Customer Reviews

Verdi: Aida / Chiara, Pavarotti, Dimitrova, Nucci, Burchuladze, Maazel

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

 

 

This recording is essentially for fans of Pavarotti. He hits all the right notes as Radames, but he's far from heroic in vocal size or acting demeanor. Maria Chiara is a shrill Aida with wiry high notes. Maazel's conducting is nothing special, and the overall acoustical quality is not the best either (a converted church in Milan was used as a makeshift recording studio). Fans of Ghena Dimitrova will want to invest in this recording to hear her huge dramatic soprano sing the music of Amneris. The Penguin Guide to Opera Recordings described her Amneris as "dull," which is fair enough. In fact, the video of this same cast recorded at LaScala is superior (except in its bizarre costuming and set design). The stimulus of a live audience propelled Dimitrova to give an impassioned, incisive performance. Even though she could not give the role the bellowing low tones that a true mezzo-soprano would, her high notes rung out fiercely. She dominated every scene she was in through the sheer scale of her singing. Some of that is still evident in this studio recording, although she's generally placed well behind the others in the recording hall, presumably to allow them a fair chance of being heard. Definitely a collector's item, but it probably wouldn't show up on any one's top ten list.

I admit that I enjoyed this recording, however, it was NOT a great recording when it comes to representing this opera. Pavarotti is OK, but I have never enjoyed him in this role, not even at the MET. He is a lyric tenor, and really this role is not that lyric in quality. His musicality does come shining through, though. My ony reservation is the high B flat at the end of Celeste Aida. The diminishing of the tone sounds faked. That is not how his voice goes as he draws back the volume, and Pavarotti can sing fine pianissimos. The resonance was strange on that note, like it was completely contrived by the technicians. I don't know if it was, but it is not natural sounding at all.

Chiara's voice is just too shrill to be a warm and inviting AIDA. She sings the part well, as far as notes are concerned, and as far as even some really good drama is concerned. Her voice is not pleasing (neither was Maria Callas' voice, but she had the ability to almost make you believe it was; Callas, even in AIDA which really was not a big part of her repertoire, used her musicality to make even the smallest detail come alive and give a very moving performance; the result was one completely overlooked the occasional "ugliness" of her sound), and even though she sings the notes, she doesn't have the inner feelings to cause us to overlook the stress her voice is encountering while singing this role.

Nucci did nothing for me as AIDA's father. He sang well, but the part seemed like he wasn't sure about the motivation of the character. I have seen Nucci in performance, and he is not a vague performer, so I have to conclude it is because he was surrounded by a very vague cast; no one he sings with seems to be anything other than a singing machine.

I really enjoyed Dimitrova, and she was electrifying. Sadly, that was about all that was electrifying. The conducting was very lazy and univolved, or so it recorded. I can just imagine how blazing Dimitrova is as Amneris if she is allowed to really let loose and is partnered with a case equal to her. I think it would be wonderful to hear her one night as AIDA and the next as AMNERIS. She is one singer who understands that Amneris is more than just anger and jealousy. She gives the impression that until AIDA came along, Radames and she may have been an item together. Amneris is far more developed than AIDA is, and we really have opportunities to see many aspects of her personality. I am very sure the drama before our eyes began quite a long while before we are given the privilege of entering into the scene as witnesses of it. One senses that Dimitrova understands all that. Sadly, no one else in the cast seems to respond to it. Her duet with Pavarotti is the strangest duet I have ever heard: she is speaking of important things, and he is just singing answers. It is almost like they are not even communicating with each other, but rather singing to themselves. She tries to make an impression on him regarding many important things (including that AIDA has not been killed, or even captured), and Pavarotti seems to just sing his heart out for the purpose of singing. The communication one feels between Vickers and Gore, for example, just isn't there. And what a pity, for Dimitrova certainly was willing and able to communicate.

