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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A GREAT 'SALOME" FROM CABALLE', June 23, 1999
By A Customer
This review is from: Strauss: Salome (Audio CD)
This is an amazing recording of "Salome" and quite possibly the greatest recording Montserrat Caballe' ever made of a complete role. Despite her identification with Italian opera (and in her case, it means a repertoire of just about every Italian opera ever written from Mozart through Puccini!), the role of the depraved Princess of Judea fits her like a glove. What is even more incredible is the fact that Caballe' was able to bring her Salome to the stage in several European opera houses, most notably in Barcelona, from which venue a video was made in 1989. This recording was made twenty years earlier, and Caballe's voice is in absolutely pristine condition. She characterizes the sick-child-princess with deadly deliberation and purpose. Her articulation of the German language is exemplary, and she absolutely COMMANDS virtually every aspect of Strauss' insanely difficult and almost unsingable music. In this recording, the Final Scene almost becomes a sexual transfiguration. On every count, an extraordinary performance from an extraordinary artist. As the unfortunate John the Baptist, Sherrill Milnes is in his youthful prime and provides Caballe' with an ideal foil in their great confrontation scene. Regina Resnik is an appropriately bitchy Herodias and James King a good King Herod. Leinsdorf does not bring from the orchestra the sounds of Georg Solti on the London recording with Birgit Nilsson (another great "Salome" recording), but is compelling and dramatic. But on this particular recording, it is the Salome of Montserrat Caballe' by which this recording triumphs.
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Do people not know...?, January 30, 2005
This review is from: Strauss: Salome (Audio CD)
Reading the previous 2 reviews as well as a lot of other comments regarding Caballe, a lot of people must not know that Caballe started her career singing mostly Strauss (Salome and the Marschallin, for example), French opera as well as some standard Italian roles, including Verdi, Puccini and Mozart. Her repertoire was quite inpressive even before she was known internationally. She only became the "Queen of Bel Canto" several years into her career after her "international debut" in '65 singing Lucrezia Borgia at Carnegie Hall. She then started to take on many other Bel Canto roles -- but was reluctant to take on Norma for several years - ironically becoming the leading Norma of her day after Callas and Sutherland stopped singing it. In fact, it was Sutherland who finally convinced her to sing it. She continued to sing her German and French roles throughout her career along with the Bel Canto and Italian roles. She just sung them primarily in European and South American houses. So this isn't a case of the studio companies getting a major singer to sing a role she or he isn't suited for just for financial intentions. There is a also live recording on the Opera D'Oro label of her singing this role in 1971. I'm sure there are other pirate recordings of her singing it. Now, about my opinion on this recording, I love it. But then I love everything she does!
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3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Must Have Salome!!!, September 28, 2009
This review is from: Strauss: Salome (Audio CD)
If for no other reason, one should own this recording of Salome to hear Caballe and Milnes perform this wonderful Opera. They both are impeccable!
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