Customer Reviews

The Tenor's Passion

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

 

 

THE TENOR'S PASSION may seem a contrived, Hollywoodesque title for a CD of the warhorse tenor arias from the operatic repertoire, but just wait until you experience the intelligent, understated rendering of these arias by gifted young tenor Marcelo Alvarez and you will discover what 'passion' is here.

Not all of the arias on this CD are overused: excerpts from 'Martha', 'L'Africaine", 'L'Arlesiana, and 'Le Roi d'Ys" pepper the usual suspects from Boheme, Carmen, Butterfly etc. But in many ways this programming is timely as it gives us a recorded view, at least, of just how much this voice has matured. His `Italian Tenor's Aria' from "Der Rosenkavalier" is utterly breathtaking as is De Grieux's aria from "Manon Lescaut". And hearing the sensitive phrasing and control of vocal resources in the ever popular 'Nessun Dorma', 'Che gelida manina" and the Flower Song substantiates the rumor that here is another star on the rise.

A beautiful recording this, and one to include on the shelf with favorite tenors before the public today. Grady Harp, November 2004

I'm a newer fan to the opera world and Marcelo has played a big part in me really falling in love with it. This CD is wonderful. It contains so many beautiful arias and they were never more beautifully sung. To me Marcelo has a voice somewhat like Domingo's but better.Why do I say this? Domingo's voice to me often sounds muddied and his diction isn't as clear as one could hope for. Marcelo's diction is crystal clear and his pronunciation perfect.

This however is not why Marcelo's voice sends me into raptures. The best way I can describe Marcelo's voice is to say that it is like liquid velvet.There is no other voice like it for sheer beauty.

However even more amazing is the amazing combination of both gentleness and incredible passion with which he sings.You always know he is giving 110%.You feel every aria with him.You forget where you are and who you are and just become the hero in the aria with him. No one can match the gentle deftness with which he handles the tenderest lines of a piece,I sometimes find myself holding my breath through some portions just to catch the slightest nuances of his voice.

The most outstanding aria to me is Federico's Lament.It is so outstanding an interpretation of that aria that it is almost beyond words to describe. When my family and I watch it on Duetto (the DVD)where Marcello performs this aria we literally watch in stunned amazement as Marcello "becomes" Federico and sings so beautifully,mornfully and passionately that by the end we are all sitting with our mouths hanging open and then we give him a rousing cheer in absolute awe and admiration of his unbelievable talent and artistry right there in our living room.

I am not pulling your leg when I say that for the last 10 days at our house we have watched this one aria 1-3x per day we are so awed by it.

If you want to hear an exciting,passionate tenor with the most beautiful voice you've ever heard get this CD.I also highly recommend "Duetto" on CD and DVD, and Massenet's Manon with Marcello and Renee Fleming.Marcelo's Chevalier is wonderful in the sweet, vulnerable and passionate way that he portrays him. Your heart really goes out to him .

Marcelo if you ever read this I just want you to know that I am a true fan and am looking forward to every single CD and opera on DVD that you do. Your voice is truly heaven itself.

Alas, the days of Pavarotti and Dmingo have past, and as with all things under the sun, with the dusk of the old comes the dawn of the new.

This CD is an excellent harbinger of the "new" in the world of operatic tenors.

Marcello Alvarez has truly come into his own, and with his voice having reached full maturity, he is now poised to become one of the BIG names in opera.

At the onset of his career, I was not too taken with his then very light lyric voice, but he has taken great care of his instrument, and now I can say that he has become one of my favorite new tenors.

Although I prefer the more heroic tenor voices of the past i.e. Corelli, Del Monaco and Lanza, I am very impressed with each and every selection on this CD.

From "Che gelida.." to the showpiece "Nessun Dorma" there isn't one aria that he either over/or under sings. He nails it all!

This is a great new CD by a great new tenor.

