Verdi: La Forza del Destino [Import]

Giuseppe Verdi (Composer), Eliahu Inbal (Conductor), Giuseppe Patanè (Conductor), Arena di Verona Orchestra (Orchestra), La Scala Theater Orchestra (Orchestra), Carlo Meliciani (Performer), Franco Ricciardi (Performer), Giovanni Foiani (Performer), Giuseppe Morresi (Performer), José Carreras (Performer), Maria Luisa Nave (Performer), Montserrat Caballé (Performer), Nicolai Ghiaurov (Performer), Piero Cappuccilli (Performer), Piero de Palma (Performer), Plácido Domingo (Performer), Sesto Bruscantini (Performer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: Carlo Meliciani, Franco Ricciardi, Giovanni Foiani, Giuseppe Morresi, José Carreras, et al.
• Orchestra: Arena di Verona Orchestra, La Scala Theater Orchestra
• Conductor: Eliahu Inbal, Giuseppe Patanè
• Composer: Giuseppe Verdi
• Audio CD (November 1, 1998)
• Number of Discs: 3
• Format: Import
• Label: Myto Records Italy
• ASIN: B00000DFL4
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #473,290 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

Disc: 1

1. La forza del destino, opera: Ouverture

2. La forza del destino, opera: Buona notte, mia figlia

3. La forza del destino, opera: Temea restasse qui

4. La forza del destino, opera: Me pellegrina ed orfana

5. La forza del destino, opera: M'aiuti, signorina

6. La forza del destino, opera: Gonfio di gioia hai il core

See all 21 tracks on this disc

Disc: 2

1. La forza del destino, opera: Introduzione

2. La forza del destino, opera: Il santo nome

3. La forza del destino, opera: Il Santo nome

4. La forza del destino, opera: Affento al gioco

5. La forza del destino, opera: La vita è inferno all'infelice

6. La forza del destino, opera: O tu che in seno agli anfeli

See all 22 tracks on this disc

Disc: 3

1. La forza del destino, opera: fate la caritaà

2. La forza del destino, opera: Fratel

3. La forza del destino, opera: Auf!...Pazienza

4. La forza del destino, opera: Giunge qualcuno aprite

5. La forza del destino, opera: Invano Alvaro

6. La forza del destino, opera: Fratello

See all 13 tracks on this disc

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars prime time Carreras and Caballe, May 24, 2003

By 

Alejandra Vernon "artist & illustrator" (Long Beach, California) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Verdi: La Forza del Destino (Audio CD)

I am blessed to have the CD of this 1978 live performance, as well as a fuzzy but glorious video tape of it. It is a recording that will be appreciated by those who truly love opera, more than the casual listener; the sound may be better on some other recordings, but this one has a cast that makes it a rare treasure. Montserrat Caballe is at her peak here, with pianissimos that sound as if they came straight from heaven, and Jose Carreras is positively thrilling as Don Alvaro. He was 31 years old at the time, 9 years before the onset of his physical problems, and sounding every bit as if cut out of the same cloth as the greats like Pertile and Di Steffano. Full of youthful energy and unbridled passion, he also has breath control that staggers the mind, and a tone that is pure gold.

The La Scala orchestra and chorus is led with excellent pacing by Giuseppe Patane, and among the other superb singers that round out the cast are: The fabulous Russian bass Nicolai Ghiaurov, with his velvety rich voice, as Padre Guardiano; Piero Cappuccilli wonderful as Don Carlo di Vargas, and Maria Luisa Nave, an effective and charismatic Preziosilla.
This is an astounding, historic recording of one of Verdi's most dramatic and beautiful operas, performed by some of the finest singers at their best, and if you can find the video, though it is of inferior quality, I recommend it; if you love opera, you will be enthralled !

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Star cast and an excited Scala audience, November 12, 2005

By 

Armindo (Greece) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Verdi: La Forza del Destino (Audio CD)

This Forza production starred some the biggest names of the 70s and ultimately of the entire 20th century. To have Caballe, Carreras, Cappuccilli and Ghiaurov on stage together is a dream. I'm also fortunate enough to have the performance on dvd and it is a gem for sure. On the other hand I didn't find everyone was up to the Forza challenge.

The great Caballe who had by 1978 tackled roles from Norma and Salome to Medea and Turandot sounds defeated by Leonora di Vargas. Her lyric voice is uneven with register breaks, cracks and gulps and the top spreads unattractively. She chests a lot of notes but they sound the result of exhaustion rather than drama. Even her famous pianissimo betrays her, most noticeably in Pace Pace. The audience still loves her though.

Carreras gives it all as Alvaro and you can hear how much his voice is being forced. The phrasing is as handsome as ever but I keep cringing when he pushes his essentially lyric tenor. And when you see him shaking on stage, it makes you wonder who advised him to sing these dramatic tenor roles. If you don't mind this, you'll enjoy his performance as it has both the beauty and the drama the role requires.

Cappuccilli, Ghiaurov and Bruscantini as Melitone are in their element and I thoroughly enjoyed their performances. They are amongst the greatest interpreters of these roles. I particularly admire Cappuccilli's and Bruscantini's Verdian accents and Ghiaurov's legato. Nave sings the thankless role of Preziosilla with spark and dignity. Patane does a good job holding the Scala forces together.

On the whole I enjoyed the performance but it is by no means the definite Forza. The '53 Florence and '55 Scala and '58 Naples Forzas remain the golden standards. In any case, don't waste so much money on this Myto release. The same performance has been released by other labels and costs more than half the price.

2 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Xcuse me?, February 2, 2005

By 

GNM "GNM" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Verdi: La Forza del Destino (Audio CD)

NICOLAI GHIAUROV IS B U L G A R I A N NOT RUSSIAN !!!!!!!!!
Otherwise, I think Montserrat Caballe is the best Leonora on record. The final high note in "Pace, pace" might seem a bit caustic and sharp to many, but I think that this in it's own way ads to the drama.