Customer Reviews

Renée Fleming - Visions of Love ~ Mozart Arias / Mackerras

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This is the first solo album of Renee Fleming. I do love her singing. Her beautiful voice is pleasant to hear and too beautiful. And her voice is suited well to these Mozart arias. I enjoyed hearing it.

As many reviewer says, aria from "Die Zauberflote" is bad, not singing but conducting. That's why I rated this 4, not 5. If I rated it about singing only, this is 5 stars. If only the conductor had conducted it more relaxed.

Happily, we can hear many recordings featuring her every month. But I don't want her to be the 2nd Cheryl Studer.

Anyway, I recommend it.

In my opinion, there are certain arias that Renée Fleming sings better than anyone else (not all on this disc). Those would be "Ave Maria" from Otello (her "Signatures" album), "The trees on the mountains" from Susannah ("I want Magic!"), "Mìsíèku na nebi hlubokém (O silver moon)" from Rusalka, and (get this--) "Ach, ich fühl's" from Die Zauberflöte. I don't know why Pamina isn't one of her signature roles like Desdemona or the Marschallin. She has the perfect tone for this aria -- sad and sympathetic, with fullness to get the point across thoroughly. And thank you Mackerras for not taking us through that nautiously slow common tempo that make you want to fall asleep. I've listened to this aria over and over again and I can't get sick of it. It's the perfect aria for any heart-breaking situation and Renée fulfills Mozart's wishes. Another highlight from this CD is the one from Zaide, "Ruhe sanft." Quite beautiful and again, tempo really moved it along nicely. I just wished she could have recorded these years later when her high notes bloomed more. Perhaps she'll record them again. Beautiful, Renée.

This is a lovely collection of Mozart that consists of 12 pieces: 11 opera arias (one is an alternate version of the deservedly famous "Deh, vieni" from LE NOZZE DI FIGARO) and 1 concert aria. Sir Charles Mackerras conducts ably as always and the Orchestra of St. Luke's performs wonderfully under his direction. Ms. Renee Fleming is in her usual vocal form: resplendent and confident. However, not all of the pieces chosen suit her vocally. On tracks 3 and 10 she sounds very uncomfortable and there is a tightness that never leaves due to the unrelentingly high tessitura. In fact, in the aria "Lieve son al par del vento" she sounds wild and what are supposed to be stratospheric notes are little more than barely controlled squeaks/shrieks. Coloratura territory, I'm sure. However, she has a facility for trills and roulades that is generously glimpsed on this disc and otherwise she is fluent in Mozart's stlye. The singing is idiomatic and her diction admirable. Highly recommended.

Also, if you like this disc, may I suggest the following: Cecilia Bartoli's MOZART PORTRAITS and Kathleen Battle's SINGS MOZART #1 (under Previn) and #2 (under Levine).

Renee Fleming's Mozart CD is a collection of beautiful arias, gorgeously sung. Rare Mozart gems are presented along with more popular arias from FIGARO, DON GIOVANNI, DIE ENTFUHRUNG, and DIE ZAUBERFLOTE -- a wise programming choice on Fleming's part, since EVERYONE sings the popular arias. Fleming's lush yet agile tone is perfect for the long lines of "L'amero, saro costante" from IL RE PASTORE and the similar "Geme la torturelle" from LA FINTA GIARDINIERA. She has the coloratura flexibility for "Ach, ich leibte" from DIE ENTUHURUNG and the amazing "Lievi son," an aria Mozart wrote when he was only sixteen years old! It is also interesting to hear Fleming give an outstanding performance of Donna Elvira's "Mi Tradi," since her more usual role in DON GIOVANNI is Donna Anna. But my favorite track is the first one, "Deh vieni, non tardar" from FIGARO; I believe this is one of the very finest pieces of singing Fleming has ever recorded.

Her "turtledovish",creamy, slightly gruffy voice is perfect in Mozart. All are very lovey/dovey romantic songs. I Love the repetive nature of vocal lines in Mozart's music. It's very different from later Italian composers. This music is more charming and sometimes meant to be a little comical. Thay all have a certain rhythm pattern, typical of Mozart. After a while you start to pick up on it and get the gist of the style. Then you can hear an unknown piece and single it out as Mozart. She does an incredible effort at maintaining that creamy richness, roundness, and that beauty of tone that is so necessary in Mozart ,when she is singing at high tessitura or when she is singing in pure head voice or "in the mask". I think Mozart vocal music is the most difficult to do, but also the most fun.

This Fleming recording was acquired for me by my best friend whom knows my personal tastes in the opera repertoire. This recording features arias from operas, i.e. "The Marriage of Figaro," "The Magic Flute," "Zaide," etc and boasts Ms. Fleming's richness of crystalling quality and warmth in her lyric soprano. I was particularly impressed with Ms. Fleming in her roles associated with "The Marriage of Figaro" for the reason that she is blessed and gifted to immensely captivate her audience with emotional realism through her vocal magic.

I am typically fond of the last track on this recording, "Konzertarie, K383: Nehmt Meinen Dank." It is one of those compositions one can't describe with words, but have to listen to it to know what others are discussing about. Fleming is a superb performer; I consider her the next Dame Kiri Te Kanawa.

Thank you "JCSon" for this wonderful recording you've bought me! :-)

Renee Fleming is at her best while singing Mozart and it shows on this CD. She sings a wide range of Mozart arias even singing coloratura. She brings the music to life. The "Ach, Ich Fuhl's..." is a little to fast for my taste, but she still performs the song beautifully.

Her "turtledovish",creamy, slightly gruffy voice is perfect in Mozart. All are very lovey/dovey romantic songs. I Love the repetive nature of vocal lines in Mozart's music. It's very different from later Italian composers. This music is more charming and sometimes meant to be a little comical. Thay all have a certain rhythm pattern, typical of Mozart. After a while you start to pick up on it and get the gist of the style. Then you can hear an unknown piece and single it out as Mozart. She does an incredible effort at maintaining that creamy richness, roundness, and that beauty of tone that is so necessary in Mozart ,when she is singing at high tessitura or when she is singing in pure head voice or "in the mask".

In the early part of Renee Fleming's recording career, this was a wise, safe and logical choice of albums. The selection of arias included in this album cannot be toped, and provide a great reference to vocalists such as myself. Being an avid Fleming fan, as well as a student of voice, and recently focusing on Mozart's songs and arias, this was a great buy and a wonderful addition to my growing collection.

I find it interesting to hear the lightness in her voice in this early recording. It might seem as if she is trying to find her voice and to gain control of the huge voice that she was blessed with. When we hear her now, she is in immaculate control of that gorgeous sound, providing a carefully calculated delivery every time. However, I find that the freedom and lesser degree of control is an outstanding comparison to her more recent recordings. In the (nearly) past two decades, she has come a long way, but I don't know if I can prefer one Renee over the other.

It would be great for her to do a "Part II" of the Mozart arias, so that we could compare her mature voice with her free, youthful sound here.

I love Mozart. I also love Fleming. If you love both, get this!