Customer Reviews

Romance

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

to hear his own _Ombra mai fu_ and _Lascia ch'io piangia_ rendered the way Mr. Mera has done here.

I single these two songs out since they are so well known and loved -- and lord knows, I do too, but never have I heard them sound this beautiful. Go ahead, compare these with other renditions yourself.

Paradoxically, here you hear the songs, not the singer. In other words, you don't get distracted listening to the brilliant technical prowess of the singer: Mr. Mera's singing fills the universe between your ears with grace and leaves you no room for you to pedantically admire his mastery while you are listening -- not any more than you can see light as it lights up the face of your beloved.

Angelic, ethereal, haunting...these adjectives are trite but what other words do we have?

I can only think of Andreas Scholl for a fair comparison. And as much as I love Gerard Lesne's voice also, Mera's is of another order: he casts sorcery over Handel's pieces and lets you hear and become aware of the thalassic mystery of sadness inherent in the ephemerality of all manner of beauty......destined to fade away into the silent void of space.

Every track mesmerizes. (I never knew so many famous composers were actually so...good!)

Here is music -- minus the physiology of singing. Thus you end up listening with your soul. Listen to this presentation of music, and let it touch you: you will rediscover and be humbled by your own humanity.

I first came across this artist, a counter-tenor, while listening to the CD playing at an artist friend's house in Seattle. The artist is of Japanese descent now living in the USA and I heard this incredible voice coming over the stereo speakers and thought, at first-blush, that the singer was a woman but to my amazement the singer is a man. The music is so beautifully done that it is hard to describe it other than to say this CD(and I bought other Mera works as a result of hearing the "Romance" CD)lifts the spirit and soothes the tired brow like no other I have ever heard. And, I do mean ever heard. This is my first review for a piece of music and I can only hope others will experience the voice of Mera of Japan because he is something else in the world of classical music. I recommend this CD with 5 stars. I also thank Amazon for having Mera's works(the Bach cantatas & Baroque arias are also exceptional)because his work is very hard to find in the U.S.

This is clearly the best record I've heard in a long while. Mera has an outstanding voice, clear and "crisp" yet forceful. My favourite track is "Solveis sang" by Grieg, which Mera sings in perfect Norwegian. Tracks #2 and 3 by Händel are also masterpieces, the best recordings I've heard...ever. (His German accent is very good.) Buy it...it is probably the best record you'll buy all year.

I bought this CD to hear Yoshikazu Mera's version of Rachmininov's "Vocalise" (I also recommend Natalie Dassay's version of this piece). I was far from disappointed. Mera's voice is lush, pure, and haunting. His voice is hard-wired to the soul and to the heart. This CD will soothe you, calm you, uplift your spirit, and inspire you. I realize that may sound like heavy hyperbole, but I assure you, you will be stunned and amazed.

This is one of the few cd:s that I can listen without skipping a track. All the songs that Yoshikazu sings are so beautiful! I also like the arrangements, especially the violin solos. "Auf Flugeln des Gesanges" is sung by hundreds of singers and I have never before liked this song but after hearing Yoshikazu's version, it became one of my favourite songs. "Lascia ch'io pianga" is usually sung by a woman but Yoshikazu sings better than any man or woman. His coloraturas are crystal clear but yet his voice doesn't shake at all. "Ombra mai fu" almost makes me cry. It's fantastic! No one else could sing it better. I love Masayuki Kino's violin solo in "Morgen". Though the song is very slow, it isn't boring. I usually skip the song if it is sung by any other singer but this version is absolutely worth listening. Yoshikazu's "Allerseelen" is also listenable though it is not very good. "Romance" from Faust is so pure! Again, the violin solo in makes the song even more beautiful. "La dans des Troyennes virginales" was well played by the orchestra, especially the harpist. Bach-Gounod's "Ave Maria" is sung by every singer but somehow, Yoshikazu's version is totally different. The range is good; not too high. The backing by harp is also beautiful as it doesn't cover Yoshikazu's voice at all. "Je te veux" is my favourite song on this cd. I listen to it again and again; it makes me happy! "Kdyz mne stará matka zpívat" is, like all the other songs, sung in the right language. Nobody else can make so beautiful coloraturas. Yoshikazu has also good dynamics. His version of "Solveigs sang" beats even Karita Mattila's version. He has no trouble with pronouncing Norwegian language. I enjoy to listen the high coloratura parts. It is also nice to hear Rachmaninoff's vocalise sung by a singer with low voice; this song is, like "Ave Maria" usually too high. It fits well for the countertenor voice. "Greensleeves" shows that Yoshikazu can sing traditional music too. The arrangement in the first verse was a little bit boring but listenable. The other verses are fantastic, especially the "God I pray..." part.

