Gods, Kings & Demons (Opera Arias)

Rene Pape (Artist), Charles Gounod (Composer), Arrigo Boito (Composer), Hector Berlioz (Composer), Giuseppe Verdi (Composer), Jacques Offenbach (Composer), Richard Wagner (Composer), Anton Rubinstein (Composer), Antonin Dvorak (Composer), Modest Mussorgsky (Composer), Sebastian Weigle (Conductor) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Conductor: Sebastian Weigle
• Composer: Charles Gounod, Arrigo Boito, Hector Berlioz, Giuseppe Verdi, Jacques Offenbach, et al.
• Audio CD (November 11, 2008)
• SPARS Code: DDD
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Deutsche Grammophon
• Copy Protected
• ASIN: B0017SETTM
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #84,618 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Opera News (New York)

"René Pape is an artist who thrills his audiences with charisma, intelligence and a one-in-a-million voice."

Product Description

The eagerly awaited DG debut solo disc from René Pape has arrived! The reigning operatic bass of today, Pape has created an international fan base with his moving performances on every major operatic stage. Pape has appeared almost every season with the Metropolitan Opera since his 1995 house debut and continues to receive stellar reviews for every performance. This recital brings together the roles that have made his career as well as a few rarities. Highlights are his moving monologue from Verdi's Don Carlo and King Marke's monologue from Wagner's Tristan und Isolde. Pape is joined by conductor Sebastian Weigle who leads the Staatskapelle Dresden.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars At last...a whole album of Rene Pape, November 16, 2008

By 

Annilow (Clay Co, FL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Gods, Kings & Demons (Opera Arias) (Audio CD)

Rene Pape is gorgeous to look at and to listen to. I've crossed the ocean twice to hear him sing. After years of buying collections and operas so that I could hear one measly aria from him, it's a great treat to have a whole CD of Rene. Many of his iconic arias, like Ella Giamai M'amo from Don Carlo and the great King Marke monologue from Tristan and Isolde are here. But the one I listen to over and over is Act II, Romance: "Na vozdusnom okeane" RUBENSTEIN: Demon. The music is as melodic as Schubert, and the singer as lyrical as the finest tenor. Great emotion pours out through his disciplined voice. If there are any sins in this CD they are ones of omission -- for example, there is no In diesen heil'gen Hallen or O Isis und Osiris, from Magic Flute -- I guess Sarastro isn't a God, King, or Demon. You must own at least one copy of this CD.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The phenomenally successful Pape gets his due, November 29, 2008

By 

Santa Fe Listener (Santa Fe, NM USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Gods, Kings & Demons (Opera Arias) (Audio CD)

Bass-baritones with voices as deep and plush as Rene Pape's rarely become superstars, but he's on the verge, I think. Diehard fans already exist in plenty, and every time his name appears on the bill at the Met for a performance of Tristan, Parsifal, the Magic Flute, or Fidelio, you know that the A-list cast is on. It's nice to see this native Dresdener, now 44, paired with the great Dresden Sttaatskapelle (even if Weigle's conducting is no better than satisfactory).

In keeping with the theme, we start off with three flavors of Mephistopheles by Gounod, Boito, and Berlioz, all of which Pape handles with stylish panache. His voice is so velvety and smoothly produced that he never resorts to barking or melodramatic hamminess. On stage I imagine he would add a few more teeth to his bite, however, and quite a lot more snarl. King Philip's soliloquy from Don Carlo is beautifully sung and touchingly acted.

The one snippet of Pape's noble Wotan taken from Das Rheingold is tantalizing (too bad the conducting is particularly draggy here), but then we get a signature role, King Marke singing the entire Act II monologue. As pure singing and vocal acting, this couldn't be improved on, but once again I msut point out the sagging Weigle, who lets down the orchestral side. The last lengthy extract is Boris's death scene, which Pape keeps on the restrained side -- but how can one complain when such artistry is at work?

Here's the full program:
Berlioz:
Voice des roses (Air de Méphistophélès)

Devant la maison from La Damnation de Faust

Boito:
Ecco il mondo, vuoto e tondo from Mefistofele

Dvorak:
Beda! Beda! - Celý svet nedá ti

Gounod:
Le veau d'or est toujours debout from Faust

Serenade: Vous qui faite l'endormie (Mephistopheles) [from Faust]

Mussorgsky:
Oy, dusno, dusno! - Proscay, moy sïn from Boris Godunov

Offenbach:
Scintille, diamant from Les Contes d'Hoffmann

Rubinstein:
Na vozdushnom okeane

Ne plac', ditya from Demon

Verdi:
Ella giammai m'amò (from Don Carlo)

Wagner:
Abendlich strahlt der Sonne Auge from Das Rheingold

'Tatest du's wirklich' - King Marke's monologue from Tristan and Isolde

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars At long last., November 19, 2008

By 

Andrew M. Calandriello - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Gods, Kings & Demons (Opera Arias) (Audio CD)

At long last a CD of one of the great voices of our time. I was so thrilled to learn he was finally coming out with this CD and I have been listening to it over and over again since receiving it. I hope he records a Flying Dutchman and Guernamanz in Parsifal. Of course we all eagerly await his Wotan. Thank you Rene for giving us this wonderful recording. We want more.