Customer Reviews

Verdi - La Traviata / Cotrubas · Domingo · Milnes · Bayerisches Staatsorchester · Carlos Kleiber

5 star:		(31)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Ileana Cotrubas will break your heart. Her sweet, silvery voice makes a delicate and touching Violetta. She sings a very sparkling and lovely "Sempre libera." Her voice is beautiful--far lovelier than Maria Callas's. And her interpretation of the role will leave you in tears, especially in her duets with Sherill Milnes' incomparable Germont. And in her "Addio del passato." Listen to the emotion in her voice when she reads Alfredo's letter....

Placido Domingo is the perfect Alfredo with his warm, romantic tenor voice.

Don't miss this one. 1000 stars!

I am here to say that if you're looking to buy the best recording, this is the one. I have heard several Violettas but this is the best one, and the professional opera critics will agree with me on this one. I've listen to Maria Callas in her Portugal performance with Kraus (in which her voiced seemed strained), which is pretty good, but you can heard the audience thoughout the entire recording, plus, the recording isn't in stereo and isn't conducted as good as this one. Sutherland does a great job and jumps though the part with great easy, however, there is no "pathos" or great acting in the voice. Victoria de los Angeles can't reach some on the high notes (especially at the end of "Sempre libera") and has a really strained voice in some parts. Ileana Cotrubas sings though the hard parts very nicely with great emotion, unlike a lot of sopranos. Domingo gives a great Alfredo along with Milnes as Germont. The orchestra and the conducting are superb. There is a good balance with the choir as well. Therefore, this IS the greatest recording for any opera beginner's collection.

It seems everyone has an opinion on Cotrubas as Violetta, so I will give mine. I heard her sing the role back in 1986 at the Vienna State Opera, and she was a small scale, vulnerable Violetta. I have always felt that Puccini' s women are pathetic, while Verdi's are "heroic". Her Violetta seem doomed from the very beginning, it was obvious this Violetta was a loser. She carried the 3 difficult voices of the role with aplomb, but somehow she didn't seem to live the role inside-out. Her conductor in Vienna was Michel Plasson, with whom she seemed to have a much better rapport than with Carlos Kleiber. Kleiber fils conducts a white-hot very dramatic La Traviata, but Cotrubas is not with him. She is too fragile for his view, I think Julia Varady would have fit much better in this recording. Domingo is fine as Alfredo, though he makes a weird sound at the end of the cabaletta. Milnes is not a natural Germont, Giorgio Zancanaro is much, much better either with Gruberova (TELDEC) or Devia (Bongiovanni). But La Traviata stands or falls on its heroine. No finer stereo or even studio recording exists than DG previous recording with Renata Scotto, who lives Violetta like no other soprano since Maria Callas. And since La Divina didn't have luck recording this opera, the Scotto version is a mandatory purchase.

This recording of "La traviata" ranks with the best. The best thing about it is Carlos Kleiber's magnificent conducting. He paces the opera in just the right way. His conducting of Acts 1 and 2, plus the two preludes, is brilliant. His tempi for Violetta's Act 1 aria are virtually perfect. He keeps the orchestra playing at a white-hot intensity and has a special gift for creating dramatic tension. He manages to make every instrumental line clear. The orchestra is extraordinarily vivid under his baton. I found his conducting of Act 3 to be slightly less satisfying. Somehow, things seem rushed in this act. His tempi for "Addio del passato" and "Parigi, o cara" are too fast. He rushes Cotrubas through "Addio del passato". On top of that, the second verse is cut. Curiously, the short ensemble right before Violetta's death does not work. It sounds too rushed.

The cuts in this recording are unacceptable. Besides Violetta's third act aria, her "Ah, fors'è lui" is missing one verse. The duet "Parigi, o cara" is missing its second verse. The "Gran Dio, morir si giovine" section is truncated. Also, Alfredo's cabaletta is missing its second verse, though with Domingo singing, this is a blessing in disguise. Also, Germont's cabaletta is missing its second verse, though this is no big loss.

Plácido Domingo is a virile and ardent Alfredo, but the role does not suit his spinto voice. He sings the Brindisi charmlessly, but is quite good in his other music. The Germont of Sherrill Milnes is very good. It is an effective portrayal.

A note about Domingo's singing: In the last fifteen seconds of singing in Alfredo's cabaletta, the sound acoustic changes, so that the listener is made aware that Domingo rerecorded this section of the music and had it spliced into the recording. His electronically enhanced high C at the conclusion is ridiculous and sounds very weird.

