This is a collection of well-to-lesser-known Russian arias by composers from Glinka to Prokofiev, with stops along the way for Tchaikovsky, Rimsky-Korsakov, and Rachmaninov. The lovely Anna Netrebko remains a glamorous singer, pure of voice, with always-musical phrasing and some exquisitely high soft singing. Particularly fine are a little-known Tchaikovsky Romance with castanets, bassoon, and piccolo adding color; the vivid, Italianate selection from Glinka's A Life for the Tsar; two lyrical Rachmaninov songs (here scored for orchestra); and the Letter Scene from Eugene Onegin, which is delivered with the drama of a true singing actress. Otherwise, many of the arias here are slow and have a certain sameness about them. Netrebko sometimes just sings instead of getting inside them. Netrebko's Italian output so far has been far more exciting, but it's great to have this Russian repertoire sung so beautifully on CD. --Robert Levine
The Washington Post
Be forewarned: Netrebko can be habit-forming.
About the Artist
Anna Jurjewna Netrebko, (born 18 September 1971 in Krasnodar, Russia) is a Russian-Austrian soprano. She is known for her sumptuous voice, her fine musical technique, and her physical beauty. Netrebko began her operatic career cleaning the floors at St Petersburg's Mariinsky Theatre (home of the Kirov Opera), where she attracted the attention of conductor Valery Gergiev and subsequently became his vocal mentee. Guided by Gergiev, she made her operatic stage debut at the Mariinsky as Susanna in Le Nozze di Figaro. She went on to sing many prominent roles with the Kirov Opera, including Amina in La Sonnambula, Pamina in Die Zauberflöte, Rosina in The Barber of Seville, and Lucia in Lucia di Lammermoor.
In 1995, the 24-year-old Netrebko made her American debut as Lyudmila in Glinka's Ruslan and Lyudmila at the San Francisco Opera. Following this successful performance, she became a frequent guest singer in San Francisco. She also appeared in other cities in the US and is known as an acclaimed interpreter of Russian operatic roles, such as Lyudmila, Natasha in Prokofiev's War and Peace, Louisa in his Betrothal in a Monastery and Marfa in The Tsar's Bride. Netrebko has also made successful forays into bel canto and romantic roles such as Gilda in Rigoletto, Musetta in La Bohème and Giulietta in I Capuleti e i Montecchi.
In 2002, Netrebko made her debut at the Metropolitan Opera as Natasha in the Met premiere of War and Peace. In the same year, she sang her first Donna Anna at the Salzburg Festival's production of Don Giovanni, conducted by Nikolaus Harnoncourt.
Her 2003 repertoire alone included performances as Violetta in La Traviata in Munich, the title role in Lucia di Lammermoor at the Los Angeles Opera, and Donna Anna at the Royal Opera House Covent Garden. That year also saw the release of her first studio album, Opera Arias, which became one of the best selling classical recordings of the year. Her second album, Sempre Libera, was released the following year. She sang a highly regarded Roméo et Juliette with Rolando Villazón, with whom she also performed in L'Elisir d'Amore in 2005. In the same year, she appeared as Violetta Valéry in Verdi's La Traviata at the Salzburg Festival, conducted by Carlo Rizzi.
Netrebko's voice is notable for having both the softness and flexibility of a lyric soprano and the resonance and dark timbre of a spinto soprano. She has also a wide vocal range, being able to sing the soprano high E flats and even high Es.
In March 2006, Netrebko applied to become an Austrian citizen, receiving her citizenship in late July. According to an interview in the Austrian weekly news, she will live in Vienna and Salzburg. This has led to a considerable backlash in Russia - Moscow times story
Product Description
After astonishing debuts as an unknown young singer, Anna Netrebko is now one of the world's favorite opera heroines. Now, for the first time, she's ready to lavish her pure, powerful voice on composers from her homeland, in a program of some of the most beautiful arias and songs in the Russian repertoire. Russian Songs is a deeply personal recording, made in the opera house where she first found stardom, St. Petersburg's Mariinsky Theatre, and conducted by Anna's mentor and friend who has championed her from the start: Valery Gergiev. This collection includes Anna in her signature role, Natasha from Prokofiev's War and Peace - which launched her career at the Metropolitan Opera in 2002. In addition. Anna gives listeners a taste of roles yet to come with Tatiana's letter scene from Tchaikovsky's Eugene Onegin. Anna Netrebko has made it her mission to bring opera to a wider public. Following the huge success of her last solo recording Sempre Libera and the acclaimed Salzburg La Traviata releases, Anna will show once again that she knows how to captivate audiences.
