Customer Reviews

The Metropolitan Opera Guide to Recorded Opera

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Anybody who collects opera on CD (or other formats) should own this tome; mine has long since separated into maverick fascicles from constant reference and casual browsing. Each contributor reviews, in some detail, virtually all recorded versions of a single work (then, incidentally and almost superfluously, offering recommendations). Standards of knowledge and of writing are gratifyingly high, and the thinking is refreshingly independent; I've been led to some wonderful disks that, going by received opinion, I wouldn't have poked with a ten-foot pole. But the book stops short in the early 90s; for anyone interested in state-of-the-art sound (not to mention some extraordinary performances), the Guide has quickly become seriously deficient. Also, it's time to rethink the operas included. Ginastera's Bomarzo, Argento's Postcard from Morocco and Musgrave's Mary Queen of Scots -- all unobtainable in any format -- can go, making room for, say, Schreker, Respighi, Chausson and Chabrier, Zemlinsky and Glass, among many others. Some composers need broader representation: Cherubini, Weber, Bellini (no Pirata!), Gluck (neither Iphigenia, no Alceste). Other commentators have suggested either a thorough-going update, or a second volume. I'd buy either without a second's pause.

No one who buys and enjoys recorded opera should be without this book, which I have owned and used since its publication. I consult it regularly and regard it as indispensable to any serious lover of recorded opera. To quote from the dustjacket, "a corps of experienced music critics and discophiles evaluate all the complete recordings of 150 operas by 71 composers"-all, that is, through 1992. It is unique-the only book of its kind in print and I believe the only one that has been attempted on so generous and comprehensive a scale. EVERY complete opera recording of the covered operas (including all the standard repertoire and many more esoteric operas), from the earliest days of complete opera recordings through 1992, receives a paragraph-length review, succinctly summarizing its strengths and weaknesses. (Opera buffs should note that "pirated" live recordings are not included, except in a few cases of legitimized "pirates.") The roster of participating critics is distinguished and the standard of criticism is high, as is the standard of wit, style, and general intelligence and perceptiveness of the reviews; inevitably there are some reviewers and some reviews one doesn't agree with, but where that happens, the grounds of disagreement will generally be clear. Overall the book represents an ambitious conception and quite a successful execution. I've spent many happy hours in this book, and it will quickly repay you for its modest cost simply in terms of the mediocre and worse recordings it will prevent you from wasting time and money on. Strongly recommended.

This book is an older sister of the "Metropolitan Opera Guide to Opera on Video". Both are edited by P.Gruber, which at least partly explains their similar design, but feature different teams of reviewers (only few names overlap) and maybe this is the reason why this guide reads so much better than its video sequel. Nevertheless, it is not difficult to imagine that the main reason for this discrepancy is the medium itself: recordings play much greater a role in our musical lives than video (or DVD) and that's probably why it is easier to write about them with fondness. The reviews collected here are very human and it is clear that their authors not only lived with the reviewed recordings for quite a while, but were quite eager to share their comments with the broader public - I didn't have that impression while reading the MET team's generally sour video guide. This is a very likeable book! Most of the reviews are written with sympathy and warmth, not very common in this kind of critical writings. There is also a tendency to emphasize the good even in seriously flawed recordings. These are highly subjective reviews and there is no attempt at concealing it: the language is always very personal and leaves no doubt that in many cases some high emotions were involved - again a feature that I found missing in the video guide. To make the book even more "human", the editors thought about including some dozen charts presenting favorite opera recordings of some celebrities (for whatever it is worth to know Joan Rivers's tastes in operatic matters; other choices are less problematic since most of the people are to some degree professionally involved with opera or theater). This guide is of course outdated but this shouldn't make it less attractive to true opera lovers. What is very important with this kind of publications - apart from its obvious practical value - is the fact that they preserve in a compact form a selection of well written essays not only on opera recordings, but also on our musical life and they give the lie to a generally felt impression that music criticism is a dying art. However, on the strictly practical side, the MET's guide will never be quite outdated, since the reviews collected here apply NOT only to CDs, but also to vinyl discs, at the time of printing still a popular medium. Many of then LPs (some transferred from 78s) are being reissued now in all sorts of series of "legendary recordings" launched by the record companies. As to the new releases, we can only wish that the guide will be updated from time to time. A large section on baroque opera recordings would be an important feature of this imaginary "new edition" (I have to admit that in its current form, the guide doesn't have much to offer for the fans of early opera) But even without these changes, the MET's guide is a very important addition to the music library of any record collector - if not strictly as a guide, then simply as a collection of wonderful musical essays. One can agree with them or not, but they never leave the readers with an impression of having been written by people bored with the topic. Enjoy!

Opera is a costly art. Producing recordings of operas is a costly business. Opera enthusiasts who wish to own recorded versions of their favorite operas, must thus expect to have credit cards that can call up large funds. Hence, the usefulness and value of another art form, one that developed in the C20th. This new art form is the guide to recorded opera, a collection of critical assessments and recommendations intended to help readers avoid wasting their money.