I don't rate this the worst AIDA I have heard, but it is not the best either. It seems to lack direction, and any story that is not told in a way that leads us from point A to B etc, doesn't seem to go anywhere. This recording is a lot of parts but no whole. However, that said, I did enjoy it, and I am not the slightest bit saddened that I paid the price for it.

The quality of the performance and the quality of the CD are both outstanding. However, the libretto is in German! I always follow the performance of an opera by reading the libretto in the original Italian. I was very disappointed to find the libretto in German. Italian composer, Italian performers, in an Italian opera house - La Scala - but a German libretto. How ridculous!

Salli LeVan

I have to say, one of the main reasons that I bought this recording was for Pavarotti, and he does give a superb performance as the Egyptian army captain.I've never heard anyone sing "Celeste Aida" as wonderfully as he does here. Chiara has a wonderful voice, but maybe not one suited for the role of Aida. She makes her sound more like a strong willed, indignant queen than a young, helpless princess. But as far as the notes go, she's great. Dimitrova sings Aida's rival well, displaying her jealousy and self-righteousness very well. The bass who sings Ramfis (his name escapes me for the moment) is quite lovely, having a full, rich voice that has alot of depth. The other performers are all good. I think this would be the Aida to buy, if you were going to buy one.

Of all Pav's opera recordings, this is, for me, the most memorable. Not just because of him: this 'Aida' is one of those opera recordings that offers the excitement of a live event, where everything gells. The singers do a good job individually - Chiara as a lovely Aida - but are even more convincing as an ensemble. Maazel conducts a sensitive performance, grander in scale than Abbado, Muti and many others.

A personal favourite, still after listening to it for 15 years. Five stars!

This was the worst opera set in my collection. Until I gave it away to somebody I hated.

Don't be fooled by the low-ish score: this is one of the most awe-inspiring, technically refined recordings of Aida currently on the market.

While it is true that Pavarotti's "heroics" leave to be desired, it is also true that it's always been so. The maestro wasn't known for his acting ability, but rather for the breathing techniques that gave him the clearest, highest voice that has ever blessed a tenor since Gigli and Corelli. All of this shines through in Aida.

Even more notably, the rest of the ensemble also shines. Chiara delivers one of the most touching interpretations of Numi Pieta' to date. Aida is both a sweet and a powerful character. It's why it's so hard to sing. Lyrical sopranos like Sutherland and Devia could never do it effectively, nor could boastful ones like Dimitrova herself. But Chiara is ambivalent, stresses the right tones and notes at the right times (compare Numi Pieta' with her dialogue with Amonasro), and ultimately delivers.

Nucci and Dimitrova are also quite good, although not as pitch-perfect as they've been in other productions. With that said, Dimitrova/Pavarotti's duet in act IV, and Amneris' consequent desperation, is nothing less than superb. Burchuladze is a good Ramfis, also.

But it's Maazel's direction that makes this recording worth listening. While directors such as Oren and Mehta have butchered the music by either slowing or accelerating it beyond belief, Maazel hits the right spot. Most importantly, his orchestrations add powerful emotions in passages such as Amneris' servants' choir, Radames' entrance... and the finale.

This version of "O Terra Addio", with full-blown and yet mellow strings, is among the best you'll ever hear on any Aida recording. Pavarotti and Chiara do their part by singing in perfect harmony (their voices, much like Pavarotti's and Freni's, attune quite well), but the director takes much of the merit for blending their voices with a sweet, dramatic, and never intrusive orchestra. A superb accomplishment.

Overall, this is THE Aida recording to have in your collection. The hefty price can discourage both the occasional buyer and the collector, and that is a pity. Decca should seriously do something about that. But it's worth every penny.

I have Callas, Tebaldi, and Toscannini recordings of Aida, and I think this recording put the many details together to make it the best, inspite of Tebaldi and Callas. Toscannina/sorry spelling, has been my fovorite, but it's 1949, and this up to date production, with all the details in place is the best recording I have. Oh, I also had Katia/sp Richaraldi/sp. This recording is the best in my judgement.