Customer Reviews

Handel

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

I did not much care for this recording. In the music of Handel clean attack, felicity in diction, and facility in ornamentation are all key - and all lacking here. It can be partly attributed to her soft-focused, cushiony voice, which doesn't bring forth clean lines in tightly articulated passages. Her shake / trill sounds alien to her basic timbre. Beyond that, to my ears she fails to weave character, voice, style, and emotional verity in an effective or illuminating way. Though she can spin out individual phrases of great beauty (thanks to impressive breath control), too often she fails to give overall shape to the aria. Particularly unappealing are her da capos on the ABA arias. Her Italian is very weak - with inflections and vowels often decidedly American -- and she is in general more successful in the selections in English. She is not aided by an acoustic whose oppressiveness I didn't fully appreciate until I listened under headphones. And Bicket's strings sound sluggish throughout. Practically every piece can be heard in a more satisfying version on other recital discs or complete opera sets.

To anyone who assumes that because I dislike a particular recording by an acknowledged superstar, I am merely out to tear her down, I would hasten to admit that I was no more thrilled by the recording of "V'adoro pupille" made by Elly Ameling, my favorite singer of all time -- though there is much else to admire on the (now deleted) album of "Eighteenth Century Bel Canto" where that recording apears. The detailed comments below should be enough to convince that, whatever my biases, my assessment of Fleming's CD is based on a considerate listening.

1. "Oh, sleep, why dost thou leave me?" Certainly Renée Fleming puts her best foot forward with this one. Beautifully phrased and inflected. Its dreaminess is sustained, thanks to her applying only the most modest of embellishments on the da capo.
2. "Endless pleasure." Nice and sprightly.
3. "Scoglio d'immota fronte" begins the problems. The melody in the A section is somewhat jumpy to begin with, and she hasn't the melodic precision or rhythm of the language to bring it off. Her da capo has messy ornamentation and she inserts a shrieky cadenza at the finale. On Emma Kirkby's first Hyperion volume of Handel arias, she has more bite, more precision, more fluidity. Her voice has more ring to it, and this is one of those trumpet-laced arias that calls for just that. The middle section is much more elegant, not just a musical afterthought. Kirkby's high note at the finale is quite fugitive, so if that's all you care about you may disregard her superiority in this material.
4. "Quando spieghi i tuoi tormenti." "Canti" is pronounced like the American "can't", and "pianga" is pronounced "pianja." Fleming fails to make this sweet, beguiling lament an affecting moment.
5. "Ombra mai fu." A good of example of her inability to lend a well-known aria the proper emotional arc. Lorraine Hunt on Avie with the same conductor brings greater grasp and focus -- thus her version seems shorter though it is longer. Her voice is both more fervent and sweeter, with far better Italian. She is not afraid to employ chest tones and her final "amabile" is heart-stopping.
6. "To fleeting pleasures make your court." Fleming's attempt at delighted word-pointing in this aria make her sound like one of the witches in Dido and Aeneas.
7. "Lascia ch'io pianga." Far bettered by Bartoli in the complete Rinaldo set on Decca. Maybe it's that in this album Fleming is forced to deliver a series of emotional highpoints, but in her hands this aria lacks the sense of a big moment that Bartoli invests in it - not through volume or overdone emotion, but in style of attack and utterance, in projection of emotion.
8. Armida's aria from the same opera is indulged by Fleming with some swoony, swooping, scooping on several of the "pieta"s. Orgonasova on the Decca set paces it far better and her big finish is more satisfying, though her voice sounds veiled.
9. "Let the Bright Seraphim." Some nice breath control on display here. But this again is a piece that calls for a ring to the voice, which Auger on Delos provides much more readily, along with a cleaner, brighter, more straightforward reading - though her middle section is oddly paced, almost chorale-like.
10. "V'adoro pupille." A mess, simply put. Pedestrian phrasing in the A section, a peremptory B section, garish and scattershot ornamentation on the da capo - all make for an unappealing traversal of this favorite. Kirkby with Goodman on Hyperion is a winner from the first note. Goodman gives fuller range to the strings, and all obbligato instruments are seductively woven in - and Kirkby offers beautiful singing and a delicate da capo in an aria that can too often sound hiccough-like with its halting melody. If you need a bigger sound and bolder statement, go for Bayrakdarian on her "Cleopatra" disc on CBC Records.
11. "Da tempeste il legno infranto" from the same opera. Rather better. Both the middle section and the da capo are hugely overblown, but she manages it without alienating us entirely from the music. Still, Maria Bayo on Astree is better - far suppler in her coloratura and more fluent in diction. Her da capo is dramatic indeed, though not nearly as extreme as Fleming - but her final flair makes more of a point for being more judiciously applied.
13. "D'una torbida sorgente." Admirably straightforward and elegant and emotionally defined.
14. "Pensieri, voi mi tormentate." This first selection from Agrippina is more successful for Fleming, possibly due to the unusual, arresting, modern-sounding orchestration that provides more of a frame for her lush sound and helps dictate the shape of the aria. It's more of a declamatory musical style, making ornamental editorializing out of the question.
16. "Convey me to some peaceful shore." An affecting and rare piece, quite sad and unusual for being through-composed. Nicely done, but the boxy acoustics and a general lack of contour afflict Fleming's version. One could argue that the still pulse of the strings prevents lending the piece more shape but there are ways to sustain emotional momentum. Still, it's nice to have such an uncommon selection ending this recital.