Of all such publications - and they can provide endless hours of absorbing reading even if the aim is not necessarily to get a well-informed recommendation - an outstanding example is The Metropolitan Opera Guide to Recorded Opera. Developed from an idea by Roland Gellat, and edited by Paul Gruber, it surveys and assesses virtually all opera sets on record up to 1993, the year of its publication. The roster of reviewers is impressive, comprising a team of twenty highly qualified contributors working in the USA and England.

Something I always look for in books of this type is a detailed index. The one here meets all my requirements. It enables me to find all references in the book to, for example, Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, a singer you might think is represented in recorded opera sets more than anybody else. It is Placido Domingo, however, whose index entries occupy more space here than those of any other singer.

An alphabetical order of composers dictates where the recorded opera reviews are found. Once you have found "M" near the center of the book, for example, you can locate Mozart, and find his operas discussed in chronological order. There is also an index of opera titles, if you prefer that means of finding what you want. There are no illustrations, and pages are laid out in two-column format, so the book is reasonably compact and not too weighty.

Each reviewer is set the task of assessing all available recorded sets of a particular opera (a luxury few of us can enjoy) and providing a recommendation. Perhaps it is in the nature of opera, an art form with so many inter-relating components, that few single versions of a particular opera are found to excel on all counts. One of the few is the de Sabata "Tosca". Nevertheless the reviewers always attempt to "narrow the field" and indicate strengths and weaknesses along the way.

A "guide" to recorded opera is tricky. First of all, every opera critic is likely to have his or her own biases when it comes to singers, conductors, sound quality, etc. That being said, this book is an extremely fair, balanced, guide to the recordings of many operatic staples, as well as lesser-known works. Each opera's discography is reviewed by a single critic, so there's consistency. However, a problem arises when the different critics offer conflicting views of the same singer in different operas. Joan Sutherland is criticized by some critics for her poor diction and placid portrayals, but other critics choose to focus on the beauty of her voice and her impeccable technique. Who do you believe? It's your choice. Also, this book was written in 1993, so many recent studio recordings, historical releases from Naxos, and more "legitimized" pirates are not covered here. Overall, however, it's an entertaining, comprehensive guide to many famous recordings.

The Guide is a phenomenal and comprehensive review of recorded opera. The breadth of the critics' knowledge of the selection is reflected in their incisive comments and analyses, which make it easy to focus on specific artistic and technical factors that distinguish one recording from another. There are, however, a few drawbacks. First, several versions that are reviewed are not currently available and since availability is not indicated, this makes the Guide somewhat impractical for use as a shopping companion. Second, the guide is slightly incomplete to be considered the absolute reference -- it does not cover several lesser known operas, and has not been updated to include some excellent recordings made in the mid-90s. Another shortcoming is that the number of CDs in each set is not indicated, as the location of a side break can be a critical factor in selecting a suitable recording. If the Met were to bring out either a Volume II or an update, this would easily be considered absolutely the best work in its field. If not, I patiently await the next edition, which hopefully will address some of these concerns.

get it for less from the MET Guild websit

Few people care more about their great passion in life than opera fanatics, which is exactly as it should be, given the nature of their obsession: as Terrence McNally famously suggested in his play THE LISBON TRAVIATA, their love of extravagant emotion on the stage can become easily translated into their collecting (and other private activities). Thus it should come as no surprise that the reviewers for this famous (but sorely out of date) 1993 collection make their recommendations with such vehemence and such niggling attention to detail. You'd never get bored reading this guide if you care at all about opera and are interested in finding the best recordings, and the editor (Paul Gruber) wisely required most of his writers eschew unpleasant snarkiness. Still, their frequent fondness for obscurer recordings can be a bit frustrating for the more casual collector, and their obsessiveness can provide unintentional moments of hilarity (here's Conrad L. Osborne on which recording of Gounod's FAUST is best: "I cannot bring myself to a recommendation. Blade at throat, I suppose I would gasp something like 'Cluytens! With Bonynge for some of the vocalism and extra music'"). The recommendations are generally pretty excellent, and the reviewers seem generally mindful of the fact that most buyers will want to buy more recent recordings than mono rarities. Also, there are some charming lists of all-time favorite recordings by the usual suspects of great opera fans and professionals (McNally, Lord Harewood, etc.). The Metropolitan Opera Guild desperately does need to update this, however, given how fifteen years' worth of recordings remain unrepresented here.

Yes, it's nearly 15 years old. Why a revised edition never surfaced is beyond me. Still, if you can forgive a total absence of recordings from the mid-90's onward, plus some notable exclusions of opera that have since gained in popularity, this is a must-own volume. I cannot think of another guide that discusses individual recordings so thoroughly.

The reviews are highly opinionated, but there is no question that each reviewer is an authority on the subject. I do disagree on some counts, particularly when it comes to some favorite singers. For instance, it matters not to me that Grace Bumbry is attacked for her lower register; she will always be the greatest Amneris in my book, if not in this one, so to speak.

I agree with my fellow Texan reviewer who described hours of pleasurable reading from this essential companion. No one guide can be all things to all people, but the strenghs of this one place it at among the two or three very best available.