Customer Reviews

Kismet (1991 Studio Cast)

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This KISMET has its moments. Some of them will take your breath away, and others will make you cringe. Overall, it's a recording that you might want to include in your library, primarily because of the marvelous singing by Jerry Hadley.

"Stranger in Paradise," sung by Hadley & Ruth Ann Swenson, is so ravishingly beautiful that it will bring tears to your eyes. That moment alone is worth the price of this album. Additionally, Hadley's "Night of My Nights" will absolutely give you goose bumps. In fact, I doubt if there has ever been a better sung "Caliph" anywhere. Listen to the way he pops off high A-flats & B-flats. Wow!

Ruth Ann Swenson is a lovely "Marsinah," although she doesn't seem as comfortable in the role as either Doretta Morrow on the 1953 Original Cast recording or Lee Venora in the 1965 Lincoln Center Revival. Julia Migenes (Have you seen her CARMEN?) is in great voice as "Lalume," playing her more subtly than either Joan Diener or Anne Jeffreys. I prefer broad. Dom DeLuise is a wretched "Wazir" and sticks out like a sore thumb among the trained voices. But most wretched of all is Mandy Patinkin singing "Zubbediya," usually sung by the "Widow Yussef." What was producer Thomas Z. Shepard smoking?

Of course, the overall success of any KISMET depends on the actor/singer who play "Hajj, the Poet," and let's face it, Alfred Drake owns the part. Samuel Ramey has the voice and the looks but, unfortunately, limited acting ability. He sings all the right notes, but appears more concerned with producing a gorgeous tone than with interpreting the song. His best moment is "The Olive Tree."

Paul Gemignani leads the London Symphony Orchestra and the combined forces of the Ambrosian Singers and the Concert Chorale of New York, and how welcome they are in lieu of today's synthesized pit bands and scaled-back corps of singer/dancers. However, at times the shear mass of musicians tends to bog down the show.

In spite of its flaws, this is still a valuable recording and deserves a place in your library along with the 1953 Broadway Cast and the Lincoln Center recording - if Sony/BMG ever gets around to remastering it.

This album was my introduction to KISMET, and what a treat it was! I loved every minute of this album! Cast with amazing singers the score is interpreted with breath-taking beauty and brilliance.

Where to begin? Well, Samuel Ramey as the Poet (and later Hajj), sings wonderfully and expressively. His amazing, rich bass-baritone voice is perfect for the role, and equally perfect is his rendition of "Fate" and "Gesticulate." This man acts with his voice! As does tenor Jerry Hadely as the Caliph. He sings "Night of My Nights" beautifully, and does a magnificent, breath-taking "Stranger in Paradise" with Ruth Ann Swenson. All it can leave you to do is sigh with contentment. (Hadely and Ramey also make good matches on Erato's release of THE RAKE'S PROGRESS, with another "thinking man's singer," soprano Dawn Upshaw.) Swenson sings everything assigned to her simply and sweetly ("My Magic Lamp" and "Baubles, Bangles, and Beads" to note), and she is absoultely lovely in the role of the Poet's daughter Marsinah. She and Ramey also give the album a strong beginning with their take on "Rhymes Have I."

Dom DeLuise was a *perfect* choice for the Wazir! This was a brilliant stroke of casting! His "Was I Wazir? I Was!" will leave you chuckling. He got a lot of belly-laughs from me. Julia Migenes is a sexy, vocally-strong, absolutely brilliant Lalume! This stroke of casting was equally perfect. Her reading of "Not Since Nineveh" is my favorite track on the album. And she and Ramey are also a delight on "Rahadlakum." She steals the show, just like she did with Sony's unworthy release of MAN OF LA MANCHA.

Rodne Brown (one of my dad's old friends from his summer stock days) is very touching on "The Sands of Time," singing purely and brilliantly. Ramey, Swenson, Hadely, and DeLuise tackle "And This Is My Beloved" with a vengence, and make it a memorable and perfect rendition of this beautiful piece. And Mandy Patinkin, while still annoying, is only very briefly on the album (THANK GOD!) and sings his one song ("Zubbediya") in some non-sense language (I honestly doubt it's a real language). But his irritating "characterizations" fit the on-crack role of the marriage arranger, so he is, at least, bearable--if still not great.