If you're a Fleming fan, you'll get this no matter what. For my taste, her considerable talents and my not-so-consiberable money are better spent elsewhere. If you're looking for a Handel recital, my recommendations would be the intensely committed Hunt, the elegant Kirkby (my personal favorite), and the fresh-sounding Bayo. Hunt brings undeniable power, agility, and emotional charge. The Kirkby sound is not to all tastes, but her insightful inflections work magic for me and will repay the attentive listener ... and Goodman's forces outshine Bicket by a wide margin.

I love Renee Fleming's singing and her voice, but lately she is becoming a "vocalizer" and not a singer. Her words are lost in the sound, her vowels are distorted, and even though the sound is lovely as always, this ruins what the singing is all about. Firstly, I care less if she sings quietly or loudly, for this idea of Baroque singing being gentle and light is silly, not to mention not supported by any of the writings of the day (were not the castrati noted for voices so full and vibrant nothing could compete with them?). Even the great Catalani was said to have sang so loudly that Spontini when asked if he would attend her concert stated he could well hear her from where he lived (about 40 miles away from where the concert was given), and the writers of the day stated that one was want to put cotton in their ears because her voice was so powerful. Marchesi was noted for his "bomba" where he could sing a scale (even a scale trillant) and end on a super loud full incredible note at the top of the scale and the top of his lungs. No singer, saving the creator of Orfeo for Gluck was noted for singing in some delicate manner with subdued volume (and in this case it was because he was seen as a fourth rate singer at best). Why we persist on thinking Baroque music must be sung in this sweet half voiced sound is beyond me. It is just not supported by the facts of the day. Perhaps their voices were smaller than what we are accustomed to hearing, but they were full and penetrating for their day, not caressing and gentle whispers.

This said, I think Renee would have done better to just sing out in the way she sings for normal singing. Let her voice go, let the fullness and vibrancy of her sound carry. The idea of a small vibrato, or nearly vibratoless sound is also WRONG, and not supported by any of the writings of the day. That is the creation of instrumentalists in the Baroque field who have taken the development of instrumental music and tacked it on vocal music, which was light years ahead of instrumental music in that day (the vibration of the voice is what inspired the use of vibrato in instruments, for it gave a cleaner and more "in tune" sound).

I think all around we would have had performances that were more exciting and more thrilling to experience. Prettiness is fine, but after a while it communcates nothing much.

I rated the recording only a four star, and not because of the orchestra. They are super and the concept of the music, the presentation as conceived by the conductor is wonderfully vibrant. Renee Fleming's voice just doesn't match it (as I said, she shouldn't have held back).

The other problem is her increasing habit of distorting the vowels while singing. She makes words meaningless and stupid by doing so. In "Endless Pleasure" the word "LOVE" is actually sang "LAV", and the vowel changes constantly, not as is often the case because of a vocal cover needed for the passagio, but because of BAD SINGING. As with most of her singing in English, it is sloppy and her diction is very poor. One understood Sutherland better than they understand her. Singing is not vocalizing, it is communicating, and quoting Toscanini when he first heard Callas at the beginning of her career, "What is she singing about, if the words aren't clear nothing has been sung worth hearing." Whether Callas actually ever heard this comment or not, I have no clue, but poor diction is NOT a fault one levels against Callas. She learned at some time that the words are every bit as important as the music, and she respected them completely. That is my complaint with Fleming, including a concert I was at of her singing Strauss's Four Last songs; one understood NOTHING, not one word of what she sang. She is getting worse and worse with her bad diction, and it is being replaced with delicate sweet singing, lovely tone, and dazzling technique, but like Toscanini said, "nothing worth hearing has been sung."

