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28 of 28 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Am I the only one?, September 29, 1999
By A Customer
This review is from: Verdi: La Traviata (Audio CD)
I can't believe I'm the first to write a review of this recording! There's not much more you can ask in a Traviata than Sutherland, Bergonzi, and Merrill, all in their prime. On the surface, Sutherland's performance lacks the committment Callas consistantly brought to the role. However on repeated listenings, details surface that show Sutherland definitely had more than a vocal sympathy for Violetta. At this point in her career, she herself has said it was her favorite role. Her account of "Dite alle giovine" is shattering when listened to with the right ears. And of course, you have her immaculate vocalism. Set against this great achievement is the Alfredo of Bergonzi, the model Verdi tenor. Even Domingo, an artist I greatly respect and admire, is sometimes vocally incapable of the subtlety Bergonzi had at his command here. He is quite simply the best Alfredo I've heard. As for Robert Merrill, he may not be Tito Gobbi, but his account of Germont is more than adequate and what a voice! The recording is a little over-reverberant, obscuring some detail, but the Decca engineers were still struggling to cope with capturing the "Sutherland sound" in its fullest degree. Pritchard's conducting is generally inspired, only occasionally lapsing into the routine. The final factor in reviewing this recording is the price. As a Decca Double, this recording is a steal, a must have! (And yes, I've heard Decca's latest foray with Solti, Ghiorgiou, etc. It doesn't even come close.) There really is no perfect studio Traviata, but this one comes closer than most.
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11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
ONE OF THE GREAT "TRAVIATAS"., October 2, 1999
This review is from: Verdi: La Traviata (Audio CD)
This is one of Sutherland's truly great recordings. She had the perfect voice for Violetta. Bergonzi is THE best Alfredo on cd.His recording with Caballe is also superb. This is a terrific cd at a terrific bargain price.
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13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A Very Odd Production, July 20, 2001
This review is from: Verdi: La Traviata (Audio CD)
This is a very strange recording of La Traviata. It features, of course, Joan Sutherland in most glorious voice. She puts on a spectacular bravura performance, with virtually flawless technique. Her performance, however, is characterized by an almost total lack of consonants (For instance, "addio" comes out sounding like "aa-eee-oo".) Even vowel sounds sometimes get distorted -- presumably in order to get an even smoother musical flow. Surprisingly, Sutherland also demonstrates just how dramatic such singing can be -- pure sound to express a wide variety of emotions. It is an amazing performance -- it needs to be heard just to see how such intense drama can be achieved with such an approach. This is all fine, except for two things. First, the sound is somewhat lacking. Especially in Act 1, it sometimes sounds as if Sutherland is singing in an echo chamber. It also makes her middle range sound surprisingly mature -- she was at the beginning of her career when this recording was made of an age where one would expect vocal freshness matching Violetta's vulnerability--she is not the rather broken down cortesan which so many sopranos well on in their careers make her sound. Second, the other principals are using a quite different asthetic. Bergonzi as Alfredo turns in a sterling, rather traditional performance, with words well articulated and designed to have their meaning bring out the drama. Unfortunately, in the duets, the contrast in approach with Sutherland does not enhance things. This contrast is also present in the duets with Germont -- sung more than adequately by Robert Merrill -- though there it matters less since Germont's character and values differ so much from Violetta's. Pritchard's conducting, which is rather eratic in the crowd scenes, taking on a frenetic agitation at inappropriate moments, broadens out in other places, allowing slow speeds which accentuate Sutherland's mooning style at the expense of the drama she is so successfully communicating. The only comparable recording I know is the one with Caballe -- again with Bergonzi -- where the eratic features of the soprano's glorious singing clash harshly with the conductor's approach. Given the peculiarities of the performance, the choices London/Decca made in bringing out this set are unfathonable. There is no libretto, but a rather poorly done "listening guide" -- and no discussion of place of the opera. In addition, there are few tracks, and those provided combine material which both logically and musically are distinct and should be on separate tracks. This makes dipping into parts of the recording frustrating. Overall -- this is a performance to be enjoyed and savored. It is not a good recording to have as a first version of La Traviata. The fact that it remains in the catalogue after so many years -- and with so many other recordings of the opera either still available or fallen by the wayside that would be substitutes for it-- speaks volumes for the essential merits and appeal of this recording.
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