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Verdi

Ludovic Tezier

Classical - Released February 5, 2021 | Sony Classical

Hi-Res Booklet Distinctions Diapason d'or / Arte
It was time for Ludovic Tézier to finally provide his admirers with a recital. His performances as a Verdian baritone are impressive: Rigoletto, Simon Boccanegra, Falstaff, Giorgio Germont (La Traviata), Posa (Don Carlo), Le Conte De Luna (Il Trovatore), Renato (Un ballo in maschera), Iago (Otello). And almost all of these are reprised in this solo album. To this impressive list of stage roles, Tézier brings the welcome addition of arias from Ernani, Macbeth and Nabucco all accompanied by Frédéric Chaslin at the head of the orchestra of the Teatro Comunale in Bologna. It was in 1998 in Tel Aviv that the French baritone played his first Verdian role. He was thirty years old when he was Ford in a production of Falstaff. "There is an absolutely fascinating energy in Verdi, both for the audience and for the singers", he admits. "His roles are usually very challenging, but his music acts at the same time as a fountain of youth. Verdi is brimming with vitality, which is what allowed me to return to the stage just two days after my father's death". Now with a fully-matured voice, Ludovic Tézier is in demand all over the world for his Verdi roles. He is one of the best performers of Verdi's work, standing alongside the late Piero Cappuccilli who remains his great role model. This record offers timely confirmation of his stature. © François Hudry/Qobuz
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Verdi: Don Carlo

Luciano Pavarotti/Samuel Ramey/Riccardo Muti/Daniella Dessì/Luciana d'Intino/Paolo Coni

Classical - Released January 1, 1994 | Warner Classics

EMI's release of this 1992 live performance of the standard four-act version of Don Carlo at La Scala makes a strong addition to the catalog. Riccardo Muti's dramatically charged conducting and the energy that comes from live performances play a large part in making this such a compelling version. Muti gives full reign to the grand passions and dramatic contrasts of Verdi's panoramic score, making this one of the most theatrically urgent recordings available. The orchestra of La Scala plays with fiery intensity, and with better intonation and more finesse than in some of its live recordings. The production was clearly organized around Luciano Pavarotti's Don Carlo, and he delivers a performance that's notable for its restraint. This is very much an ensemble opera, and Pavarotti's contribution is that of a team player rather than a superstar scrambling for the spotlight. That being said, his performance is fully and appropriately committed and passionate, and he's in strong voice. The male leads are consistently stellar. Samuel Ramey captures the complexity and conflict of Filippo, and sings with resonance and richness. Paolo Coni had a limited recording career, but he practically steals the show here with the nobility and thrilling vocal power of his Rodrigo. Alexander Anissimov manages to sound both ancient and dangerously powerful, an ideal combination of characteristics for the Inquisitor. Daniela Dessì as Elisabetta and Luciana d'Intino as Eboli are very nearly in the same vocal league as the men. Both have full, penetrating voices, but with an occasional slight edge that keeps their performances from being as fully realized as those of the men. They aren't helped by a recording ambience that's a little too bright. Otherwise, the sound is good for a live recording, with nice balance between the voices and orchestra. Overall, Muti's version is a strong contender in the field of recordings of the opera.© TiVo
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Verdi: Don Carlos

Luigi Roni

Opera - Released January 1, 1979 | Orfeo

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Verdi: Don Carlo

Coro Lirico Amadeus Teatro Comunale di Modena

Classical - Released April 16, 2014 | C Major

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The Verdi Album

Sonya Yoncheva

Classical - Released February 2, 2018 | Sony Classical

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For huge fans of Yoncheva, this is a beautiful collection of some of the Verdian soprano's finest moments. Half of the tracks are great hits: Otello and his famous prayer, Don Carlo, Nabucco, Il Trovatore and La forza del destino, the other half being made up of lesser-known works such as Stiffelio, Luisa Miller or Attila. The Bulgarian soprano (note that she was born in 1981, and is already a star at the peak of her career) demonstrates at once the warmth of her voice, an instrument fallen from heaven, with her mezzo tones and the range of her great lyrical voice, but also her bel canto vocal technique which is deployed to great effect in this brilliant repertoire. More purist listeners might have issues with her way of making her attacks "from below" in the Italian style, but that is her stylistic and technical choice, and it is a choice shared by a good proportion of lyrical singers who work with the Italian repertoire. This studio recording was created in 2017. © SM/Qobuz
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Verdi: Don Carlos (Wiener Staatsoper Live)

