Customer Reviews

Centennial Gala [VHS]

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

 

 

A must for opera fans, a real collectable one! The Video released from Metropolitan Opera presenting its centennial gala into 2 parts: part I includes the opera stars like Marton, Te kanawa, Freni, Kraus, Domingo, Von Stade and Battle with their excellent performances. More stars have been the focus on stage in part II, like Price, Nilsson, Horne, Pavarotti, Cotrubas and Caballe. The bonus of the gala was the special apperances of many operatic legendary singers, like Milanov, Rise, Steber,etc. Just to make it a one-time memorable experience to feel the unique charisma and passion of the Met both in its glorious history and live performance.

Yes, this is indeed a wonderful remembrance of the greatnes of the Metropolitan Opera Centennial Gala. Sadly to note is the fact that my tapes, received for the second time, ( first time on tape No. 2 was Wagners Lohengrin instead of the right one), almost at the end when Pavarotti and Leontyce Price were singing the duet from Ballo in Maschera, the tape came to its end, so this is the interrupted melody; also missing is the conclusion when the company sings Happy Birthday. Anyway this is a marvelous concert to be seen many times; it fully deserves 5 stars.

This tape features some of the greatest names in opera, from Price, to Nilsson. Personally, I did not enjoy this tape as much as I thought I would because most of the singers were already past thier prime. Pavarotti's and Price's heads almost exploded by the end of thier duet from Verdi's "Un Ballo en Maschera." You can hear audible ditereoration in Sutherland's middle register, and the first aria by Eva Marton, "In questa reggia," from Puccini's Turandot, was not given it's justice. To add to the list of mistakes, Dame Kiri Te Kanawa made a visible mistake singing "Dove sono." What I enjoyed about this tape was seeing the singers past, present and future all on the same stage at the end of the video, which was very heart-warming. To reminise on the good-old-days, this would be the perfect video, but if you want to hear the aria's sang the way they should be, find older recordings of your favorite artis or purchase something from someone recent.