Customer Reviews

Verdi - Attila

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

 

 

The standouts in this extraordinary studio recording are the fine Odabella of soprano Cheryl Studer, caught in the prime of her youth and the Ezio of Giorgio Zancanaro. Well, at the scrupulous conducting of Maestro Muti. I wish they had hired someone other than Shicoff as Foresto but you can't always have it all. Ramey is fine in the title role if a bit hammy for my taste. Still, this audio recording is worthy of 9 (out of 10) stars. And, if I could, I would give 10 to the live video version with the same forces save for the Foresto, thankfuly given to tenor Kaludi Kaludov. Do not miss this!

Of all the Basses who recorded the role in studio, Ramey is the best. He is heard in his prime here, sings securely and has the right regal and grand tone for the role (Ghiaurov live was also thrilling but record companies overlooked him). Don't miss the opportunity to get Ramey's exciting video performances of Attila as well.

Zancanaro is a great Italian baritone and his Ezio is a big plus in this recording. If only there were more baritones like him around today... I've read wonderful things about both Shicoff and Studer but to be honest I expected more. Dramatically they can be moving (especially Studer) but vocally they rarely excite. He has nothing of Bergonzi's style (musicianship is a rare gift) while Studer's high notes sound strained (I also tend to prefer a darker voice like Sass' or Guleghina's in this role)

Despite my reservations about Studer and Shicoff, this is the best studio Attila recording. Muti conducts after all well and allows his singers to do their best. No Verdi collection should be without an Attila recording and with Ramey in the title role this set is warmly recommended.

"Attila" comes form Verdi's "galley years" of the 1840's, when as a young man he threw himself into producing a series of crowd-pleasing blockbusters while gradually introducing musical innovations which permitted greater psychological insight and profundity than mere "oompah" rhythms allowed. I know of only two studio recordings of "Attila" and it is to this day rarely performed, although it strikes me as almost as melodic, dramatic and entertaining as its close cousins "Ernani" and "Nabucco", especially when performed as well as it is here. Gardelli recorded a flawed set for Hungaroton which can be discounted, but he and Muti, the conductors of studio recordings from Philips in 1973 and EMI in 1989 respectively, are Verdi specialists; both know how to drive the action forward yet still give their singers space to make their points, and both are masters of early Verdian style.

Thus choosing between the two depends very much upon personal taste in voices and a weighing up of the many advantages, and few disadvantages, of both sets. The sopranos, Cristina Deutekom and the Cheryl Studer, in fact sound very similar, with fast vibratos, a slight tendency to tremulousness and a really edgy, nervy dramatic flair which successfully captures the volatile and rather unpleasant Odabella. Both cope very well with the sweep and range of the part, so not much between them. Similarly, both Sherrill Milnes and Giorgio Zancanaro are thrilling, truly Italianate baritones with the heft, range, ping, legato and upper extension to encompass the demands of the role of Ezio. Both choruses and orchestras are exemplary; nothing between them, either.

However, there is more to think about when considering the singers who take the eponymous bass role and the comparatively small (as in "Nabucco" and "Macbeth") tenor parts. As is so often the case, Ruggero Raimondi has a beautiful line and inflects the text intelligently, but compared with Samuel Ramey, lacks the weight and gravity of voice which the latter artist brings to Attila. As for Shicoff and Bergonzi, the younger artist turns in one of his more impressive performances, but the unadorned line of his singing and rather unremitting nasal tone compare less favourably with Bergonzi's elegance and individuality. Having said that, signs of deterioration in Bergonzi's basic vocal quality are already creeping in, in the early 70's, and he manages less sheer gusto than Shicoff.

So in the end you must go with your own preference, but neither set disappoints. Both rise to the big numbers and the ensembles are especially rousing. As chances to hear it live are relatively few, any Verdian should own one if not both of these two recordings.