Tugomir Franc

Opera - Released May 6, 2005 | Orfeo

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Monteverdi: Il quarto libro de madrigali

Collegium Vocale Gent

Classical - Released May 6, 2022 | Phi

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After dedicating many years of his life to the highly-revered music of Claudio Monteverdi, Philippe Herreweghe now offers us his version of the Fourth Book of Madrigals—one of the most innovative and representative works by this genius Italian composer. Sprinkled with audacious harmonics and intense expressiveness that closely mimics the mannerisms of painters and sculptors of the time, this volume clearly announces the culmination of the “seconda pratica” (a new modern way of thinking about music that marked the beginning of the Baroque period).Monteverdi devoted many years to the creation of this Fourth Book which brings the 16th century to a close with great originality of form and a wide variety of styles (a real testament to the spectacular musical evolution that took place over such a small time frame). The use of dissonance is evident from the very first madrigal, Ah dolent partita, with the use of minor seconds plunging the listener into the bottomless abyss of amorous distress.A great lover of Italy and its art, Philippe Herreweghe and the excellent singers of the Collegium Vocale Gent give real vitality to these madrigals. They subtly shape the contrasts, achieving a striking chiaroscuro that emphasises the exaggerated asceticism contained within these 20 sublime pieces. © François Hudry/Qobuz
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Verdi: Un ballo in maschera

Orchestre Philharmonique de Monté-Carlo

Opera - Released June 16, 2023 | PentaTone

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Studio recordings of full operas are not so common anymore, but among the few positive side effects of the COVID-19 pandemic was that it did spawn several. This one sounds a bit buttoned-up, perhaps because of the restrictions of the time; the album was made in the summer of 2021, and the contributions of the Transylvania State Choir were downloaded from afar (actually, this would be hard to tell by listening), but there is a lot that is distinctive about the performance of this Verdi opera, whose tragicomic quality has made it a special favorite in modern times. Verdi moved the action from Sweden to Boston to circumvent a censorship restriction; nowadays, the Swedish setting is generally preferred, but the curious American colonial setting somehow seems to fit the mixture of elements in the opera, loading political intrigue onto the old comic trope of the masked ball. The biggest news is the presence of tenor Freddie De Tommaso in the lead role of Riccardo. He has been bubbling under the surface of the opera scene, and with this recording, he takes a major step into the spotlight. Consider one of his big numbers, like "Forse la soglia attinse" in Act III, for an idea of why his performance is bringing to mind some of the greats who have recorded this opera. He is ably backed by a strong cast, including the rougher but powerfully dramatic Lester Lynch as Renato, making a compelling contrast with De Tommaso and Saioa Hernández as Amelia. This vocally strong Un ballo in maschera is well worth the attention of Verdi lovers.© James Manheim /TiVo
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Verdi : Ernani (Remastered)

Thomas Schippers

Classical - Released January 1, 1968 | Sony Classical

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Verdi: Nabucco

Parma Teatro Regio Orchestra

Classical - Released November 19, 2013 | C Major

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Bizet, Saint-Saëns, Massenet, Gounod, Verdi...

Anita Rachvelishvili

Opera Extracts - Released March 2, 2018 | Sony Classical

Hi-Res Booklet Distinctions 5 Sterne Fono Forum Jazz
It's one of those fairy stories that the world of lyrical music likes to keep secret. Still an unknown and barely emerged from the La Scala Lyrical Academy, Georgian mezzo-soprano Anita Rachvelishvili was given the title role in Carmen by Baremboim, alongside Jonas Kaufman: an international career seemed to beckon for the young singer. And so here we will hear some of opera's great tunes, including, of course, the hits from Carmen, but also the two great arias from Samson et Dalila by Saint-Saëns, a pair from Verdi, a touch of Mascagni, some Rimski – less-frequently performed, it is true – and a rarity from his compatriot Dimitri Arakishvili (1873-1953) whose style is solidly anchored in the Russia of his day, with several, probably regional, twists. Since 2009, she has sung Carmen's role around three hundred times, and we can only hope that she never gets bogged down in it - and takes on Santuzza, Eboli, Dalil: in other words, the great characters of the dramatic mezzo repertoire. © SM/Qobuz
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Verdi & Puccini Arias