With the great talent Renee Fleming has, and she has been blessed abundantly with talent (more than most ever dream of), it is high time she cleaned up these bad habits that are creeping into her singing. Let us hear your words! Let us understand them! Let us feel something in our hearts because of them! Let us weep inside because we understand the message and the beauty of the voice reflects that message to us and shares it with our hearts. STOP just singing like you are vocalizing.

Other than this complaint, the set is beautifully sung, lifeless in many ways, but beautifully sung. Te Kanawa sings "Let the Bright Seraphin" a billion times better (even Sutherland outshone Fleming by light years, and her diction was sketchy at best); Beverly Sills did the Juilius Caesar arias (especially Da Tempesta) with excitement and with energy, a thing Fleming could learn from. Many of these arias are far better sung by other singers than they are here. Those performances seemed to radiate commitment to the music and the meaning of the words, this recording, sadly, does neither. It is pretty to the extreme, very wonderfully lovely, gentle on the ear, great as elevator music or something you listen to while doing the housework. Nothing about this performance commands your attention and makes you stand up and take notice. Despite the beauty and the finess of the singing, we are left waiting for some reason to listen to it, nothing grabs us and makes us pay attention to what we are hearing.

Unlike many others, I am not particularly crazy about Fleming's vocal quality, but that may be because almost all of these pieces are very familiar to me, "imprinted" on my brain by other singers, which perhaps makes it hard to hear them sung differently. The selection of arias is an encyclopedia of Handel's writings for soprano (male and female), and includes only a few justly famous warhorses, the rest being less often performed gems. I found myself especially warming to "D'una torbida" from Lotario, a piece I have not heard before, so Fleming's performance of that will probably imprint on me. Her "Ritorna, o caro" from the more familiar Rodelinda is absolutely ravishing. Few who love fine singing and want to hear more of Handel's diverse art would be disappointed with this disc. Highly recommended.

Renee Fleming steps into this well-conceived recital of Handel arias in collaboration with Henry Bicket and the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment with all the intelligence, sensitivity to text, and thoughtful re-enactment of the period sound of Handel that we have grown to expect of Fleming the recitalist. Her voice is in radiant bloom, pliable, supple, precise in the filigree, used with integrity to match the exemplary style and sound of the orchestra, and she has fulfilled the promise of her previous outings with Handel, proving that she is a vocal stylist in rarefied company. To list special passages in a review would entail mentioning every aria on the CD! Suffice it to say that this is singing of the highest order and no matter what previous concepts you might have as to how Baroque music should be performed, listening to this 10 Star CD will make you a believer of the Renee Fleming/Henry Bicket approach here exquisitely offered.

This recording is an absolute stunner from premiere soprano Renée Fleming. Once again proving her vocal versatility, she tackles a selection of Handel's arias, both familiar and relatively unknown. Her taste, as it turns out, is unerring. Amazingly, her foray into the Baroque world is quite recent with her first and only professional exposure to Handel in the 1999 Paris Opera and Lyric Chicago productions of his "Alcina", but you certainly can't tell from the passionate, character-driven singing she exhibits here. As usual, her voice is full and rounded with a legato that is thrilling. The program is a nearly perfect showcase for her immense talent underlined by her amazing coloratura, easily one of the best today.

Fleming opens sonorously with two arias from "Semele", "Oh sleep, why dost thou leave me?" and "Endless pleasure", equally beautiful as she begs the god Jupiter for immortality in the title role. In immediate contrast, Fleming shows her intense dramatic flair with "Scoglio d'immota fronte" from "Scipione" playing the fiery Spanish princess Berenice. In a gender reversal, she takes on the castrati role of "Serse" with the classic "Ombra mai fù", where she believably and touchingly deepens her voice to fit the male character. Although I prefer countertenor David Daniels' more animated version for sheer virtuosity, Fleming acquits herself well. Back on firmer ground, she credibly handles the two primary female roles in "Rinaldo": the hero's unsullied love, Almirena and the temptress, Armida. Her versatility is on full display in her two arias from this opera. Her plaintive "Lascia ch'io pianga" is quite comparable to Cecilia Bartoli's definitive version in romanticism and technique, and she burns in an extended dramatic fire on Armida's lament, "Dunque, I lacci s'un volto...Ah! crudel". Fleming's famous trilling is most impressive on her aria from "Rodelinda", "Ritorna, oh caro e dolce mio tesoro", which provides a sneak preview of her upcoming performance in a new production at the Metropolitan Opera. She closes with an unknown gem from "Alexander Balus", the yearning "Calm thou my soul...Convey me to some peaceful shore", where as Cleopatra, she turns to the goddess Isis after her father and lover are killed.

