Verdi - Il Trovatore / Frusoni · Longhi · Tschistiakova · Servile · de Grandis · Hungarian SOO · W. Humburg

Giuseppe Verdi (Artist), Will Humburg (Artist), Maurizio Frusoni (Artist), Daniela Longhi (Artist), Hungarian State Opera Orchestra (Artist), Budapest Festival Chorus (Artist), Irina Tschistiakova (Artist), Roberto Servile (Artist), Franco de Grandis (Artist), Jozsef Mukk (Artist), Zsuzsa Csonka (Artist), Sándor Pásztor (Artist), János Tandari (Artist) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (January 3, 1996)
• SPARS Code: DDD
• Number of Discs: 2
• Label: Naxos
• ASIN: B0000014B5
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #635,439 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Unexpectedly Marvelous, December 1, 2002

By 

Theodore Deacon (Seattle, WA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Verdi - Il Trovatore / Frusoni · Longhi · Tschistiakova · Servile · de Grandis · Hungarian SOO · W. Humburg (Audio CD)

As a musician who has studied Verdi's operas for decades I am astonished at how fine a recording this bargain Naxos set is. Indeed, I recommend it above all other modern complete sets available. Yes, for pure singing the Bjorling/Milanov RCA set has the edge and the classic Callas has a memorable sense of melodrama. What this set has, though, is a greater sense of Verdian style. Humburg is simply marvelous in how he shapes his phrases, follows seamlessly with the singers' grasp of character, and is superbly sensitive to Verdi's markings. (No, the finale is not a mistake. Verdi intended for Di Luna to have the last word. Humburg has the musical taste to ignore bad tradition and deliver what the composer actually wrote. He does stretch things a tad, but well within the limits of the score. The effect is electrifying.) The singers may not have the plushest of voices on disc, but just listen to how detailed and alert they are with the text and dynamics. Servile is brilliant throughout - a true (and rare) Verdi baritone with an attractive brightness and ring at the top of his voice and no trace of wooly tone. Longhi has the technique to handle the contrasts in Leonora's divergent styles while still creating a feminine and vulnerable character - essential elements that eludes other, more famous singers (Callas excluded). The Azucena, Irina Tschistiakova has a distinct vibrato but knows how to focus her sound to enliven the text. Frusoni's Manrico is not nearly as elegant as Bjorling's (then again, neither is Domingo in his sets) but has a decent enough line to make "Ah si, ben mio" lyrically convincing. Above all his textual pointing is spot on. I will continue to favor the old Cellini RCA set, but I will return again and again to Humburg for textual completeness, modern sound, and keen Verdian style.

0 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Odd Trovatore, August 26, 2001

A Kid's Review

This review is from: Verdi - Il Trovatore / Frusoni · Longhi · Tschistiakova · Servile · de Grandis · Hungarian SOO · W. Humburg (Audio CD)

This Il Trovatore is not great or terrible. It's far from the best, but not really bad. Maurizio Frusoni as Manrico is no Domingo or Corelli, and he sounded very strained at times. His "Di quella pira" was very husky-sounding. Daniel Longhi as Leonora was OK. Nowhere near Callas or Price, she did give an impressive, "Di tale amor" and "Miserere." Irina T. (I can't remember her full last name) was not very good as Azucena, however. A vibrato can be accepted to a point in the role of Azucena, however this was too much- just too much. Her "Stride la vampa" was very weak. Roberto Servile was so-so as di Luna. His "Il balen" was good, but he was a bit lifeless. Humburg was pretty good until the final scene, where he had the orchestra stop playing altogether for, "Egli era tuo fratello!" The smaller parts were impressive, especially the Ferrando, but with a weak Manrico and Azucena, this isn't a good first choice. If you really want a good budget price recording, get the Opera D'oro set with Corelli, Price, Simionato, and Bastianini. It's the best ever, no doubt!