Wow! What a voice! And how many languages! German, Italian, Latin, Czech, Norwegian, French, English. I have played this cd to many of my friends and Yoshikazu Mera got a lot of new fans. I have never liked tenors but now I absolutely love countertenors and especially Yoshikazu Mera.

I divide my music listening experience now in ¨before Mera¨and
¨After Mera¨: Being a fan of barock vocal music I've being listening to some of the best countertenors for quite a while,
their voices being specially suited for many Handelian arias
that were originally written for famous ¨castrati¨ as Senesino
or Nicolini. And then I happened to listen ¨Laschia chío pianga¨
sang by Yoshikazu Mera, I was in awe! I run out of my house to
get whatever CD I could get right away from this otherwordly,
perfect Voice and got ¨Romance¨.Every single piece of this CD is
transcendentally beautiful! The Voice of Mera will leave you
spellbound! I have no words to describe it, you listen and you
soar to a world of Bliss and Beauty!. Today I took it with me to
the birthday party of a friend...before the second aria had finished totally, I was surrounded by an eager group of people
asking me: Who on earth was that?! where can I get it?! all with
pen and papers to write the names of album and singer. It is amazing to observe the expressions of my friends when they
listen to this CD! They can not bring themselves to believe their ears! As for me this is my best pick EVER!

Let me start out by saying that I am not an opera fan but I absolutely love this CD. I can't say enough about how beautiful Mr. Mera's voice is. This is a CD that you will want to listen to again and again. I think my favorite track is Je te veux, which held me spellbound the first time I heard it and upon every subsequent listening.

Mera's voice is amazingly pure and comforting. The programme is cleverly thought out and some of the arrangements for the songs are really very refreshing. I especially like track 1 where the accompaniment is surprisingly light and beautifully arranged.

All in all it's a very good disc with a strong artistic and marketing sense. The only thing I'd say is Mera's diction on languages perhaps he's not so familiar with.

Romance is a 1998 BIS recording starring counter-tenor Yoshikazu Mera. Shigeo Gada leads the Japan Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra. On this recording we get to hear Handel, Strauss, and Satie to mention a few. Mera truly has a magnificent voice and one of the better voices that I have ever heard. All lyrics are available in respective language. Music notes and short biographies are also included in the booklet. Highly recommended. 5/5.

We live in an age which has seen several great countertenors, but Yoshikazu Mera has a voice that can be set above and apart from any this age has seen. Although he sings like an angel, there is a sensuality pervading each and every one of the offerings on this album. From the first strains of Mendelssohn's "Wings of Song", the auditor realizes this is a listening experience to cherish.

My particular favorite is the Bach/Gounod arrangement of "Ave Maria" which Mera turns into a love song of inexpressible tenderness, a love song addressed to the infinite. It is immediately followed by Satie's "Je Te Veux" which Mera renders like a hymn.

Although still relatively young, Mera does not seem to be actively recording classic music and it seems unlikely that he will return to the classical stage. That makes his early albums precious and difficult to come by. This album represents his best voice and receives the highest recommendation.