Customer Reviews

"Montserat Caballe sings Bellini and Donizetti

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This certainly is an album to treasure. RCA did a fairly good job of restoring these late 60's - early 70s recordings so we can marvel at one of the most beautiful soprano voices ever. Hers is the one of the very few sopranos you can listen to on headphones. I won't say anything bad about Callas, but just try listening to her on headphones, aspirin? Caballe's wonderful silvery yet smooth voice supplemented by peerless pronunciation and vivid characterization goes "straight to the heart." And what pianissimos! She is, of course, renown for these, so don't underestimate her power, no smaller than Callas' but clear, without the shrilling: listen to the beginning of "Havvi un dio!" or the Anna Bolena's Mad Scene. Even with her high tessitura, she is quite capable of producing strong low notes, and never comes across as one of those faceless "canary" sopranos. Her voice could not be mistaken for anyone's, no one sounds remotely like Montserrat! Every one of her interpretations is very personal and touching. Interestingly, even for Bellini, who seemed to be concerned only with sheer beauty of sound, Caballe finds ways to accentuate the real emotion, thereby giving the arias a dramatic "Verdian" touch. She has been recorded probably more than any other soprano, however there's no hype surrounding her name. This is, most likely, due to her modesty, femininity and class, so rare in a Diva, the qualities that shine through on every aria.

This recital and the other RCA masterpiece M. Caballe: Rossini, Donizetti, Verdi rarities are two recitals that every opera fan DESERVES to hear! It's a gift for all of us who love the sound of bel canto and opera in general.

These are exactly the roles Caballe was born to sing. Her voice and musicianship are wonders! Everything on this CD is sung with such emotion and vocal brilliance that makes me forget any other reading of these famous pieces.

Casta Diva has been superbly performed and recorded before Caballe by legends like Callas and Sutherland and it's hard not to compare them. Yet, in my opinion there is no competition. It's Caballe that I will listen to for the ultimate reading of this piece. It's the perfect combination of her gorgeous voice (I can't get enough of her high notes here!) and expressiveness that makes the difference.

The same goes for the other tracks of this recital. Just listen how she phrases Imogene's "Col sorriso d'innocenza". It's as if time stops when she utters that phrase. Sadly, Caballe did not completely record Roberto Devereux or Maria di Rohan or Anna Bolena in studio. I would have sacrificed many other recordings of hers just to have her in studio in these roles. "Mira o Norma" is taken from her complete Norma recording and Cossotto's wonderful Adalgisa perfectly compliments Caballe's high priestess. The recital ends with Caballe singing some of her best pianissimi in Bolena's scene.

Purchase this recital and discover the world of opera! Just keep in mind that Montserrat Caballe's singing here is addictive!

There is probably no end to the compliments that I can give this recital disc, which I think is the best currently available on CD by any artist. Montserrat Caballe never sounded so good. Fortunately the sessions captured are, for the most part, early in her career, when she was singing the Marguerites and Violettas. In other words a perfect time in her career to make a recording of bel canto arias, while the voice is still young. Then again, even late into her performing career, Caballe's bel canto skills were fully in evidence.

But what sets Caballe apart from her brethren, such as Sutherland, Moffo, Sills, even Scotto, is that smoky, rich, lush Caballe sound to flesh out what is normally songbird material. And the sheer power of her voice has yet to be equalled in the bel canto repertoire, at least in recordings.

Where she is at her most triumphant on this disc is in the Bellini material. She is known as one of the preeminent Normas of her time, and here we get a glorious taste of what dramatic bel canto singing is all about. Her "Casta diva" is glorious. It is limpid in the slow section and powerful in the cabaletta, with the voice as strong and sure as any I have heard. Her coloratura is first rate.

Similarly brilliant is the Mad Scene from "Il Pirata", which gets a thoroughly rousing rendition here. Caballe's interpretation of the cabaletta is one of finest executed on record--vocally pristine and dramatically spot on. Simply amazing.

The duet from "Norma" is from a later full-length recording and is certainly listenable, if not to quite the same standard as the other Bellini excerpts.

The Donizetti arias also fare quite well, with the exerpt from "Anna Bolena" standing out as the strongest, again demonstrating Caballe's strength and her ability to sing gently, and there is always the trademark pianissimi.

But it's the Bellini for me which carries the day, and I can think of no other interpretations that best Caballe's as heard on this CD. She has long been one of my favorite singers, and to be able to hear her in her vocal prime is an amazing experience. The sheer flexibility of her voice is a marvel considering its relatively dramatic heft. She is that rare combination of awesome power and supple grace.

Supporting her brilliantly is conductor Carlo Felice Cillario, one of the finest of bel canto conductors, and one who seems to feel in his bones what bel canto should sound like. He keeps things moving along briskly, giving the cabaletta's the thrilling push they need, while allowing the slower movements their due. He also seems attuned to his singer, and the two compliment each other beautifully. There are no orchestral credits, but that does not obscure the fact that the playing is first rate.

Montserrat Caballe's singing on this CD is flawless, but, more than that, it is exciting. This CD is a marvel.

