Customer Reviews

Diva

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

 

 

When I first heard Angela Gheorghiu's Decca Recording of La Traviata, I thought I would never hear another soprano I liked better. So far that thought has held true.
While this EMI compilation is not entirely spectacular, (ie; Werther and Carmen sit far too low in the register for her voice)one thing remains constant.... her expressiveness. Gheorghiu is probably the most theatrical vocalist in the opera world since Maria Callas. Her instincts and vocal acting are surpassed by none. She conveys the emotions in her singing the way it would be spoken in real life. This is why she excels in Puccini & Verismo. I'm not saying she is perfect. She practices some vocal techniques which are uncommon (and sometimes unpopular), but overall her voice is always supple and in good tone.
If you're looking for technical perfection, listen to Renee Fleming. Her voice is more focused, warmer, and more agile than Gheorghiu's. However, Fleming falls short of Gheorghiu when it comes to dramatic expressiveness. Fleming is affected, producing caricatures of the emotions. Gheorghiu is real. She is an actress, but also a smart singer who remembers that the voice has to remain healthy and beautiful, as well as expressive. With a few exceptions, I think this compilation is great. When the music is right for her voice(Depuis le jour, Vissi d'arte, Doretta's Dream, etc.) she claims the title of Diva to the fullest.

Every once in a while I play a little game with my opera mates. I load 5 cd's into my player, all with the same aria but each with a different performer. This time is was "O mio babbino caro" and the performers were: Tebaldi, Fleming, Freni, Te Kanawa, and Gheorghiu. No hints as to the singers were given to my audience, of course. The results - While Kiri was judged to have the most lovely voice, Angela was the unanimous choice due to her ability to infuse more feeling into her beautiful instrument than any of the other divas. I think that is why I never tire of her voice. It is intellegent and beautiful. So I don't get hung up on characterizations of soprano types. I just listen emotionally, if the voice holds me I continue to listen if not I don't. It's that simple. Gheorghiu is a great Soprano because she has the ability to make you want to continue to listen.

Warning this CD is protected by EMI's Copy Control. It will not play on a computer without installng additional soft software from the CD. You have no idea what is contained on this software. When played on a normal CD player, the sound quality is significantly degraded with lots of very unpleasant 'crackles' and 'pops.'

This is a collection of previously released arias so there's nothing new if you were looking to see if she had improved or something which I was.
Angela has a lovely voice and is lovely to look at. These things are obvious. But one does ask if we have made what you look like more important than what you sound like in opera. I can hear that she sings flat quite a bit. Her rendition of "Depuis le jour" is truly awful. Tremulous, and under pitched singing make it difficult to bear listening to. (If you want to hear a great one check out a young Leontyne Price or Sills) Angela has really great phrasing which makes the under pitched singing all that more of a mystery. Also her low notes, which can be raspy and breathy are very unattractive- as well her transitions between chest & head voice are really glaringly bad. She also slows things down sometimes not out of dramatic effect but when she needs more time to make a "beautiful sound" (something Kiri used to do too.) Which I'm sure the average composer if asked would not be too keen on. Her pronounciation is suspect too. I've heard a tripthong on her Italian vowel u many times. I know, she's from somewhere other than Italy- but so are most opera singers. If one is proclaiming themselves a DIVA then these things should be already taken care of - in my humble opinion- which doesn't matter because she's sold tons of recordings. I listened to the whole CD then admit to having given it away to a friend. Is this the Emperor's clothing or am I the only one that can hear these things? If she had bad phrasing but sang on pitch I would overlook that in view of the loveliness of her voice- but let's face it, these aren't Pendereckian compositions with suggestions for pitches- the composers wrote the pitches indicated for a reason. Sounds like I'm being too harsh? well, I feel the same way about Andrea Boccelli- lovely voice, flat way too much of the time. So now the whole world can hate me for thinking 2 commercial successes don't sing on pitch with the consistency expected at this level.
I know... this isn't helpful because you disagree. It's okay, there may be one person out there who would like an honest opinion even if they disagree, after all, I did cover, in detail, the perfomance and the performer and isn't *that* what these reviews are here for? to help people decide? :)

Her interpretation of Casta Diva revealed that Gheorghiu was the true Diva here, sensitive, expressive and yet dignified. She is a wholistic mixture, melting together her talents of beautiful voice, perfect technique and dramatic expression, which not only applies to each song, but often to the phrase or word level. She can convey the emotion of the piece without putting her voice in physical distress. She can also dial in the appropriate amount of "darkness" in her voice for the occasion and dramatic effect.

I do not think she sounded like Callas, whose voice appeared to be stronger and thicker, but less pure and agile than Angela's. Callas always seemed to have some tension in her voice, loud or soft. Gheorghiu can relax or tense up her voice as needed, increasing the dramatic effect, in both her low and higher registers. Finally Angela's lower voice is unmatched in its expressiveness and unstressed purity.

This CD is highly recommended but in order to experience her full artistic talents, including acting, get her DVDs.

Excellent singing, but the aria selection should have been more appropriate to her voice. Particularly the french arias were boring and didn't show off her talent.

Romanian soprano Angela Gheorghiu's "Diva" album: Is this supposed to be a tribute to Maria Callas ? Every time I hear Gheorghiu sing, she sounds like Maria Callas. She's a soprano who is riding on the wave of Maria Calla's past fame. Their voices are very similar..ie. If you put on a Maria Callas record album of the same arias (most notably "Casta Diva", "Una Voce Poco Fa", "D'amor Sull'ari Rosee" "Je Veux Vivre", "Depuis Le Jour" "Vissi D'Arte and "O Mio Babbino Caro." Gheorghiu is an attractive, Mediterrenean-looking woman and her voice is a lot like Callas. I'm assuming audiences adore her because their guilty secret is that they want to see a Maria Callas re-born once more. But on the risk of being too critical, I will admit she has more beautiful tones. She and her husband Roberto Alagna sit on top of the opera world as its most charming, exciting couple/performers. Gheorghiu has a beautiful voice, with dramatic bite and radiant lyrical capacities. However, she has hard one too many Callas records and copied them.

Gheorghiu is one of the finest sopranos singing today. This is not her best work, but it is still better than what most singers are turning out.

I'll be brutally honest. I only got this album because I was curious and wanted to see if Gheorghiu had improved at all from her other albums. Yes, she has. She has much more flexibility and range. However, her voice is still far to covered and it sound to me like she has some tension going on. It sounds to me as if she's trying too hard to sound like Maria Callas. Callas is Callas and Gheorghiu is Gheorghiu. They are different people and should sound as such.

Go with a Fleming album in stead. She has recorded most of these songs as well, and in addition these songs are the songs that every soprano records at one point or another in their career.

If Maria Callas had a great voice, it would have sounded like this.