Baroque music veteran Harry Bicket directs the wonderful Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment with a sure hand. Fleming says it best in her liner notes: "Singing Handel is balm for the voice yet it expresses every possible nuance of the human condition." With this disc, she proves her point in spades. This has to be one of the year's best classical vocal recordings.

Renée Fleming and Handel- some would scoff at the idea. Those nay-sayers obviously were not privileged to hear Ms. Fleming's stupendous performances of Alcina at either the Paris Opéra or the Lyric Opera of Chicago. Ms. Fleming sings Handel the way it should be sung, with abandon, with all the colors in her extremely varied tonal palette, with great attention to text, and, perhaps most importantly, with exquisitely wrought ornamentation. I therefore knew what to expect of this disc of Handel arias.

As expected, Ms. Fleming's vocalism is impeccable. Her voice is clear and clean, without a hint of manner or artifice. She approaches the texts with great care, often varying the delivery substantially from one "A" section to its repeat. The arias are a nice mixture of favorites and rather more obscure gems. Her performances of "Lascia ch'io pianga," "Let The Bright Seraphim" and "V'adoro Pupille" are as fine as any on disc. They are as expressive and elegantly sung as Arleen Auger's fine disc from the 1980's, (Delos 3026) which was, in this author's opinion, the benchmark recording of these arias- until now. While certainly not replacing the late Ms. Auger's performances, Ms. Fleming's stand right up next to them- every bit the artistic and vocal equal.

One of the truly great things about this recording is the exquisite playing of Harry Bicket's "Orchestra of the Age of the Enlightenment." The playing is ebullient- always supporting the voice while not just remaining in the background. The solo playing is quite fine indeed. Special notice should be given to the continuo team, Alastair Ross, Elizabeth Kenny and Richard Tunnicliffe, whose playing is constantly inventive and always provides just the right amount of support and color for each aria.

This disc is a recording to be treasured and played often.

I am utterly in love with Renee Fleming's voice and I am very glad that she returned to her roots in this luminous Handel Recital. While her fioritura is not as excellent as Sutherland's she surpasses the Australian with her sincerity and sense for drama. Not one word is sung without attention, her silken voice sound absolutely radiant here. I also noticed that she is singing more precisely and elegantly here, giving Handel a dignified elegance, yet passion that it hasn't had since Ferrier (Who was an alto but she still reigns supreme). It is definitely a step in the right direction. Brava Miss Fleming!

Some people rip the album to shreds. Other praise every inch of it. I cannot do both. There are excellent points of this CD and is wonderful to hear works that are not done so often. I find that Ms. Fleming gives it a warmth that is quite nice and it makes me pick up the CD to listen to it. Bravo to the Orchestra. Bassoon and oboe players were AMAZING! Now, what irritated me about the singing is that Ms. Fleming's runs can be quite nice but I found in some of the arias that they were...how shall I put this...lazy. Almost laid back. I could feel myself trying to push her to keep the runs as even as the orchestras and in time. She does catch up but certainly not for Baroque music where you have to be so precise. No where have you ever had to do that with Emma Kirkby, Karina Gauvin, Kathleen Battle...and yes I shall use her...Cecilia Bartoli. And there this album looses the star.

This latest release, the Handel album, finds Renee Fleming at the height of her powers. She has proven herself the greatest soprano of our time since Callas, taking on dramatic roles as well as lyric coloratura, from every repertoire and composer from Dvorak's Rusalka, Mozart's heroines, Puccini's heroines and has now become an accomplished Handelian soprano. She will be singing the title role of Rodelinda at the Metropolitan Opera in New York City.

