Customer Reviews

Danielle de Niese - Handel Arias

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

 

 

... and intransigence of the one-star and two-star reviews of this CD! The most vituperative of the critics present themselves as musically literate, or at least as enthusiastic listeners, yet they offer judgments that show no knowledge of baroque practice. To say that Danielle de Niese's vocal technique is "utterly out of control" is utterly nonsensical; one could quarrel with some of the choices she makes with her technical skills perhaps, but one MUST recognize that she has the control to make those choices. And to declare that her tuning is faulty approaches malicious libel; her tuning is really remarkably good, considering how boldly she colors her timbre for dramatic affect. Her tuning is almost always truer, for instance, than Cecilia Bartoli's, and about as consistent as Vivica Genoux's. Whose is better? Susanne Rydén is the only soprano name that comes to mind.

Several hostile reviewers compared de Niese to Beverly Sills. That's a valid match-up in several ways, so I dug out a DVD and some aged vinyls of Sills and listened. Both singers have amazing clarino trumpet-of-judgment upper registers, and both are ready to leap fearlessly from octave to octave. But in a direct confrontation, de Niese surpasses Sills easily. Sills depended for her 'intensity' on an unvarying vibrato, like a rookie baseball pitcher who throws only country fastballs. De Niese's highly developed technique includes a battery of vibrato choices -- wider or narrower, slower or faster, constant or expanding, or none at all -- like a wily veteran pitcher with a curveball, a sinker, and a change-up to offer at the bedazzled batter. And then there's tuning. How could anyone with clean ears not notice that tuning was Beverly Sills's weak point? Dramatic flair she had, and that's probably the basis for comparison. Sills could light up a stage. Danielle de Niese can light up a whole production, as I've seen her do in live performance of La Nozze di Figaro and on both of her DVDs, of Handel's Giulio Cesare and of Monteverdi's L'Incoronazione di Poppea.

There are two tracks, out of twelve, on this CD that I consider less than satisfactory: Lascia ch'io pianga from Rinaldo, and Dolce riposo from Teseo. De Niese overpowers the former and misses the 'sweet repose' of the latter. She's better at Fury and Ecstasy than at Sorrow or Tenderness. She makes a better brazen seductress than a wistful neglected lover. In La Nozze, she was well cast as Susana, while she would have been miscast as the Countess. Think what she could do with Medea! It's odd, by the way, to find fault with an "Early Music" singer for overpowering an aria, since the usual refrain is that historically informed performers sound thin or bland in comparison to the divas of the last century. I have an inkling that Danielle de Niese's flamboyant vocalization of these arias might come rather close to the style and manner of some of Handel's favorite castrati, who were applauded for their fiery 'potency' on stage.

Normally I'd probably drop a star from this rating for the unlovely singing of the two tracks mentioned, but there's so much drive and exuberance to be heard on other tracks that I choose to be gallant. De Niese has chosen, consciously I'm sure, to interpret theses arias with her maximum dramatic intensity. Some listeners will feel that she's chosen a musical personality over refined musicianship.

Added later: Let me give you an opportunity to hear just how GOOD, how controlled, de Niese's vocal technique is: listen to the first track on this CD - the flamboyant aria "Da tempeste il legno infranto" - and them listen to the last track on the CD 'Handel: Apollo e Dafne', the same aria sung by a star of an earlier generation, Roberta Alexander, conducted by Nikolas Harnoncourt. De Niese is indisputably better technically. Her intonation is more secure and more consistent. Her articulation is cleaner and yet more florid; Alexander's phrasing sounds smudged by comparison. You may also hear what amounts to an evolution of style in the orchestra, from Concentus Musicus to Les Arts Florissants, toward a distinctively baroque affect. And I think you'll hear why conductor William Christie has chosen to collaborate with Danielle De Niese; they are on the same wavelength.