Ileana Cotrubas is a wonderful Violetta. She's not the best, but she is very good. I like her fragile, vulnerable, quirky, and spontaneous portrayal. She has an endearing way of singing coloratura, though her trill is not great. She has some great high notes. She sometimes declaims in her lower register, like just before "Amami, Alfredo" and right before her reunion with Alfredo in the last act (before the two lovers exclaim "Alfredo/Violetta! Oh gioia!"), and it is very effective at portraying Violetta's desperation and passion. She needs a bit more voice in order to make "Amami, Alfredo" really effective. Her voice is rather small, but quite beautiful. It is full and creamy. She sings the grace notes in the Brindisi very clearly, unlike Domingo. The only part of her portrayal that I truly dislike is her singing in the party scene in Act 1. She sounds too morose. Violetta should sound happy and carefree in this part of the opera.

The chorus sings very well and the orchestra plays beautifully. The sound is excellent.

This recording of "La traviata" should be included in every recording library.

When three artists at the very height of their powers came together to create this truly magnificent Traviata we were left with one of the finest artistic musical interpretations of the modern recording era.
Carlos Kleieber seems to see, or hear, into the head of the great maestro, exposing every note of musical beauty and every fiber of emotional expression. When Ileana Cotrubas replaced an ailing Mirella Freni in Kleiber's now legendary Boheme at La Scala, she not only dramatically launched her international career, but caused Carlos Kleiber to comment "At last, I've found my Violetta".
The rest, as they say, is history, and this recording. With Ileana Cotrubas, Kleiber had found a young singer blessed with not only a ravishingly beautiful soprano, creamy and full, with an exquisite upper register, but a singing actress with the intelligence and artistic refinement capable of interpreting the role of Violetta Valery with the mature passion and emotional integrity the role requires. She creates, in my opinion, the definitive Violetta.
Placido Domingo, as ever when paired with Cotrubas, sings the role of Alfredo with such ardor and conviction, you feel his heart might truly burst with longing, and eventually, sadness. Sherrill Milnes is a fine Papa Germont and the orchestra play for Kleiber with obvious devotion.

I have several Traviatas in my collection, it being one of my favorite operas, and being a Callas fan, I would often resort to the famous live recordings of 1955 and 1958 in order to satisfy my fill of her Violetta. Her early studio recording with Cetra didn't have the characteristics of the Violetta yet that would make it her own role. As good as her voice was in that recording, it didn't have the dramatic elements that gave her Traviata the heartbreaking qualities that we have come to associate with those two recordings. I am a Callas fan, I would admit that, and no one comes close to Violetta as Callas does. But, there is an alternative for those who aren't very close to her voice. Without compensating theatrics for vocal beauty, here is a Traviata with a well-rounded cast talented both vocally and dramatically. First of all, there is the Romanian soprano Ileana Cotrubas. While her coloratura isn't as accurate as the bel canto queens' coloratura (Callas, Sills, and Sutherland), her performance in the first acts as a spinto and a lyric coloratura is outstanding. And there is a feeling you get that she is a woman who tries to show a good face with the partying crowd as well. Then at the duets with Sherril Milnes, she expresses emotions much like those Callas can express at will. The last act is particularly heartbreaking, and it is in this scene where I judge Violetta to be a creature that only a few sopranos such as Cotrubas can create. As difficult as the fioritura is in the first act, most sopranos with a technique and a well-built tessitura can easily manage it without paying as much attention to the details of the drama, because the partying voice is quite easy to replicate in a performance. The second and last acts though, are more difficult. As for the other supporting singers, I would argue that Domingo is a much more effective singer that the fat man, Pavarotti. He gives a great, heartbreaking performance of Alfredo, in fact one of the best ones I've heard. Lastly, the conductor, Carlos Kleiber, gives one the impression that he was able to conduct a seance with Verdi's ghost. He truly knew the score well, just like Giulini, Ghione, Serafin, and recently, Patrick Summers. I think one of the strongest points of any recording is the conductor. If a performance is conducted beautifully, that is usually all you need to make an impression on the listener. Listening to Kleiber's conducting will create a palate of imaginations that would transport you easily to the world where this opera transpires, and that is what conductors like Summers, Giulini, Ghione, Serafin, and Summers can easily do. Five stars for this one!

