Manon

Massenet (Artist), Freni (Artist), Pavarotti (Artist), Pamerai (Artist), Maag (Artist) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (February 6, 2001)
• Number of Discs: 2
• Label: Opera D'oro
• ASIN: B000055X2J
• Also Available in: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #599,630 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

Disc: 1

1. Manon, opera in 5 acts: Prelude - Peter Maag/La Scala, Milan

2. Manon, opera in 5 acts: Act 1: Holà! Hé! Monsieur l'Hôtelier? - Mirella Freni/Luciano Pavarotti/Rolando Panerai/Antonio Zerbini/Franco Ricciardi/Giuseppe Morresi...

3. Manon, opera in 5 acts: Act 1: C'est bien ici - Rolando Panerai/Chorus

4. Manon, opera in 5 acts: Act 1: Eh! j'imagine que cette belle enfant - Rolando Panerai/Mirella Freni

5. Manon, opera in 5 acts: Act 1: Je suis encor tout étourdie - Mirella Freni

6. Manon, opera in 5 acts: Act 1: Partez! On sonne! - Chorus/Mirella Freni/Luciano Pavarotti/Rolando Panerai/Antonio Zerbini/Franco Ricciardi...

7. Manon, opera in 5 acts: Act 1: Regardez-mois bien...Ne bronchez pas - Rolando Panerai

8. Manon, opera in 5 acts: Act 1: Restons ici...Combien ces femmes sont jolies!...Voyon, Manon - Mirella Freni

9. Manon, opera in 5 acts: Act 1: J'ai marqué l'heure du départ - Luciano Pavarotti/Mirella Freni

10. Manon, opera in 5 acts: Act 1: Ah! parlez-moi!...Nous vivrons à Paris - Luciano Pavarotti/Mirella Freni

See all 16 tracks on this disc

Disc: 2

1. Manon, opera in 5 acts: Act 3: Quelle éloquence! - Chorus

2. Manon, opera in 5 acts: Act 3: C'est lui!...Bravo, mon cher...Epouse quelque brave fille - Antonio Zerbini

3. Manon, opera in 5 acts: Act 3: Je suis seul!...Ah! fuyez, douce image - Luciano Pavarotti

4. Manon, opera in 5 acts: Act 3: Monsieur, je veux parler à l'Abbé...Pardonez-moi

5. Manon, opera in 5 acts: Act 3: Toi! Vous!...Oui, c'est moi!

6. Manon, opera in 5 acts: Act 3: N'est-ce plus ma main

7. Manon, opera in 5 acts: Act 4: Faites vos jeux, Messieurs!

8. Manon, opera in 5 acts: Act 4: De ton coeur, Des Grieux

9. Manon, opera in 5 acts: Act 4: Un mot, s'il vous plait, chevalier!

10. Manon, opera in 5 acts: Act 4: Obeisons quand leur voix appelle

See all 14 tracks on this disc

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Magnificent Singing makes flaws minor, March 11, 2003

By 

J Overdijkink (the Netherlands) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Manon (Audio CD)

Five stars for the singers, but one deduction (only one!) for the cuts and the language (which are relitively a very minor drawback, only).

Mirella Freni and Pavarotti are in their youthfull prime and on top of the world. In two words: absolutely FANTASTIC. Take the incredibly long, sustained note in unison, at the end of Manon and Des Grieux's first act duet ('a parigi, andrem'). What power and what excellent voices! That one certainly gives me goosebumps.
The whole performance is filled with thrilling moments like these (The very x-rated church scene in act three is wild!), making this recording very much unmissible for any lover of Freni and Pavarotti.
Peter Maag's conducting of the La Scala forces is very dramatic and powerfull. The fact it is a live recording no doubt contributes to the splendidly dramatic performance.