And since this album has been cast with opera singers that don't really act (with the exception of Migenes and Patinkin--and he only thinks he acts), the lack of dialogue is really a service to the album as a whole! A major plus!

The Ambrosian Singers and Concert Chorale of New York sing fully and powerfully, particularly on "He's in Love" and "Bazaar of the Caravans." The London Symphony Orchestra plays meticulously, especially as lead by the masterful maestro Paul Gemignani, a brilliant force in the music world, that we are lucky to have.

I RECCOMEND THIS ALBUM TO ALL!

This is magic. Don't miss Jerry Hadley here. This remarkable artist is simply phenomenal, as is just about everyone else. Yes, Mr. Patinkin is actually a bit of a Potemkin here! But isn't he always? I think his popularity is a New York thing. But he comes and goes quickly, allowing us to revel in the voluptuousness of the rest of the cast and the dazzling music they have to sing.

OH MY!!

This is a very strong recording of "Kismet" with some great performances by Samuel Ramey, Ruth Ann Swenson, Julia Mignes and especially Jerry Hadley. The latter's "Stranger in Paradise" (along with Swenson) and "Night of My Nights" are the best versions I've heard of these songs - absolutely beautiful. The weak parts? Dom Deluise as the Wazir -- ok, he SOUNDS the part, but he can't really sing and Mandy Patinkin on "Zubbedya (I'm sure I'm misspelling it). I'm a big Mandy Patinkin fan but he's WAY over the top on this insignificant track. I know for a complete recording of the show they needed to include this song, but frankly, this is a ridiculous track I'll be skipping over on future listens. Still, these two negatives aren't enough to argue against buying this high quality recording with MOSTLY high quality performances.

Given the number of KISMET recordings out there, it seemed strange to me in 1991 when SONY offered up this new recording with Samuel Ramey. But it is a wonderful recording of the score, well sung and acted, and beautifully played by the London Symphony orchestra. It is also more complete than the two cast albums (1953 and 1965)and restores a song cut pror to opening: "My Magic Lamp." Even Samuel Ramey, a bass, is once again cast in a baritone role but makes it sound quite natural. Ruth Ann Swenson and Jerry Hadley make a perfect pair of lovers, and Julia Migenes is properly lusty as Lalume. As the evil Wazir Dom DeLuise is properly comic even if he does not bring full voice to the Wazir's few musical moments as did Henry Calvin in the original. As for Mandy Patinkin's take on the marriage broker... well it is just a small throwaway bit that leads into a wild dance. Mandy does not give the number the full musical value it needs and the voice quickly becomes irritating before the 90-second track ends. Skip the track. It would be a shame to bypass this wonderful Cd because of one overdone moment.

The recording has been produced by Thomas Z. Shepard with the same care he always takes with his Broadway cast albums.

Did we really need another recording of KISMET? After all there are 2 Broadway cast albums (original and revival), a movie soundtrack, a finely sung studio cast album Robert Merrill, Regina Resnik, Kenneth McKellar and the Mantovai strings; a lavish 2 CD set from TER/JAY that has every single note of the score plus an appenix of songs for the revised version called TUMBUKTU... and now this "digital" recording. Enough is enough. Lets have no more recordings of KISMET and instead focus on some of the scores that have not recieved their due!

Rodne has been singing in New York for the NY Philharmonic, many churches and temples, and in several operas but this is his first appearance on a CD. I think he is a glorious Tenor. He is a graduate of Oklahoma City University.

This otherwise acceptable recording is ruined by Dom DeLuise who, in the role of the Wazir, is a joke. The part may be musically undemanding, as noted in the Amazon editorial review, but it does require singing, which DeLuise's weak voice cannot provide. The London Symphony, under Gemignani's direction, is quite good.
I would recommend the original cast recording with Alfred Drake.