If I heard Ms. de Niese in a local amateur production, I would be all about her. But not as a singer being poised at the brink of an international career. I am the last one on Earth to be beholden to sheer vocal beauty -- for heaven's sake, I'm an Elizabeth Söderstrom fan (!), and I have earned many an enemy for my criticism of Renée Fleming's Handelian technique.

Ms. de Niese is a talented singer and captivating on stage, but she is much better suited to musical comedy, not to opera, and certainly not to baroque opera. The word that comes to mind when I hear her is "coarse," at least by operatic standards. I am not knowledgeable of vocal production, but when I hear these performances next to others, her voice sounds like it is produced too far back in the throat. A host of other inelegances seem to follow suit: uneven tone, poor dynamic modulation, and inexpressive phrasing being foremost. In her favor, her coloratura is decent and her voice is at least not anonymous. But the end product is rather pedestrian music making. The voice and the interpretations have not grown on me with repeated listening.

Don't get me wrong -- This is a singer with much to offer. I am not sure it should be in opera. Honestly, I think she would be a knockout in musical comedy -- think of her in "Man of La Mancha," "Kismet," or "Kiss Me, Kate." If she is to continue in opera, I hope she does what it takes to improve her technique. If her career is launched on sheer sexiness, well, there's definitely a niche for that, but not one I'm particularly interested in following.

The Christie forces, for all that, support Ms. de Niese with fluid beauty.

Not having seen Danielle de Niese's production of Julius Caeser from Glyndenbourne, I don't really have much to compare this too, but I must admit that I don't find this debut recital disc to be nearly as atrocious as some other reviewers out there. It's clear that de Niese is still young and has far to go, but it's an admirable first go.

The "Da tempeste" from Julius Caesar, "Tornami A Vagheggiar" from Alcina, the Semele arias, and the arias from Teseo are probably the best. The roles of Cleopatra and Morgana allow de Niese to show off her admirable coloratura, and the Semele arias are flirty and delightful. The Teseo arias allow de Niese to show off octave jumps that are fairly impressive (though, I wonder if there was a little help from well placed microphones).

The "Laschia ch'io pianga" from Rinaldo is a bit tepid, and weirdly sung. Not quite as beautifully done as other sopranos and even mezzo sopranos have sung it in the past. However, the "Vo Far Guerra" is vastly better than the other Rinaldo aria.

All in all, this CD is probably nothing grand in terms of Handelian recordings, especially considering the contributions of Jennifer Larmore, Lorraine Hunt Lierberson, Cecilia Bartoli, and Renee Fleming (to name a few), but it certainly is not quite so bad as to be ignored, for it's a decent introduction to a new singer.

We were lucky enough to chance upon the Glyndebourne production of Handel's Julius Caesar in 2005. It was, without doubt, the best operatic show we have ever seen, a magical production, and one with a stunning new star in Danielle de Niese. She can sing and dance wonderfully, she can act and she looks like everyone's dream of Cleopatra! We managed to get tickets for the repeat run in 2006 and it was every bit as wonderful.

Not surprisingly, I bought this CD when I learnt of it. I have been disappointed. The difference between the performance at Glyndebourne and this can be heard if you buy that DVD. In an effort to show the power and versatility of her voice she has ended up with a CD where she has overdone things. How William Christie can have allowed this to happen I do not know. Danielle, ditch this and return to your former style!

I have been listening to and performing Handel for many years. Danielle de Niese stands out from so many better known performers because of the quality of joy that she brings to her work. Her singing is committed and has a boundless enthusiasm, and, unlike several of the other reviewers here, I am convinced...entirely...by her singing of these arias. It seems that any new Handel CD at present is measured for dreadfulness against Renee Fleming's very unfortunate sortie. Danielle de Niese needs no such comparison.
I am surprised at how many commented on her physical pulchritude - yes, the unforgiving critic expects this of the modern soprano too. Such pointless silliness was never dragged out when Joan Sutherland or Birgit Nilsson were being evaluated - mercifully, one might add. And Miss de Niese sings the fioriture and runs of 'Tornami a vagheggiar...' with more freshness and agility than Dame Joan ever managed.
It was the freshness that I particularly loved in this recording, and the joy. Both, as another reviewer so aptly said, being infectious...
And the rewiewer who said he is unlikely to play this CD a second time - perhaps he would be so kind as to pass it in my direction? Thank you.