Of course, if you only go for authenticity (which I very much advocate), this package is not for you. First, it's in Italian, not the original french, which can at times sound awkward (as translated opera's tend to do). Second, it is brutely cut. The cuts in the first act are still rather conventional, even by todays standards (it is generally acknowledged that the first act is too long for it's own dramatic good). On the other hand, the ommision of half of the third act is terrible, that act now consists only of the church scene.
This La Scala production had compressed the five act work to four, taking the last two acts together. Amazon.com advertises this cd as having five acts. Once the cuts are made, it is indeed only a matter of name-giving.

But I repeat, all this is certainly outweighed by the musical performance, which is of very high quality and will thrill you!
So, if you really want to hear stupendous singing from a magnificent cast and you do not mind the cuts and frequent frantic applause and cheering from an audience going mad, buy this cd! It is a bargain. (Buy the original french and complete version as well!)

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Another Opera d'Oro bargain, March 2, 2009

By 

Ralph Moore "Ralph operaphile" (Bishop's Stortford, UK) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Manon (Audio CD)

No, it's not THE "Manon" to own but indispensable as an adjunct to a wholly authentic, French, complete version such as the more recent, very successful Alagna/Gheorghiu/Pappano recording with a mostly French supporting cast.

This one is in Italian - none the worse for that, just different - and loses the first scene of Act 3 - fairly standard practice in 1969. The animal passion brought to the singing by Pavarotti and Freni is perhaps the result of their singing in their native language; sung like this the opera is less charming and precious, more gutsy and Puccini-esque; Italianate, not Gallic. Panerai is in fine voice and very characterful, the supporting cast adequate. the sound is quite good - only occasionally a bit congested - and the audience very well behaved, saving their raucous appreciation for appropriate moments. The two principals are in unbelievably fresh voice - just occasionally Freni scoops a bit, but they both sing tenderly as well as passionately.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Manons On Record: Mirella Freni, August 16, 2005

By 

Rudy Avila "Saint Seiya" (Lennox, Ca United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Manon (Audio CD)

I'm on a Manon kick and I have enjoyed a few sopranos in the role as well as disliked others. I still think Beverly Sills does it the best, but I really enjoyed Mirella Freni in the role. Her Italianate portrayal does not take away from the dramatic spirit of the heroine. She is passionate, she is strong in her performance. Opposite her radiant and moving Manon is the world famous Luciano Pavoratti as Des Grieux. Everyone knows that for a time Pavoratti and Freni were a tenor and soprano force not to be reckoned with and as the lovers on this recording they are on fire. True, this recording is heavily cut and that's always a bummer. But on the bright side, it's a live performance in which Pavoratti and Freni are both in the best shape of their vocal careers and did one hell of a Manon that night. From the beginning when Manon and Des Grieux meet and sing that first love duet to the tragic death-scene, it's one great journey I dont mind taking along.

Truthfully, the role of Manon in the Massenet masterpiece is quite difficult to sing for a soprano. She must aptly portray a heroine who undergoes a journey from innocence to worldly experience, who feels passionately about love and is ambitious, lusty and money-loving. All these characteristics should be evident in a performance whose vocal style is essentially lyric with a degree of dramatic thrusts. Very few sopranos succeed in the role of Manon, often minimizing her complexity by sinigng her as a flirty operetta-type heroine who just happens to die at the end of the opera. Still another interpretation is that she's like the French opera version of Violetta in Verdi's Italian opera La Traviata. Manon is neither of these. She stands alone as an engaging, complicated woman who is quite torn between purity, Provincial innocence, Parisian cosmopolitan attitudes, love, greed, regret, passion, despair. She is the embodiment of the 18th century heroine much written in such works as well of course Prevost's novel Manon Lescaut of which this is based but also Les Liasons Dangereuse (Dangerous Liasions). Manon was also an attractive figure in opera. Puccini composed a successful Italian version Manon Lescaut. Other fine Manons on my list that should also be on yours are - Beverly Sills, Victoria De Los Angeles, Angela Gheorghiu and Renee Fleming.