The Very Best of Jon Vickers

Peter Glossop (Performer), Ernest Blanc (Performer), Walter Berry (Performer), Giuseppe Verdi (Composer), Camille Saint-Saens (Composer), Ludwig van Beethoven (Composer), Richard [Classical] Wagner (Composer), Franz [Vienna] Schubert (Composer), Georges Bizet (Composer), Herbert von Karajan (Conductor), John Barbirolli (Conductor), Georges Prêtre (Conductor), Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos (Conductor), Rita Gorr (Performer), Christa Ludwig (Performer), Grace Bumbry (Performer), Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra (Orchestra), New Philharmonia Orchestra (Orchestra), Paris National Opera Orchestra (Orchestra), Geoffrey Parsons (Performer) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Performer: Peter Glossop, Ernest Blanc, Walter Berry, Rita Gorr, Christa Ludwig, et al.
• Orchestra: Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra, New Philharmonia Orchestra, Paris National Opera Orchestra
• Conductor: Herbert von Karajan, John Barbirolli, Georges Prêtre, Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos
• Composer: Giuseppe Verdi, Camille Saint-Saens, Ludwig van Beethoven, Richard [Classical] Wagner, Franz [Vienna] Schubert, et al.
• Audio CD (April 26, 2005)
• SPARS Code: ADD
• Number of Discs: 2
• Label: EMI Classics
• ASIN: B0006VYEIM
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #308,132 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #72 in Music > Classical > Opera & Vocal > Featured Performers, A-Z > U to Z

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A sampling of a great dramatic tenor, July 5, 2006

By 

Santa Fe Listener (Santa Fe, NM USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)   

This review is from: The Very Best of Jon Vickers (Audio CD)

Jon Vickers was indomitable, a tenor cut from larger-than-life materials with a huge, unique voice and rock-solid character. That could make him both demanding and difficult, but EMI caught him in a fantastic period when he matched forces with Karajan. The two drew the best from each other, and for once Vickers totally gave himself over to a great condcutor's guidance. As a result we have overwhelming accounts of Tristan and Otello, his two greatest roles. This double CD offers a generous sampling, but I can't imagine that listeners who don't know these recordings won't rush to buy the complete operas.

The Carmen sample is from an exciting recording with Grace Bumbry under Fruhbeck de Burgos. Here and in Samson and Delilah, Vickers' monumental approach sometimes crushes the delicacy of the music, but his fervent emotions more than carry the day (don't expect perfect French). The only work I am not enthusiastic about is the Winterreise. Vickers was committed to performing it, and the drak emotional range of Schubert's cycle suits his temperament, but his singing is too big-boned and operatic. Give it credit for good intentions. As for the rest, all of it is indispensable.