I got this recital disc recently and was flabbergasted by Caballé's out of this world singing. Her voice is an exquisite instrument of power, beauty, and elegance. It has a more refined timbre than Sutherland's and is more ethereal than Tebaldi's. She has breath-taking control over her gorgeous voice. The runs and roulades are tossed off cleanly. Often criticized for her caustic, fortissimo high notes, she only delivers beautiful high notes here. Even so, a few of the high notes sound a bit strained, especially the one that accompanies the word "infiorato" in the "Bolena" aria. The only fault with her coloratura technique is that she lacks a real trill. In the "Anna Bolena" aria, she substitutes scales for the ascending trills. However, only the most accomplished coloraturas can pull off those very taxing trills correctly. Two examples are the magnificent Joan Sutherland and the incomparable Beverly Sills. Love you, Beverly! By the way, Caballé has the most ethereal pianissimos that I have ever heard. Then again, I haven't experienced Zinka Milanov's pianissimos. Renata Tebaldi also had great pianissimos, but she didn't sustain them as long as Caballé did and they were not as wispy-thin as Caballé's. They were, however, richer-toned than Caballé's due to Tebaldi's fabulous spinto voice. Simply put, I love Caballé's voice more than those of other sopranos'. It had to be sent from heaven. How else would you explain its origins? Anyway, this CD was my first recording of Montserrat and she didn't fail to please. All the hype surrounding her singing is fully justified. Her "Casta Diva" is an exquisite piece of vocalism teamed with drama. This recording is worth owning for that one aria alone. I didn't care much for Imogene's Mad Scene, but she sang it well nonetheless. Her portrayal of Elizabeth I in "Vivi ingrato" is not the most dramatic, but it is not dull either. She amazes you with the beauty of her singing. No where will you find a more beautifully sung version of this aria. Beverly Sills is more dramatic, but even she can't beat Caballé's exquisite vocalism. Sills gives us the private, tortured woman behind the queen. Caballé gives us Elizabeth the suffering, but regal queen. Her rendition of the aria from "Lucrezia Borgia" makes one want to hear the full recording of that opera with her in the title role. She is truly astonishing. Her "Havvi un dio" is delivered masterfully. The exquisite duet from "Norma", "Mira, o Norma", is rendered tenderly with expert vocalism and dramatic involvement. The mezzo-soprano is competent and has excellent breath control. She sounds unnervingly like Caballé. I believe she is Fiorenza Cossotto. If so, then this track must have been taken from Caballé's complete studio recording of "Norma". The last track, half of Anna Bolena's Mad Scene, is done wonderfully. Again, the vocalism is exquisite. However, I prefer Sills' masterful rendition. She sings just as well as Caballé does, but she is so much more dramatically involved. When she sings about Percy and asks forgiveness for abandoning him, she turns in a frenetic and very exciting performance. And, of course, no soprano, including Callas, sings "Al dolce guidami" so right and so convincingly. When she sings the words "castel natio" before the ascending trills, which are great by the way, her voice matches Donizetti's musical and vocal inflections perfectly. You have to hear it to believe it! It sounds so right that one has to believe that it cannot be bettered. Anyway, back to Caballé. She shows us in this recital why she was considered one of the very few prime donne assoluti in the world in the the period from 1965 to her retirement from the operatic stage a few decades later. To her fans, this is a required recording.

This compilation is one of my favorite CDs; it is also a marvelous introduction to Caballe's exquisite voice for those who are not familiar with her unique talent.

This is, of course, a fabulous recital, showing Caballe at the very peak of her career (which lasted a very long time), when the ease and delicacy of those floated top notes were complemented by a striking lower register and plenty of power when required without any harshness of tone.

What I dislike about some of the other reviews here - apart from the fact that some of them seem to be so besotted with her that they sound unhinged - is the apparent compulsion to praise Caballe by making disparaging comparisons with other divas. Caballe herself - by all accounts, a generous and delightful woman - would not herself descend to that and there is plenty of room for the interpretations of Callas, Sutherland, Sills, Moffo et al alongside hers. They all had their little faults but they were all touched by genius and I tend to find that I like the one I am listening to best until I move on to the next great singer - which is how it should be. Even Caballe, here, is not exactly faultless - whatever that means, and I'm not even sure I want to hear it - but she is pretty close. The odd glottal attack disliked by some; the occasional onset of that slightly "matronly" tone in the middle of the voice; you could try to nit-pick but it would be absurd when you have evidence to your ears of one of the greatest ever bel canto singers. She breathes life into ther characters as well as singing divinely and really lives each role. It is impossible to select highlights from this recital but certainly the unearthly beauty of the pianissimi high notes and the extraordinary breath control, the trills, the pathos of the descending portamenti - all are astounding. The recital is all the more valuable for providing souvenirs and tasters of roles that she never recorded in full, such as Anna Bolena.

Cillario's accompaniment is perfect; he gives the music time to breath when he should and generates tension as required. Nearly seventy minutes of bliss to be savoured. Every opera lover should own it.

One oddity: nowhere in the CD label or notes is Fiorenza Cossotto's lovely contribution to the "Norma" duet (from the complete recording) credited. Shame on you, RCA.

i agree with all the previous reviewers. THERE IS NO WORDS TO DESCRIBE THE PERFECTION of her singing. I have this CD for a year. It is permanently on in my player in the bedroom. Most of my mornings start with her Casta Diva. No matter what the day brings it is possible to face it with Monserrat singing. Her Anna Bolena is so sweet and so sad, it brings tears to my eyes.How much I wish she recorded Bolena in the studio. As it is I am eternaly gratefull for what she did record.

If I could give this CD 100 stars, I would. Other reviewers have provided all the details. This CD has about 1 hour of Caballe's Heavenly singing on it. Lots and lots of those gorgeous, sexy, ultra feminine, cover-your-husband's-ears moments are here. I can't believe that this thing can be had this cheaply.

Wonderful. I have enjoyed this CD but then listening to Monteserrat Caballe is always a joy.

Both of these composers write music for the voice; and, Montserrat Caballe' has the voice that brings their music alive. I'm not a music expert, just someone who truly enjoys listening to great opera aria's and this one fits the bill to a "T."