Natalie Dessay - Mozart Heroines

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (Composer), Louis Langree (Conductor), Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment (Orchestra), Natalie Dessay (Performer)

Product Details

• Performer: Natalie Dessay
• Orchestra: Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment
• Conductor: Louis Langree
• Composer: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
• Audio CD (January 9, 2001)
• SPARS Code: DDD
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Virgin Classics
• ASIN: B000050G2M
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #31,881 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com
On previous releases, Natalie Dessay has established herself as perhaps the leading coloratura soprano of the day. Consider, for example, her artistry on the 1998 Lakmé. From the sensational fireworks heard in The Magic Flute's "Queen of the Night" arias that open and close this stimulating disc, her venture into the Mozart repertory is a resounding success. Dessay's elaborate embellishments in the arias from some of Mozart's little-known earlier works are as breathtaking--the high-flying aria from Ascanio in Alba leaves one begging for more. But roles like Pamina in The Magic Flute and Kostanze in The Abduction from the Seraglio are more properly the province of lyric sopranos, and often one feels the need for a voice with more expansive depth. Dessay nicely captures the tenderness in her affecting "Ach, ich fühl" lines, but Kostanze's "Martern aller Arten" would benefit from a juicier mid- and lower range. But the coloratura arias alone are worth hearing for their thrilling vocalism. --Dan Davis

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

25 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Small blots on a stunning landscape, February 20, 2001

By	Ed Beveridge (London, England) - See all my reviews

It's rather interesting that of the reviews available on this site, two give this recording the lowest possible rating and two the highest. How can this be? I found this a deeply satisfying disc although if pushed I wouldn't say it was as awesomely stunning as her French recital. But perhaps - dangerously - we are beginning to take Dessay and others like her for granted. Probably she is less well-suited to some of the pieces on this disc than she is to french coloratura roles but she is still leaps and bounds ahead of just about anyone else singing this repertoire today. She is an artist we need to cherish rather than run down with snotty notices - the operatic world today wouldn't be the same without her. That said, there are problems with this recital. Of all the roles she sings here, the Queen of Night sounds less thrilling than the others - the tone lacks brilliance and the tuning is occasionally suspect - even though it's a role she can sing standing on her head. I rather preferred her wistful, gently sung Pamina (phenomenal control) and it makes me impatient for her to take the part into her repertoire. Constanze is already in her repertiore and her rendition of the arias here are well in character. Much is made of her relative lack of thrust at the bottom of the stave but very few others have the absolute command at the top, again not something we should take for granted. She certainly turns in a spirited performance - as she does in the "Tiger" aria from Zaide. The sensuous "Ruhe sanft" from this latter work suits her well, though neither aria fills me with longing to see it staged, with or without Dessay. No, as we learnt from her thrilling "Mitridate" recording, virtuoso fireworks from Mozart's early works are what suit her best. So we have the fiendish "Ah! Se il crudel periglio" from Lucio Silla, described by Edita Gruberova (and she knew exactly what she was doing) as having some "excruciatingly difficult coloratura". Not here; Dessay makes light of the contortions Mozart demands of her and throws in a few altissimo high-jinks of her own. Ditto the Fawn's aria from "Ascanio" - not the most interesting piece in itself, until Dessay turns it into an ever-more breathtaking display of her phenomenal technique, These two numbers are easily worth the price of the disc. Finally, we are taken to another, much calmer place - Ilia's act three aria from Idomeneo. Recit and Aria are lovingly, sensitively sung. This is another part she could really make something of on stage. Langree's tempi are always apt and the OAE make what to my ear is a period appripriate sound - it's certainly not big-house Mozart, anyway - and generally support their soloist admirably. No, in spite of the nit-picking above, I would recommend this disc most heartily, because it shows an expert doing what she does best - and that's got to be worth hearing.

22 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Virtuosity and intelligence, January 9, 2001

By	M. Tietjen "tietj" (Syracuse, NY, USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is the album that fans of French soprano Natalie Dessay have waited for ever since the release of her first recital disc, which consisted of Mozart's lesser known concert arias. Dessay may be the best coloratura of modern times, and fans of coloratura singing will be pleased with the arias from Lucio Silla and Ascanio in Alba. The latter is ten minutes of sheer virtuosity, and Dessay tosses out high F's and above as easily as Mado Robin or Erna Sack, and with more musical intelligence than either. Her F's also sparkle in the two arias of one of her signature roles, the Queen of the Night from Die Zauberflote, a role she despises although you wouldn't know it from this disc. The famous Revenge Aria is taken at a dangerously fast tempo, but Dessay (and the orchestra, which is fantastic throughout the album) keeps up easily. And to show that there is more to her than mere coloratura agility, she also presents Pamina's aria from the same opera, giving a performance as deep and moving as any I have heard. Her high note on "Ruh" is amazing.

The two arias from Die Entführung aus dem Serail are also very well performed, and almost makes one wish that she had also included "Ach ich liebte," perhaps in the place of one of the Zaide arias. But all in all the CD is excellent, and once again proves that Natalie Dessay deserves credit as more than just a coloratura phenomenon.

One more thing: are the male faun from Ascanio in Alba and the evil Queen of the Night really deserving of the title "Heroines?"

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not the last word..., June 5, 2003

By	Albert Combrink (Rondebosch South Africa) - See all my reviews

I have become an admirer of Dessay through her Vocalises and French Arias albums. Her earlier disc of Mozart Concert arias revealed her as a Mozartian of note. I enjoy her discs as they include old warhorses interspersed with unknown items. In this disc I am less impressed, as she tackles repertoire sung by many other sopranos, and despite my admiration for her agility and range, I was left feeling that, in most of the arias on this particular disc, better versions were to be found elsewhere.

Queen of the night: Superb, if you like the slight edge of hysteria in the voice on the long notes. Pamina's aria: sounds affeected - go for Bonney, Hendricks, any lyrical voice. Lucio Silla: fast and exciting,but with Gruberova it becomes drama. Zaide: Doesn't beat Kiri te Kanawa's famous recording. Ascanio in Alba: very well done, though Auger has a tad more poise. The Serail arias other reviewers here have loved, but I beg to differ. She feels too light for role and pecks at the notes in Marten aller Arten. It makes her sound like a soubrette trying to sing lyric roles. Idomeneo sweetly sung, but does not beat Hendricks.

My main concern is the twee cleverness of the orchestra: try the finale of the Queen's first aria. The orchestra pulls back pompously and she pushes on ahead. If they are making some great artistic dramatic statement I fail to comprehend. It simply sounds as if the orchestra drags and she rushes.

A wonderful singer, in a very good disc. If this is your fist Mozart arias disc, though, look around a bit. Gruberova, Kiri te Kanawa and Bonney are all good places to start.