Verdi: Jerusalem / Ricciarelli Carreras Nimsgern RAI Torino Gavazzeni [Import]

Giuseppe Verdi (Composer), Gianandrea Gavazzeni (Conductor), Katia Ricciarelli (Performer), Jose Carreras (Performer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: Katia Ricciarelli, Jose Carreras
• Conductor: Gianandrea Gavazzeni
• Composer: Giuseppe Verdi
• Audio CD (August 5, 2000)
• Number of Discs: 2
• Format: Import
• Label: Bella Voce Records
• ASIN: B000006RK5
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #468,638 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

Disc: 1

1. Act I, Prld - Orch Della RAI Torino/Gianandrea Gavazzeni

2. Act I: 'Non, Ce Bruit Ce N'Est Rien' - Jose Carreras/Katia Ricciarelli/Licia Falcone

3. Act I: 'La Cloche Est Sonne-Ave Marie' - Katia Ricciarelli

4. Act I: 'Avant Que Nous Partions' - Allessandro Cassis/Siegmund Nimsgern/Katia Ricciarelli/Jose Carreras

5. Act I: 'Je Tremble Encore' - Katia Ricciarelli/Jose Carreras/Allessandro Cassis/Siegmund Nimsgern/Coro Della RAI Torino...

6. Act I: 'Cite' Du Seigneur!' - Orch Della RAI Torino/Gianandrea Gavazzeni

7. Act I: 'Viens, O Pecheur Rebelle! Oh! Dans L'Ombre' - Coro Della RAI Torino/Gianandrea Gavazzeni/Siegmund Nimsgern

8. Act I: 'Je T'Attendais...Fier Soldat De La Croisade' - Siegmund Nimsgern/Franco Calabrese/Coro Della RAI Torino/Gianandrea Gavazzeni

9. Act I: 'Ah, Viens Demon! Esprit Du Mal' - Siegmund Nimsgern/Gianpaolo Corradi/Jose Carreras/Katia Ricciarelli/Coro Della RAI Torino...

10. Act I: 'Monstre! Parjure! Homicide!' - Leonardo Monreale/Coro Della RAI Torino/Gianandrea Gavazzeni/Siegmund Nimsgern/Jose Carreras...

See all 17 tracks on this disc

Disc: 2

1. Act II, Scene II (Part 2): 'Prisonnier, Dans Ramla Je Te Laisse La Vie' - Ephtimios Michalopoulos/Ferdinando Jacopucci/Jose Carreras/Katia Ricciarelli

2. Act II, Scene II (Part 2): 'Helene!...O Ciel! Gaston!' - Jose Carreras/Katia Ricciarelli/Ephtimios Michalopoulos/Ferdinando Jacopucci

3. Act II, Scene II (Part 2): 'Une Pensee Amere...Aux Armes!' - Katia Ricciarelli/Jose Carreras/Coro Della RAI Torino/Gianandrea Gavazzeni

4. Act III, Scene I: 'Les Chretiens...Ils Sont La' - Ferdinando Jacopucci/Ephtimios Michalopoulos

5. Act III, Scene I: 'Que M'Importe La Vie...Mes Plaintes Sont Vaines' - Katia Ricciarelli

6. Act III, Scene I: 'On S'Egorge! On Se Tue!' - Coro Della RAI Torino/Gianandrea Gavazzeni/Katia Ricciarelli/Jose Carreras/Allessandro Cassis

7. Act III, Scene I: 'Non, Votre Rage, Indigne Outrage' - Katia Ricciarelli/Allessandro Cassis/Coro Della RAI Torino/Gianandrea Gavazzeni

8. Act III, Scene II: Interlude - Orch Della RAI Torino/Gianandrea Gavazzeni

9. Act III, Scene II: 'Barons Et Chevaliers, Devant Vous Je Proteste' - Jose Carreras/Leonardo Monreale

10. Act III, Scene II: 'O Mes Amis, Mes Freres D'Armes' - Jose Carreras

See all 21 tracks on this disc

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful performance, October 24, 1999

By 

John Cragg (Delta(greater Vancouver), B.C Canada) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Verdi: Jerusalem / Ricciarelli Carreras Nimsgern RAI Torino Gavazzeni (Audio CD)