It is so rare that a studio recording of an opera should stay in the catalog for 25 years (this was released in 1979, at this time of writing it is 2004), without EVER having gone out of print even once, that this set deserves special mention. The great actress Joanne Woodward once said that this was the only recording of "Traviata" that presented a full character for Violetta. In my view, this is a little much...Cotrubas sounds almost unhappy in Act 1 when she should sound ebullient, but otherwise she does penetrate deep into the character, so much so that when she cries out to Germont in Act Two it sounds as if he is tearing her heart out. Sherrill Milnes is also quite good, switching effectively between faux sympathy for and real anger towards Violetta. Domingo sings with fervor and good tone. But in the end it is Kleiber's superb pacing, swift yet sensitive and deeply emotional, that pulls everything together.

You may hear better Violettas, Alfredos or Germonts on other recordings, but nowhere will you hear a better-rounded performance of Verdi's timeless masterpiece. This is one for the ages.

Cotrubas explores new ground with this Violetta. Her unique sound is for some an acquired taste- well, then, go about acquiring it with this superb recording of Verdi's masterpiece. Despite the frequency of them, a memorable Violetta is hard to come by- exceptional ones seem to come and go, but a truly memorable one is difficult to find, and is a treasure when found. Verdi had no mercy when he wrote this role, the demands, both musical and emotional, are spectacular. Cotrubas seems not to notice, not to care, really, she will have Violetta her way, and it's the right way. This is no Anna Moffo sleight-of-hand. Cotrubas is not only an intellectual, but a humanitarian as well, and a musician, dammit, and that DOES matter so very much in opera, no matter those who wish it didn't. The peculiarly Middle-European tiimbre of her voice is perfect in this most lordly of soprano roles. I can't think of an opera I enjoy all the way through as much as this one, maybe Karajan's "Don Giovanni", but for audacity that rewards, this is the opera recording that delivers. The Kleiber effect is abundant and so appreciative of the score, as always, so beautifully thorough. Check out this wonderful recording and experience Traviata for maybe the first time.

This set has been a "cult" for more than twenty years; that means it's not just a great recording, but it also has something unique, maybe even weird: Ileana Cotrubas. Her Violetta has been one of the hottest items of discussion in the history of recordings: loved, even adored by the public, heavily rejected by the critics. I think Cotrubas is not Maria Callas, and probably she's not as good as many other sopranos, but her low-technique and sometimes kitsch singing is kind of attractive and charming. She hasn't got great voice and great diction, but you feel she loves the character, and makes it very special: I didn't cry when I heard Callas in my first experience with La Traviata; I did when I heard Cotrubas some years later. Domingo is as powerful as usual, even though I think Pavarotti and Bergonzi are much more suited for the role. Milnes is a highly expressive and greatly emotional Germont, and this is probably his best recording. I don't need to say anything about Kleiber, because so much has been said by critics and listeners from all over the world. His conducting here is by far the best achievement by any conductor in any opera.

When I first saw this recording in a DG catalogue I didn't pay much attention to it. In my youthful ignorance I thought that Cotrubas cannot be a serious contender for this much demanding and loved opera role. Time went by I get to know Mr. Kleiber accomplishments quite well and here I am listening to his Traviata.

The opening is absolutely superb in its quiet intensity but then things get pretty "energetic" (a Kleiber trademark). One would say that there is no way Traviata can face such an energetic approach. You will destroy everything that this opera is about. And yet I am striked again by the artistical intelligence Mr. Kleiber displays in all his recordings. This intelligence that brings to light all dark corners of a certain composition works its way again and maybe even better than in some of his orchestral recordings (Brahms' 4th is the first that comes to mind). All the nuances o this drama are in place very well-balanced. The music really flows on the evolution of the characters in the most agreable way.

The leading characters are also to be noticed. For me first of all comes Domingo which is in very beautiful voice but more involved and convincing than he usually is. A really strong and enjoyable performance (I don't think that Pavaroti is an option for Alfredo). Milnes is indeed a very beautiful Germont. Beautiful voice, nice approach to the character. I especially liked that I didn't find him so "pushy" as some of the other singers feel that have to approach this role. The only one better on disc I can think of is Nicolae Herlea. Last but not least comes Cotrubas. Well, she hasn't the biggest of voices nor the most beautiful one, and yet she is so good of a Violeta. Of all Violetas she is the only one that reminded me of Dumas' character description. She sings well (I think that the technique is just the one that saves her perfomance) she is fragile and so helpless in defeating her fate. I must admit that I am addicted to the power Callas brings to the character but this is a very good and full of meaning performance.

I let the sound for the end as is the least important aspect. But here this recording stands out from the crowd adding a (to) much praised nowadays aspect to the recording.

All in all if you love Verdi's La traviata you can't be without this recording.