Customer Reviews

Il Trovatore

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

 

 

This version of Il Trovatore has done some astounding things! It features 4 astounding singers as the 4 lead roles. Corelli was the greatest Manrico ever, no doubt. Just listen to his voice, it's like it came from heaven. His, "Ah, si, ben mio" is so beautiful, and his "Deserto sulla terra" is so perfect, and his, "Mal reggendo" is so amazing. I could go on forever telling you about it, to tell you the truth. Price is, with Callas, the greatest Leonora ever, and she is probably one of the few people able to keep up with Corelli. Simionato as Azucena is great, however she lacked the fire that Barbieri or Cossotto had. Still, she gave a good performance. Bastianini as the Count di Luna was wonderful. His deep, angry voice (he was originally a bass) is perfect for the twisted, menacing kind of character that di Luna is. Karajan's tempi are perfect, so all in all, this is a great performance. My only problems were that the audience was a bit loud, especially at the opening, "All'erta! All'erta!" and that, "Di quella pira" was transposed down a half step and the repeat was cut out. I don't know why Karajan would choose to transpose with CORELLI, of all people. Also, "Tu vedrai che amore in terra" was cut out, too. However, the performance was too good for me to give it only 4 stars. 5 for Price, 5 for Bastianini, 5 for Simionato, 1,000,000,000,000 for Corelli!

Well, this is a beautiful performance, it is a shame the sound qualiy is SOOOOOOOO BADDDD!!!!!! . I Have a old recording of Maria Callas in "Lucia...", which is supposed to be recorded in a somewhat similar way than this, and it sounds SPARKLING clear when compared to this recording. unfortunately, it sounds VERY blurry. Reminds me a lot of old tape.to-tape-to-tape recordings.. If you don't mind, it is a beautiful performance, and its CHEAP. But if you mind sound, well.........

In the opera house this would have been a performance to treasure. On disc, this "Trovatore" is pretty well done-in by the sound.

By no means should this be anyone's first or only "Trovatore," but for the collectors of any of the top principals or even of Herr Doktor von K, it's worth a try.

Was I just lucky and happened to get the one copy with good sound? I doubt it. Don't be put off by these complaints about sound; this version is pretty far up there among Opera d'Oro offerings as far as sound goes. And, obviously, the performance speaks for itself with this conductor, these singers and this orchestra.

Don't debate whether to buy this or not, just do it! If you are deciding between different releases, get this D'oro one, it sounds fine. In fact, it sounds better than most studio recordings of the 50's. Regarding the performance itself, it must be the fulfillment of Verdi's vision of what Trovatore is supposed to sound like. Yes, it's missing a verse or a line here and there, but so what?! There are countless complete recordings, and none match up to this one. Trovatore recordings always ultimately disappoint me because I feel it is an opera which has almost limitless potential in terms of drama, singing, beauty etc., yet it is never quite reached. Even magnificent studio recordings with Ms. Price, Callas, and others never quite fulfill Trovatore's potential. This live recording from Salzburg does however. Ms. Price sounds literally out of this world. Her dramatic declamation is second to none as is her control and beauty of tone. Corelli is blazing as always and has a tragic tinge to his voice which serves the part of Manrico very well. Bastianini has one of the most thrilling and plangent voices i have ever heard and it is tragic he died so young. As for Simionato--all you have to do is compare her to Cossotto to see just how great she is. I know that sounds a bit messed up, but Simionato has such a wonderfully high placed mezzo that betrays no signs of struggle and is actually pleasant to listen to. None of that wild screeching or howling that is usually associated with the part of Azucena. Lastly, Karajan conducts a fast-paced red blooded performance (except for an odd Ah si ben mio) which is much better than his later trovatore's.

Well. If you want good sound, go get the Deutsche Grammophon official version. The premium is worth the clarity.

I'm not a reviewer prone to gushing over someone's name simply because it's there and with Il Trovatore you will often find the names Corelli, Price, Simionato, and Von Karajan.

This performance which finds all the singers in top voice but not always top form is the best of the Herbert von Karajan Trovatores. Though his conducting was somewhat horrendous in the other two, here he conducts the fullest and most exciting of the three Trovatores of his I've heard so far, though he does tend to overpower the choruses and ensembles. This could be the live sound, which is more than decent for this kind of performance, but I think I'll go for the Deutsche Grammophon version next time.

Corelli may well be the best Manrico ever and his "Ah Si ben mio" is perfection. The "Di Quella Pira" is suitably exciting but not his best. Price's Leonora is a matter of taste. I found she sounded exqisite one moment and horrible the next. Her acting is overdone and at times it just sounds like someone who doesn't know what they're saying. It matters little because if she doesn't know what she's saying, she sure knows what she's singing.

Simionato who is much more popular overseas than here in America puts on a clinic in vocal acting. She's the best thing about the opera, and heads and tails over Barbieri and equal if not better than Cossotto in my opinion.

Bastianini was a surprising disappointment.Every singer has an off day, I guess this was his. Also a disappointment are the choruses in general which, like I said before, are overpowered by the orchestra. Not so the Anvil Chorus which Von Karajan butchers elsewhere. He gets it right at last here.

All in all I think for fans of Trovatore or any of the singers, this is a classic live performance to be owned and appreciated for the mighty forces that come together for a great if not legendary performance.

While the soprano and tenor arias are superb, the baritone is clearly off from his reputation and peak performance time. His stuff at the end of the second act is positively painful. Another disablilng problem is that the recording of the chorus and orchestra are so distorted as to make even familiar passages very difficult to recognize. If you are satisfied with great Corelli and Price performances, this is not going to bother you but the baritone and choral material is why I listen to this opera.