Despite its being explicitly recycled material, and Verdi's having reached that point where one sometimes thinks he only has a few basic tunes that he uses over and over again, this recording is a delight. Carreras is at his silvery best, showing that he could be a superlative Verdi tenor and Ricciarelli gives a most memorable performance. Until near the end the live audience is kept well out of it, though towards the end the clapping does interfere with the music. The lack of a libretto is highly regrettable, especially as one is not likely to have any other versions.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A famous operatic partnership in freshest voice, July 16, 2010

By 

Ralph Moore "Ralph operaphile" (Bishop's Stortford, UK) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Verdi: Jerusalem / Ricciarelli Carreras Nimsgern RAI Torino Gavazzeni (Audio CD)

I made comparison with this live recording when reviewing the studio recording made in 2000 and conducted by Fabio Luisi as part of the belated completion of Gardelli's "Early Verdi Project" for Philips. It is certainly a cheap, viable alternative and many will be drawn by the prospect of hearing Riciarelli and Carreras in freshest, most youthful voice early in their careers before both fell victim to oversinging in parts too heavy for their essentially lyrical instruments.

However, there are a few caveats: first, the Turin performance is live - perfectly listenable stereo, a bit blaring and congested in parts and obviously not as clean and spacious as the later digital studio recording. Secondly, it is slightly cut, to-wit: the Knights' and Ladies' chorus just after the lovely passage early in Act 1 depicting the sun rising that Verdi composed for this Paris re-write of "I Lombardi" in 1847 and proleptic of a similar but greater depiction of a misty dawn over the Venetian lagoon in "Simon Boccanegra"; the Harem chorus and subsequent ballet music opening Act 3; finally, and most grievously, Hélène's cabaletta "Quelle ivresse", an outburst of joy when she discovers that Gaston is still alive, rescued from the rather mawkish celestial vision scene in Act 2 of "I Lombardi" which was dropped by Verdi for "Jérusalem" ; I have no idea why Gavazzeni and Ricciarelli did not include it and it is present in the Luisi recording. One additional little oddity: the men's chorus of Crusaders at the beginning of Act 4 sing a passage beginning "C'est là qu'apparut" which is meant to be sung by Roger the hermit; again, I have no idea why it was reassigned. The cabaletta apart, none of this matters; the ballet music was a house obligation imposed upon Verdi as a non-negotiable condition of his opera being mounted in "La Grande Boutique" and he did his duty understandably without much inspiration - the ballet music of "Aida" is much more integral, apt and entertaining.

If you are hoping here for a more impressive supporting cast and better French than in the Philips set, you will be disappointed: the mostly Italian RAI cast all sing such heavily accented French such that it sounds positively Provençal, thus "vin" is "veng" "mon coeur" is "monn care" and in truth Carreras hardly sets a good example with his similarly Iberian twang, nor does Nimsgern, although better, avoid teutonic inflections. Ironically, one of the worst offenders linguistically speaking, is also one of the best voices among the comprimario singers: Giampaolo Corradi as Raymond has a powerful and stentorian tenor and a vile French accent. Ricciarelli is better than them all - and the voice is so lovely that we must forgive Italianate presumption in daring to tackle an opera in French - notoriously difficult for non-native speakers.

I do not care for Siegmund Nimsgern's nasal, bleaty baritone but he was always most apt portraying villains (as with his Klingsor for Karajan) and is a match for Luisi's Scandiuzzi, who is far more sedate and lugubrious, if more congenial vocally. Gavazzeni's direction is as you would expect: wise, seasoned and flexible. He takes the famous trio at the end of Act 3 very slowly and it comes off as intense rather than stirring.

In the end, you choose the recording which suits your taste; they have similar strengths and weaknesses and while the more modern singers do not quite have the special magic of the 70's pairing, the score is complete and the sound superior. I cheat by owning both - and the Turin set is here available at bargain price, in any case.

PS: As a bonus, Bella Voce supplies ten minutes of excerpts from the excellent 1963 performance of "Gerusalemme" - a back-formation from "Jérusalem" into Italian, with Leyla Gencer, Gian Giacomo Guelfi and Giacomo Aragall in his debut - see my review.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars great recording -- no libretto included, October 11, 1999

By 

Susan Sherk (Wilmington, DE) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Verdi: Jerusalem / Ricciarelli Carreras Nimsgern RAI Torino Gavazzeni (Audio CD)

This is a wonderful recording of a too infrequently performed opera. More people would enjoy it, however, if a libretto were included, particulary since it isn't often performed and doesn't appear in many of the opera resource books on the shelves of laymen.