Verdi: La Traviata / Sills, Gedda, Panerai; Ceccato

Giuseppe Verdi (Artist), John Alldis Choir & Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (Artist), Aldo Ceccato (Artist), Beverly Sills (Artist), Nicolai Gedda (Artist), Rolando Panerai (Artist), Robert Lloyd (Artist), Mirella Fiorentini (Artist), Mario Carlin (Artist), William Elvin (Artist), Keith Erwen (Artist) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 25, 1990)
• Number of Discs: 2
• Label: EMI Classics
• ASIN: B000002SGL
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (32 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #62,581 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

Disc: 1

1. La Traviata, opera: Prelude [Act I]

2. La Traviata, opera: Dell'invito Tracorsa È Già L'ora [Act I

3. La Traviata, opera: Libiamo Ne'lieti Calici [Act I]

4. La Traviata, opera: Che È Ciò? [Act I]

5. La Traviata, opera: Un Dì, Felice, Eterea [Act I]

6. La Traviata, opera: Ebben? Che Diavol Fate? [Act I]

7. La Traviata, opera: Si Ridesta In Ciel L'aurora [Act I]

8. La Traviata, opera: È Strano [Act I]

9. La Traviata, opera: Ah, Fors'è Lui [Act I]

10. La Traviata, opera: Follie! Follie! [Act I]

See all 24 tracks on this disc

Disc: 2

1. La Traviata, opera: Ah, Vive Sol Quel Core [Act II, Scene I

2. La Traviata, opera: Di Provenza Il Mar, Il Suol [Act II, Sc

3. La Traviata, opera: Nè Rispondi D'un Padre All'affetto? [Ac

4. La Traviata, opera: No, Non Udrai Rimproveri [Act II, Scene

5. La Traviata, opera: Avrem Lieta Di Maschere La Notte [Act I

6. La Traviata, opera: Noi Siamo Zingarelle [Act II, Scene II]

7. La Traviata, opera: Di Madride Noi Siam Mattadori [Act II,

8. La Traviata, opera: Alfredo! Voi! [Act II, Scene II]

9. La Traviata, opera: Invitato A Qui Seguirmi [Act II, Scene

10. La Traviata, opera: Ogni Suo Aver Tal Femmina [Act II, Scen

See all 22 tracks on this disc

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

28 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Perfect Traviata, September 24, 2002

By 

Rod Tierman - See all my reviews

This review is from: Verdi: La Traviata / Sills, Gedda, Panerai; Ceccato (Audio CD)

There are many fine Traviatas out there (Callas, 2 by Sutherland, Caballe, Cortubas, and the like), but I feel this one is the best of the lot. Beverly Sills is extremely fresh voiced here and delivers her arias with freshness and aplomb. Her "Sempre Libera " is simply breathtaking. Her colleagues here are also unsurpassed. Nicolai Gedda is magnigicent here,offering just the right amout of lyricism and passion to the role of Alfredo (even demonstrating an incredible High C at the end of his caballetta "Oh mio rimorso! Oh, infamia!"). Gedda is my favorite of any of the recorded Alfredos. Rolando Panerai is probably the finest Germont the elder I have ever heard. His "Di Provenza Il Mar, Il Suol" will literally tear at your heartstrings and this reviewer has never heard a finer rendition since the American Baritone Lawrence Tibbett. Aldo Ceccato is the conductor here and does a very fine job indeed. If you want to hear La Traviata the way it should be performed, treat yourself to this recording.

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars La Traviata Heaven: The Greatest Recording, April 30, 2004

By 

Rudy Avila "Saint Seiya" (Lennox, Ca United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Verdi: La Traviata / Sills, Gedda, Panerai; Ceccato (Audio CD)

Verdi's La Traviata is to many the definition of romantic opera. It's about tragic love, it's Verdi's most intimate and most personal opera. Verdi at the time was living unmarried with his lover and soon to be wife Giuseppina Strepponi, an opera singer. The music attests to the heartache and the passion that composes the bulk of the opera. On this recording, Beverly Sills sings the role of Violetta Valery and tenor Nicolai Gedda is Alfredo. Violetta and Alfredo are opera's most memorable lovers. Gedda and Sills both possess a charming, beautiful voice perfectly suited for the gentle lovers.

This recording is from the 70's. Beverly Sills had sung Violetta Valery more than 50 times and it was her first starring role. She knew the part like the palm of her hand. Her beautiful humanity in her voice alone presents us with the real Violetta- the noble courtesan/prostitute of Paris nightlife who sacrifices her own happiness for the sake of Alfredo's father. Beverly Sills has a "French voice" - her greatest vocal gift was to sing lengthy sustained melody and to dazzle the human ear with coloratura agility and high notes. But her Italian is nothing to laugh at. Her Italian is superb, especially in the bel canto category. As Violetta, she is the best. Her Act 1 highlights include the Brindisi (I have never heard any soprano, including Callas and Sutherland) sing it as "right" as Beverly Sills does it, and her solo showcase "A Fors E Lui" and the coloratura fireworks of "Sempre Libera". Beverly Sills is simply amazing, especially when she tops off the aria with that high note. The lyrical melancholy of the duet with baritone Roland Panerai, perfectly paired also, is excellent to hear. The finale is going to move you to tears from the "Addio Del Passato" to her dying exclamation "O Gioa!". This is the greatest ever made and I don't care that most will always flock to the Sutherland and Callas recordings. To my mind, it's not necessary to have a bigger voice or a diva status to be Violetta. Beverly Sills may not have been a diva, but she was the greatest actress of the opera in a way where most sopranos fail- connection with the audience and a spiritual relationship with the music.

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Siils' Traviata, October 26, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Verdi: La Traviata / Sills, Gedda, Panerai; Ceccato (Audio CD)

Fine, very much underrated recording. With vivid, crisp, well-remastered sound and very generous cueing, it makes an excellent, all around bargain. The text is absolutedly complete (cabalette are repeated twice, as marked in the score). Sills' reedy voice can be an acquiered taste but her interpretation of this doomed character is most moving. Gedda is a model of taste who does not lack fire and flair (his rendition of the often-omitted "o mio rimorso" is one of the best on records). Panerai sings well, if not as imaginatively as Sills. Ceccato is an efficient, unmannered conductor who does not get in the way of the singers. Italian & English Libretto included.