Renee Fleming is not overrated as some would think. Maria Callas was overrated and epitomized the stereotypical diva but Renee Fleming performs with soul, dynamic dramatic strength and a lot of heart. The love and musical craftmanship with which this album was designed is enough reason to buy it. Harry Bicket is a gifted conductor who specializes in the Baroque category. The Orchestra Of The Age Of Enlightenment is by all means a modern orchestra but nevertheless conveys the passion and purity of the traditional Baroque orchestra, bringing out the seductive magic and glorious splendor of the music of George Frederic Handel. Renee Fleming's voice is pure gold- bright, brilliant high soaring high notes, coloratura trills and roulades, lyric beauty, breath control and pianissimo that sound like prayers. Handel had a Heaven-blessed gift for writing music for the female voice, or the imitation of it through the castrati voice. The woman's high voice, with its warm, vibrant , seductive phrases, angelic texture and spiritual tone, was perfect not only for his religious oratorios but his many opera heroines who emoted, who loved, lived and died on the stage of the opera house.

The album opens with two excerpts from the oratorio "Semele"- O Sleep Why Does Thou Leave Me ? and Endless Pleasure. These two represent the vain but plesant nature of Semele, Jupiter's mortal love turned immortal and invited to live with the gods on high. The long legato line in O....Sleep.. is executed beautifully by Renee Fleming. Endless Pleasure is a taxing coloratura showcase that presents no problems for Fleming and truly is an endless pleasure to hear. "Scoglio D'Immota Fronte" from Scipione is a bravura aria with lots of fire and intensity and sung note for note to perfection.

The liner notes explain the scene and the lyrics. Mostly, these arias express love, sorrow and rage, and in the case of "Scoglio" it represents rocks and steeps which require the voice to leap. Fleming has a solid high voice that takes on the dynamic quality needed for these Handel heroines. There are some familiar arias on here which have been tackled by famous sopranos- Kiri Te Kenawa sang "Let The Bright Seraphim" at Princess Diana's Wedding back in 1980 and here, Fleming has a sensational interpretation. Cleopatra's arias from Julius Caesar are here - V'Adoro Pupille the Seduction Aria which Cleopatra sings to Ceasar and the coloratura fireworks display that is Da Tempeste, imitating a storm. I really enjoyed the shorter arias too like "To Fleeting Pleasures Make Your Court" and "Bel Piacere". Ombra Mai Fui is also another famous aria that has been recorded and sung often. The arias from Lotario and Agrippina are lesser known but hopefully will be revived thanks to the efforts of such talents as Renee Fleming. The album closes with the most beautiful, saddest aria "Convey Me To Some Peaceful Shore" from Alexander Balus. This piece was written at the time of Handel's old age and approaching death. With mortality and value of life on his mind, Handel composed a song that is heart-felt, deeply moving and ends with shortness of breath and lines, representing the silencing effect of old age and death. It's truly beautiful as Renee Fleming reduces her voice to the softest but audible pianissimo whispers. Gorgeous. Get this album and become a fan of Renee Fleming who will be hard to follow after her reign as diva is over. She ahe has set the bar high for sopranos singing today.

Those are just a few of the adjectives one could use to describe this wonderful recital. I, too, was a little apprehensive, if equally curious, when I read about the project. Fleming's "Alcina" with Christie's fantastic Les Arts Florissants was a moderate success. Here, however, with Harry Bicket providing stellar accompaniment and insightful (almost uncannily so) conducting, we have a whole different animal. This is a FANTASTIC product, so tastefully, appropriately and intelligently brought across that it almost seems an embarrassment of riches that one CD could hold so many wonderful experiences for the listener. The arias are all well represented in the catalogue (save for the one from "Lotario"), but it's as though you're hearing many for the first time, including "Lascia ch'io Pianga;" Ms. Fleming infuses that piece with such pathos and almost unbearable sense of longing, one might as well be hearing it for the first time. The same can be said about "V'adoro Pupille" though a tad too fast for my taste, is nevertheless given nothing but first class treatment. Anyone who knows Ms. Fleming's other recordings know this is a big voice and one that demands, and often gets, attention but in this CD she uses such restrain and period sensibilities that though never hushed or unjustly subdued, she is tender and strong, frail and determined, dignified and brave. This not a romantic opera singer taking a stab at the baroque repertoire, this is a singer with the innate good taste to know that the fact that one has the vocal prowess to sing "Semele" as if though it were the Marschallin doesn't mean that's how it should be done. In Ms. Fleming (or any other singer for that matter) I am not looking flawlessness as much as I am looking for an experience that is legitimate and moving, dramatic but tasteful, brilliant but ultimately very human and here we get that in spades. Back to my original point: This is off the chain singing and one that will provide hours of countless pleasure (to those not preoccupied with comparisons, that is) Honestly, I can't recommend it enough and sincerely hope that you enjoy as much as I do.