's Don Jose.

Leontyne Price is in terrific vocal shape and she oozes sensuality and sexiness in every line. Her voice is husky and borderline alto. If I didn't know that Leontyne was a soprano I would have first bought her as a mezzo soprano, the proper vocal range for Carmen. From the Habanera, through the dramatic scenes involving contrabandiers, and her final scene with Don Jose, she is Carmen all the way, and she takes her place with all the famous Carmens of the past- Rosa Ponselle (who was also a soprano) Rise Stevens, Giuletta Simionato, Fedora Barbieri, Marilyn Horne, Grace Bumbry, Shirley Verrett, Tatiana Troyanos and even Maria Callas (soprano too!). Later on soprano Jessye Norman would most resemble Leontyne Price when singing Carmen.

Baritone Robert Merrill is a masterful and hot Escamillo. The detractor/critic bashing him by saying he sounds too "American" doesn't know what he's saying. What does that mean ? The most illustrious opera singers have turned out to be Americans- Leontyne Price,Marilyn Horne, Shirley Verrett, Beverly Sills, Carol Vaness, Debora Voight and Renee Fleming. In the male side, Sherill Milnes, Richard Tucker, and Samuel Ramey have achieved stardom as American opera singers. Robert Merrill is doing a terrific job as Escamillo, providing the role with machismo and bravura appropriate to the characer and moreover, providing the role with rich lyric timbre. Don't hesitate to own this recording. It is a priceless recording and even if you don't care for the technique and style of singing and conducting of the score, purchase it for love of the brilliant principal singers- Leontyne Price as a HOT Carmen, Franco Corelli as an equally hot Don Jose, Robert Merrill as Escamillo and a radiant Mirella Freni as the innocent but passionate Micaela.

This has got to be Bizet's most popular, most loved opera. And why not? It has so much to entrance and enrapture the listener: entertainment from beginning to end, good plot, and excellent songs that keep you humming long after they're done. However, Carmen was certainly not popular back when it debuted one night in 1875 at the Théâtre de la Opéra-Comique in Paris. Bizet was most worried about this opera premiering there, as well he should have been since the Parisiennes were used to light comedy with a touch of irony. Carmen was certainly not "light" at all and was accused of being immoral and obscene. Many changes were performed, including putting the recitative to music and having it sung instead of spoken. Finally though (after years actually) they warmed up to it, and "verismo" opera was widely accepted and celebrated. Ever since, Carmen has been a mainstay at opera houses due to its great popularity. I've seen it twice myself, and also have this recording with Leontyne Price in the title role.

I absolutely love this recording. And it's not just the voices that I love. This version (I don't have the other recorded versions to compare it with by the way and so I cannot comment on this one as compared to the others) contains many sound effects that make it just that much more real. The bell chime to call the ladies back to work, the swords being drawn, the crowd noises and shrieks, everything. As for the singing, it's first rate in my mind.

Leontyne Price as Carmen is a very fresh sound to hear. Normally we hear mezzos with dark voices singing the part. And although they do it well, I find their voices sometimes muffled and diction becomes poor and almost unbearable. Ms. Price has done a fantastic job with this role, with an acceptable French accent, good diction, and good coloration of both tone and phrasing. She knows just when a darker voice is needed to convey the mood and when not. I also like her interpretations of some of the arias and duets, very refreshing but also intelligent and true to style. I must also rave about her acting here; it's not just some dry interpretation of the music and singing all the time. She does a wonderful job of conveying her emotions especially at the end of Act 4 in her confrontation with Don José (Corelli). You can hear the brazen truth when she says "je n'aime plus" to respond to his question if she loves him. Disgust and complete frustration are heard when she utters "laisse-moi passée! (let me by!)" It is hard to ignore her talent... Shortly after completing this role, she was Leonora in Il Trovatore and received a standing ovation for 42 minutes, breaking the record for that house (which one, I can't remember). She is definitely an excellent soprano and interpreter of music, especially with the role of Carmen.

Franco Corelli's Don José is a very good one. I was surprised to hear a good French accent at times, although it fizzled near the end (perhaps he was concentrating on the acting... I don't know). I was happy though to hear his voice in this role since it's more masculine than some and conveys the character well. He does a fine job all around.

All other parts sung were just great. Freni's Michaëla is very good. There might be better though when it comes to her aria in the third act (However, I'm comparing her to those I've seen live... It's just my opinion. Some of the reviewers before me have stated that she did a wonderful job). Every other supporting role is just fantastic. The duets and choruses are marvelously done. The Vienna Boy's Choir is a real treat. Their enunciation is as clear as a bell, and the voices were able to be heard over the large orchestra.

Herbert von Karajan does a splendid job of conducting the Vienna Philharmonic and choristers. Some people may not like his skills, but I thought that everything flowed perfectly and sounded just great, which is all that should be expected from a conductor I believe. He allowed a great sound for the singers to perform with and the opera thus flourishes.