Marcelo has done it again. I eagerly await every disc release since I bought his debut album "Bel Canto" a few years ago, and with "Tenor's Passion" Alvarez continues his string of brilliant recordings. Alvarez has taken a large leap forward in a well-nurtured career. Leaving behind the lyrical Italian and French roles he has relied upon so strongly since his Met debut in 1998, Alvarez lets all his dramatic passion pour forth in one great recording. Marcelo's fans have anxiously waited for years to hear his interpretations of Cavaradossi, Pinkerton, Rodolfo, Calaf, and Don Jose in particular. Those of us who have followed his career closely know all about how patiently he has waited until his voice matured to take on some of the weightier tenor roles. All I can really say is it was definitely worth the wait. Now all I need to be happy is to see him perform in person.

Alvarez's voice, to borrow a quote from the last century, is "liquid gold". His effortless sound on the high C near the end of che gelida manina is pure and free. The only thing I found more impressive was the high C sharp that seemingly comes from nowhere in A Te, O Cara. As a tenor and a voice teacher, I must say I am jealous of the open and free sound of his top end. What a voice! What a recording!

I know there are some purists out there who will say, "He's no Bjorling" or whomever else, but this man can sing. He gives his own interpretation to these songs, which is a pleasant change from the canned "let's do it like . . ." He doesn't try to sing it like anyone but himself.

This CD will certainly remain a part of my collection.

Just as good as DUETTO but Marcello sounded much richer and emotionally turned on to the music. This man truely has a brilliant future singing these Italian arias.

This is one of the greatest contemporary tenors around, if not the only one.

I am so surprised that so few people have reviewed this collection of very popular operatic arias for tenor by Mr. Alvarez.

Well - it may be accounted for by the fact that Mr. Alvarez is neither TOO young, nor TOO handsome. Well, he is still reasonably young, and quite good-looking. But I wonder nowadays people go for looks more than voices in operas, hence the ultra-low profile of such an outstanding artist.

The album begins with some Puccini arias. I almost thought I was listening to Jose Carreras - especially the aria in 'Madama Butterfly'. No - Mr. Alvarez's voice is even sweeter than Carreras's in certain places upon closer listening: the 'Flower Song', for instance.

This is however a lyrical tenor. I don't think Mr. Alvarez should do those spinto roles or dramatic roles, even if you tend to reason with me that some of those roles were really 'over-done' before by big voices like Franco Corelli and Mario del Monaco.

Well, it may be so, but I've heard say that Mr. Alvarez is doing Il Trovatore, and only God will know if one day he will, like Carreras before him, do Aida's Radames (I honestly hope he won't do it). Otello is definitely not his cup of tea.

I've listened, and like his Nessum more than anyone else's. His opening aria from La Boheme is also fanatastic.Yes, he should not tackle those heavy roles indiscriminately, even if dramatic tenors are a bit hard to find these days.

I think bel canto suits him well, too. And I don't think bel canto roles should be dominated by just one or two tenors - audiences should have more choices, too, and Mr. Alvarez would be another very good option.

Bellini's A te o cara has been deprived of its proper ending here. The cut came as a shock and is quite annoying. However, overall the album is fine.

It was a big shock to hear Yu Qiang Dai's debut cd. He is, I think, the best lirico-spinto tenor nowadays. He has a lovely voice, which is very well produced. The center is wonderful, the lower notes are good, the high notes are shining and of fantastic quality... the singing through the passage is very well handled. He is an itelligent musical interpreter and singer, with an interesting and appealing line and sense of style. Very good dynamic changes. He offers some of the absolutely best renditions of some arias (nessun dorma and cielo e mar, for example) that I have heard in many years.

He still has to work his Italian (specially the consonants) and his French. But there were great historical tenors with bigger idiomatical problems.

Despite taking spinto repertoire, Yu never pushes, never tries to make the voice sound darker than it is, everything is always under control, and he takes the chance to give very stylish renditions (for example, of una furtiva lagrima), which is strange for tenors who "want to sing spinto".

The tenor is a fantastic discovery, one of the best ones around. Actually, all my criticism goes to EMI and the production of the CD: no choirs, no solists (for example, for the aria of Cavalleria, where the mother should sing her line), and the acoustic "atmosphere" has made some people to doubt if Yu's voice is really as big as it seems (people who saw his Cavaradossi at Covent Garden say that it is very big, actually).

Not a the best production job by the people of EMI, but five stars (ten if possible) for the singer. Simply wonderful.