Prima Voce: Chaliapin

Michael Cozette (Performer), Modest Mussorgsky (Composer), Anton Rubinstein (Composer), Anonymous (Composer), Johannes Brahms (Composer), Leonid Dimitrievitch Malashkin (Composer), Giuseppe Verdi (Composer), Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov (Composer), Russian Traditional (Composer), Alexander Borodin (Composer), Charles Gounod (Composer), Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Composer), Mikhail Glinka (Composer), Giacomo Puccini (Composer), Pyotr Il'yich Tchaikovsky (Composer), Arrigo Boito (Composer), Jules Massenet (Composer), Ludwig van Beethoven (Composer), Sergey Rachmaninov (Composer), Alexander Sergeyevich Dargomizhsky (Composer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: Michael Cozette
• Composer: Modest Mussorgsky, Anton Rubinstein, Anonymous, Johannes Brahms, Leonid Dimitrievitch Malashkin, et al.
• Audio CD (December 2, 1992)
• Number of Discs: 2
• Label: Nimbus Records
• ASIN: B0000037JO
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #313,992 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Wonderful Voice From The Past, July 26, 2006

By 

Alan Beggerow (Sterling, IL USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Prima Voce: Chaliapin (Audio CD)

This two-disc set gives a good overview of the great Russian Bass singer. It has a total of 36 selections, and covers the years 1911 to 1936.

With a voice of tremendous range and power, Chaliapin could also sing softly and with feeling. A very flexible instrument that comes through the old recording technology of the 78 record era. A good example of the pure physical gifts of his voice is 'Farlaf's Rondo' by Glinka. A 'patter' song, with words and syllables sung rapidly and seemingly without taking a breath. As if the performance wasn't difficult enough, Chaliapin speeds up the tempo at the ending of the rondo! It shows the breath control he had, and while the singer seems to be none of the worst for wear, I was left breathless just listening!

Two selections, Boris' Monologue from 'Boris Godounov' and 'Song of The Flea', by Mussorgsky, are represented by two different performances. This gives a good idea of the breadth of Chaliapin's art, as each performance of the same work is full of nuance and artistry. It is hard for me to pick which performance I like best. As with any great artist, each time a work is performed it is not just a repitition, but a unique recreation.

The transfers naturally have much surface noise, as all are from the 78 rpm record era. I have most of these recordings on transfers to LP's and the noise is much more apparant than on the CD transfers. With older recordings such as these, any transfers and 'cleaning up' of the sound can only go so far. If too much of the noise from the originals is 'cleaned up', the recording can lose presence. Whomever engineered the transfers to CD has hit a happy middle ground. The background noise is still there, but not so annoying as on LP, while the sound of the actual music and Chaliapin's voice seems much more alive.

What I have read about Chaliapin says that he was not only a great singer, but a great actor also. The two do not always go together, for a great voice in opera can make up for a lack of acting ability. To have both talents rolled into one is rare. Contemporary accounts of Chaliapin's operatic performances comment as much on his acting as his singing. There arevideos of his film performance in Ibert's Don Quichotte, which I want to see when I have the chance.

If you're passion is the human voice, you must hear Chaliapin. It is not possible to say he or anyone else was the best. But these recordings show he was a consummate artist, and are well worth exploring.

Recommended.

2 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Chaliapin, July 31, 2008

By 

M. Cabane (France) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Prima Voce: Chaliapin (Audio CD)

I went to the Amazon www site and found immediately the pieces I wanted to get. It was easy to order it and I was amazed by the short delivery.

I must say I am satisfied now !

4 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Chaliapin - Prima Voce, March 17, 2006

By 

Albert C. Ruocchio (Raleigh, NC) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Prima Voce: Chaliapin (Audio CD)

The recordings are old but the only way one can hear a legend!

The selections are excellent and the quality is as one would expect from this vintage recording.

I enjoy going back to hear these voices and this is the only way to understand the history