Dolora Zajick - The Art of the Dramatic Mezzo-Soprano

Francesco Cilea (Composer), Christoph Willibald Gluck (Composer), Pietro Mascagni (Composer), Modest Mussorgsky (Composer), Gioachino Rossini (Composer), Camille Saint-Saens (Composer), Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky (Composer), Giuseppe Verdi (Composer), Charles Rosekrans (Conductor), Dolora Zajick (Performer), Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (Orchestra) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: Dolora Zajick
• Orchestra: Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
• Conductor: Charles Rosekrans
• Composer: Francesco Cilea, Christoph Willibald Gluck, Pietro Mascagni, Modest Mussorgsky, Gioachino Rossini, et al.
• Audio CD (July 25, 2000)
• SPARS Code: DDD
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Telarc
• ASIN: B00004U9ZV
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #207,407 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Prastite Vy, Xalmy

2. Sily Patainyye

3. Acerba Volutta

4. Ah! Quel Giorno Ognor Rammento

5. Voi Lo Sapete

6. Mon Coeur S'ouvre A Ta Voix

7. O Don Fatale

8. Condotta Ell'era In Ceppi

9. Divinites Du Styx

10. J'ai Perdu Mon Eurydice

11. La Luce Langue

12. Una Macchia E Qui Tuttora

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

35 of 39 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A great mezzo, but somewhat inappropriate repertory, August 21, 2000

By 

Joy Fleisig (New York, NY United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Dolora Zajick - The Art of the Dramatic Mezzo-Soprano (Audio CD)

In a day and age when most of the best mezzos are lyric singers who excel in Mozart, Rossini, bel canto and Strauss, Dolora Zajick is a rarity, a truly old fashioned, huge-voiced, 'blood and guts' mezzo along the lines of Ebe Stignani, Giulietta Simionato, and Fedora Barbieri. Unlike some others, I think she has SOME competition, namely from Olga Borodina, and possibly at some point from Irina Mishura, Stephanie Blythe, and now unknown mezzos from the Kirov. For the moment, though, she has proven to be the finest mezzo of the age for Verdi, verismo, and other dramatic mezzo roles. It IS a shame that she has had to wait long to have her first solo disc, if nothing else, I would have thought that Sony might make a 'solo disc' for her from scenes culled for the complete recordings she did for them.

Zajick's voice is a wonder -- huge, rich, and plummy, with real core and bite. In fact, it is so large that I'm not entirely sure it can be ideally captured on records. Her range is equally huge, from contralto depths to a soprano high D flat (pianissimo, yet), and she has superb technical control, as well as excellent command of Italian, Russian, and French. She isn't necessarily as subtle or as skilled in the nuances of vocal acting as these singers -- she usually deals in emotional generalities, not specifics. But she is geruinely thrilling and never goes beyond 'unsubtle' into 'vulgar'

The probem is that the title of this disc is inappropriate for several reasons. First and foremost, a disc by a singer as exciting as Zajick is deserves a title less bland and prosaic, and, more importantly, quite a bit of what is sung here is more traditionally sung by a soprano. To make matters even more confusing, the British version of this disc is entitled 'The Dramatic SOPRANO' voice. Despite the fact that she sings the soprano selections quite well, I would have really preferred that Zajick concentrate on more traditional mezzo repertory. The 14 minutes taken up by Lady Macbeth's 2 arias (including orchestral prologue) could have fit 2 or 3 more suitable selections. I would have very much liked her to record 'O, mio Fernando'. Certainly there should have been more Verdi. Where is 'Stride la vampa'? Ulrica's great aria? The 'Liber Scriptus' from the Requiem? And something is VERY wrong with a having a Zajick disk without a hint of her glorious Amneris. Still, I imagine that she and the conductor wanted as wide a range of repertory as possible to serve as an 'introduction'. I probably would not object so much if I knew there would be more solo material from Zajick.

The best selections, not surprisingly, are from Don Carlo and Il Trovatore -- magnificently sung and expressive of her characters' plights, although I would have preferred more introspection in the 'O mia regina' section of 'O don fatale'. She also does well in the verismo selections, giving Santuzza a girlish vulnerability surprising for a voice like this, and giving the Princesse de Bouillon tenderness as well as fury. It is also no surprise that a third place winner in the Tchaikovsky competition should do so well in Russian repertory. I think that her Dalila needs more languor to be ideal, and I am very surprised that she of all people does not take the high B flat ending on `Je t'aime!' Despite the fact that she has no desire to sing the role onstage, I would have liked to have heard something from Carmen as well.

I am less excited about her forays into earlier repertory -- her renditions of Arbace's and Orfeo's arias are good, but not AS good as the other material on this disk or the aforementioned arias that I think she should have sung. And I think there are other singers, such as Vesselina Kasarova and Ewa Podles, who are more special in this particular repertory. No qualms, however, about her hair-raising rendition of 'Divinites du Styx'. I do think her Lady Macbeth is very promising, and might work in a small theatre -- I too am now skeptical of the negative reviews of her Berlin forays into the role. I just hope that she doesn't become another Grace Bumbry or Shirley Verrett, giving up being a great mezzo to become a not so great soprano.

Charles Rosenkrans is a decent, supportive conductor, but he doesn't do anything especially noteworthy (no pun intended). I agree with the person who said that some of the tempi could have been taken a trifle faster. There are points where Rosenkrans takes the orchestra so loud that he almost drowns out even Zajick, and certainly overwhelms poor Piero Giuliacci, her Golitsyn and Manrico. I will reserve further judgement on Mr. Giuliacci until I hear him sing more than 3 lines. Also, excellent documentation with biographical information, notes, texts and translations -- although I should say the translations are rather loose.

Despite my reservations, this is definitely a disc to buy, and I hope Zajick gives us many more solo recordings in the future -- song as well as operatic repertory. In the meantime, try to see her live or hear her on broadcasts to get her at her absolute best.

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars My favorite mezzo, August 14, 2002

By 

GEORGE RANNIE "GWRJWMCL" (DENVER, COLORADO United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Dolora Zajick - The Art of the Dramatic Mezzo-Soprano (Audio CD)

I have been a fan of Dolora since her very early days. I really get tired of the unending lyric mezzos before the public today. Dolora is the real thing--she can sing the hell out of Amneris in Aida.
This recording is fantastic! I'm just glad she recorded it. I feel she is ignored by the recording industry--...

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Dolora is amazing!, May 24, 2004

By 

Chad (Orem, UT USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Dolora Zajick - The Art of the Dramatic Mezzo-Soprano (Audio CD)

This CD is awesome! Dolora has an incredible vocal ability! I am a high school student, and several weeks ago, I had the opportunity to actually sing on stage with her at my high school in Orem, Utah. I was blown away by the power of her voice; it made me feel insignificant. She was very kind and encouraging, and offered good advice even though I must have sounded terrible next to her.

Anyhow, I recommend this CD to anyone who has a love for music.