Having been in this show (as the Imam of the Mosque in an amateur production), I've long been in love with this music. I have heard various performers sing these songs, but rarely as well as they are presented here. The late Jerry Hadley as the Caliph is especially a joy to listen to. His clear, seemingly effortless voice is so well-suited to this role! And Samuel Ramey as the Poet is thrilling. Even Dom DeLuise, as the Wazir, was a lot of fun! A lot of people have said that he's not a strong enough singer for this show, but I don't think that particular role requires a strong singer, just a strong actor, which I feel Dom DeLuise definitely is. Having said all that, I was not as happy with Mandy Patinkin as the Marriage Arranger, on "Zubbediyah." I usually like his style, but here it was just a little too quirky. Overall, though, this cd is worth every penny!

"No man may avoid his fate. That is Kismet."

If you are looking for that romantic "in love" feeling inspired by classical productions, this will leave you feeling just that little bit dizzy and wanting to escape into a fantasy land. This is after all a Musical Arabian Night.

The setting is ancient Baghdad and the plot is of romance and intrigue. The original Kismet (meaning fate or destiny) was a 1911 drama by Edward Knoblock. It was an Arabian-Nights fantasy set in old Baghdad which told of Hajj the beggar, his loyal daughter Marsinah, the dastardly Wazir and the Caliph who falls in love with the beggar's daughter.

In this musical Hajj the Beggar has gone on a pilgrimage to Mecca. A penniless poet arrives and wants to sell his rhymes. He is then taken away by men who think he is Hajj. The poet is then brought before Jawan, an aging robber who says he will soon die if he doesn't remove a curse placed on him by Hajj. Jawan gives him 100 gold pieces. Back in the city, Wazir and his wife Lalume are working on arranging a marriage between the most-high Caliph and the three Princesses of Ababu who have accompanied them home. The Caliph sees Marsinah laughing and singing and is completely entranced by her beauty. Caliph pretends to be a gardener and asks Marsinah to meet him in the garden at moonrise.

"Stranger in Paradise" is probably one of the most romantic songs every written.

"Don't send me in dark despair
From all that I hunger for,
But open your angel's arms
To the stranger in Paradise" -Caliph

"I saw your face
And I ascended
Out of the commonplace
Into the rare!" -Marsinah

An interesting note about the original Broadway musical complete with voluptuous costumes and lavish settings. New York was in the middle of newspaper strike and the lack of reviews did not hurt Kismet. The audiences made the musical a success by word of mouth.

Listening to Kismet is captivating even if you can't see the dancing or costumes.

~The Rebecca Review

With the many recordings of Broadway musicals out there, it is sometimes diffacult for listner to find just the right one. Paul Gemignani seemed to come up with the perfect cast for Kismet. Finaly someone has utalized operetic voices in musicals! Even those who are not too partial to opera will find this recording supurb, and even amusing at times. Samuel Ramey's booming voice is a far cry from other singer's attempts at the role of the Poet (no offence meant towards Howard Keel). Ramey's notes are as perfect as his diction, and the emotion invoked in every song is truly superb! Listning to his rendition of "Rahadlakum" with Julia Migenes, to "Sands of Time", is amazing and emotion packed. As with almost anythig that he sings, the excellent voice of Samuel Ramey is a pleasure to listen to over and over again! Granted, his spoken words (i.e. acting) leave much to be desired, his singing makes up for any lack in "acting" throughtout the recording. Julia Migenes invokes seduction in her role as Lulume, the neglected wife of the Wazir, as Dom DeLuise, as her husband, is the perfect foil to the trained operetic voices of the cast. Jerry Hadley as the Caliph sings passionatly, as only a well trained opera singer can do. Ruth Ann Swenson convey's a charming Marsinah, hitting every note to perfection. Mandy Patinkin as the marriage broker is a scream! His small part is fun to listen to and should convey a smile to any listener. Finaly, the Ambrosian Singers and the London Symphony Orchestra bring emotion and depth to this excellent recording. If you only need one recording of Kismet, this is definitely the one to have!