It's great to see new talent in opera. The field is usually crowded with veterans, so hearing a young rising star like de Niese is a relief. But this recording sounds like so many others by new artists on the brink of success: impressive at first, but ultimately forgettable.

It's technically near-perfect, of course. De Niese has a full sound, a wide range, and handles the leaps and articulations of Baroque opera with ease. But her voice lacks the palette of emotion and color that is characteristic of truly spectacular singers. Her performances are effervescent, but she can't sustain interest through repeated hearings.

So what's the bottom line? If you want a disc of Handel soprano arias, look elsewhere (Kathleen Battle is a good choice). If you want to hear de Niese, you might want to wait for her second album (Mozart compositions) which is going to be released in the fall.

I enjoyed this CD because Danielle de Niese has a real talent. She is able to sing some of Handel's very difficult arias, and make it sound effortless! Her voice is a bit harsh; sometimes it even sounds a bit like she is screeching. I heard her at the Lyric Opera of Chicago last month, and she seamed less harsh than she does on this CD. I found her delayed vibrato to be more distracting than the harshness. Even with these annoyances, I do enjoy listening to this CD. Perhaps her next CD will be better; she certainly does have the potential.

It's obvious that there are differences of opinion on Danielle de Niese's CD. But I have recently listened to CDs by three promising young sopranos--de Niese as well as Nicole Cabell and Kate Royal. What stands out for me is the exuberance with which de Niese "attacks" the music. Both Cabell and Royal, to me at any rate, do nice work and show promise--but they both take the music rather carefully.

de Niese is exuberant and sings Handel with some degree of abandon. I find it infectious.

The two pieces from "Giulio Cesare in Egitto" are captivating. "Tornami a vagheggiar" from"Alcina" is sung quite well. I find her voice to be quite attractive and she sings with great agility. Certainly there is room for growth. Her efforts at trills here and there are hardly compelling. She ought to grow in her characterizations and subtleties in the art of singing.

But what a nice start in this CD!

Of the three sopranos at the start of their careers, she seems the most animated, the most willing to "take chances," and the most enchanting. Where her career goes? We cannot say. But this is a very promising harbinger of future accomplishment.

Daniele de Niese, actually, was the weakest link in the famous Glyndebourne production. She looked fabulous, but sang unidiomatically. I had to turn down the volume when she sang V'adoro, pupille; squally, with no decoration or seductiveness. It's the music that is supposed to seduce; not the actress. Actually, I'm surprised she isn't singing Violetta, or more romantic repertoire. A Baroque singer she is not. True talent? Yes, but not here. This recital shows the power of hype and suggestion; no one interested in this music would give her a second hearing. I had to take it off the player.

Now, if you want a direct comparison in Giulio Cesare, try the Danish production with Andreas Scholl. All the singers get more emotion out of every aria, with voices suited to the music, sensitively, movingly sung. And touching the heart is something Ms de Niese can't do.

This recording is disappointing. Although she may be incandescent in an opera house and appealing in the video ad for this recording, the performance is mediocre. While de Niese obviously sings with great passion and commitment, that is not enough to be ranked a great or even competent singer of Handel. You must also bring dramatic insight, nuance, intelligence, and finesse to your interpretations. Unfortunately, de Niese lacks these much of the time. Too often she is too loud and course, projects an overly wide vibrato, and executes coloratura sloppily and haphazardly. There are far superior Handel recital cds out there. Want to invest in a cd that will blow you away? Buy Sandrine Piau's _Opera Seria_ or Julianne Baird's _Glorious Handel: Soprano Arias_ (both are breathtaking all-Handel discs) instead.