Overall, I really love this recording and I probably won't get another one. When listening to it, I can picture everything as if I'm actually there in the opera house. The sound and acting is great as far as I'm concerned. It's a top-notch cast and a top-notch recording, and I'm proud to own it.

In response to the comments made by another reviewer, the accents are just fine. And yes, Corelli's French has never been very good, but it was better here than I've heard in some of his other recordings, except towards the end as I noted earlier. The others' accents are fine, comparing them to most performances done these days and in the past. There are rarely versions of this opera done with fantastic French accents, unless one chooses singers with a French background.

Well... there's my opinion. Take it for what it's worth. I hope I was helpful and perhaps enlightening.

This recording must be rated amongst the best. Beautiful orchestral sound, extraordinary voices. I admit, that it isn't much in French or "Spain" style like Berganza/Abaddo. Leontyne Price portrays very interesting and gorgeously sung Carmen. Her intentional usage of chesty tones in Habanera makes it sound different, original and thrilling; optional high notes are full and secure. Tereza Berganza's very fine and stylish performance is somewhat less thrilling than Price's. Correli's singing is superb. Nobody sounds so plausible when murdering Carmen. His portrayal of the progress of Don Jose's character is not so delicate like Carreras' (Baltsa/Karajan) or Domingo's (Berganza/Abaddo) but again it is more thrilling and entertaining. Mirella Freni as Micaela can't be compared to anyone. Her sweet and ravishing tones are pleasure to listen to, no one is so moving, innocent - the best sung Micaela ever. Another great plus for this recording is Herbert von Karajan and Vienna Philharmonic. Sound of VPO needn't further recommendations - the music is fresh, brilliant and clear; the tempi are perfect. If you want to enjoy style go for Berganza/Abaddo, but if you want to feel the drama, voices and music this recording is the best.

Leontyne Price is a highly seductive Carmen, her warm and
husky sound and her sensuous way with words and music are
beguiling - here is a woman worth losing your head over!
Mirella Freni, by contrast, is all pure tone and sweetness,
a delightful Micaela. Franco Corelli is a superb Don Jose,
thrillingly sung. Robert Merrill has all the vocal qualities
to portray the swaggering Escamillo. It must be noted that
none of the singers are especially apt with the french lan-
guage but with such glorious vocalism it is a minor distrac-
tion. Beautifully conducted and excellent sound.

One of the sad ironies of opera history is that Bizet never lived to see Carmen become the smash hit of the opera world. Described as the world's first musical, with one hit song after another, the opera is packed with great music and memorable melodies such as the Seguidilla, the Habanera and the Toreador Song. It is one of the first operas set in real time in a real place with ordinary people. Today it is arguably the most popular opera in production.
While there are many wonderful recordings, here it's the voices that make this recording so memorable. Leontyne Price is simply in sumptuous form, with the richness of a mezzo in the lower register plus her ringing top notes. Franco Corelli is a clarion and passionate Don Jose, Mirela Freni a sweet voiced Micaela, and Robert Merrill a rich and robust Escamillo. In some respects this is the "Italian" Carmen, (Corelli and Freni don't have the best French accents and Price was never known for her diction), but the quality of the voices make up for any linguistic deficiency.
As is his wont, Herbert von Karajan emphasizes his orchestra, which becomes almost another member of the cast in his hands--this can sometimes be at the expense of his singers, but Price, Corelli, Freni and Merrill hold their own. But a von Karajan performance is always thrilling, whether it is this album or his Salzburg Festival DVD with Grace Bumbry, Jon Vickers, Mirela Freni and a very young Justino Diaz.
For a fan of Leontyne Price this is a MUST HAVE, and a worthy addition to any opera collection.

I first heard this version of Carmen many years ago, and for two main reasons, I can not give up listening to it. Reason #1: Leontyne Price's voice is so rich and spot-on, and reason #2: the Vienna Boys Choir add the necessary youthful element to the opera. I feel that this is a good, solid recording, well worth five stars, and far, far better than the versions of Carmen that make me cringe (and which shall remain nameless). The voices were cast well, and as usual, Herbert von Karajan conducts superbly.

There is really one reason to own this album: Leontyne Price.
Nobody sings Carmen the way she does. Period.
I get shivers just re-playing her arias in my head.

Franco Corelli is an excellent Don Jose, and his Flower Song is exquisite.

Mirelli Freni is the definitive Michaella and Robert Merrill is a convincing Escamillo.

And HVK is HVK. I totally agree with an earlier reviewer that he made beautiful music.

Don't be turned off by the french (have you heard Marilyn Horne or Placido Domingo speak french?), and don't be turned off by the updated libretto which removes the talking sections.

Just be prepared for an exquisite musical experience that alas, was never performed on the stage.