Kiri Te Kanawa, London Philharmonic Orchestra, Sir John Pritchard

Classical - Released January 24, 1984 | Sony Classical

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Verdi: La traviata

Sofia Philharmonic Orchestra

Opera - Released December 1, 2017 | Profil

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Verdi: Don Carlo / Live Performance, Vienna, October 25, 1970

Giuseppe Verdi

Opera - Released November 14, 2006 | Opera d'Oro

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Verdi: Rigoletto

Wiener Philharmonic Orchestra

Classical - Released January 1, 1980 | Deutsche Grammophon (DG)

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Legrenzi: La morte del cor penitente

Ensemble Masques

Classical - Released June 2, 2023 | Alpha Classics

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Verdi: Rigoletto

Dmitri Hvorostovsky

Opera - Released November 10, 2017 | Delos

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Nashville is rough on the living, but she really speaks well of the dead, says a country song, and opera is the same way. Recordings by the late Russian baritone Dmitri Hvorostovsky have soared on the charts since his untimely death. Along with the superb song album Russia Cast Adrift, this one makes a suitable memorial. Hvorostovsky was never a typical Italian opera baritone, and that was what made his performances of Rigoletto over the years so well loved; they stood apart from the crowd. This version was made in Kaunas, Lithuania (in the Philharmonic Hall -- it is not a live recording), in 2016, after the baritone's diagnosis with brain cancer. Cognoscenti may grouse that at certain junctures Hvorostovsky's voice has less power than formerly (which, at his age, would have been true even without his illness), but the essential qualities that made him a great Rigoletto are on full display here. Where Western baritones sing, Hvorostovsky growls, rasps, and snarls, and the role of the exquisitely bitter jester has rarely come alive as it does here. The rest of the cast is decidedly not as strong; soprano Nadine Sierra can't decide whether Gilda should be a wounded innocent or something more substantial, and her pitches are often less than stable. Yet this is how it should be. With a star of Hvorostovsky's magnitude, the focus should be on the star, and that is where it resides. Clean accompaniment by the Kaunas City Symphony Orchestra that effectively stays out of his way is another plus. An essential for Hvorostovsky lovers. © TiVo
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Handel: La Resurrezione

The English Concert

Classical - Released April 8, 2022 | Linn Records

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This recording sees Harry Bicket continue his long love affair with Handel, which began back in 1996 at the Glyndebourne Festival when he conducted Theodora, produced by Peter Sellars. Here, Harry Bicket and the musicians from The English Concert tackle the oratorio La Resurrezione, following their recording of Rodelinda which was incredibly well-received by critics in 2021. With a well-knit team of excellent soloists in the ensemble, Bicket delivers a colourful interpretation of Handel’s work with sharp rhythms and beautiful instrumental tones.Created in 1708 at the Palazzo Bonelli (now the Palazzo Valentini) in Rome, under led by Corelli, La Resurrezione caused a scandal when Pope Clement XI sent a stern admonition to young Handel's patron, Marquis Francesco Maria Ruspoli, for having a woman (!) sing in a publicly performed religious work. The pope was clearly unable to understand the innovative nature of this musical feat.Through a libretto that superimposes two events taking place on the evening of Good Friday and Easter morning, Handel writes touching and dramatic scenes for an orchestral ensemble of 40 musicians, which was very large for the time. It also required two castrati male vocalists and the aforementioned soprano who was condemned by the Church. With his use of rare and diverse instruments, the young German composer gave his orchestra warm, powerful tones right from the outsight. © François Hudry/Qobuz
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Casta Diva - Operatic arias transcribed for trumpet

Matilda Lloyd

Opera - Released April 28, 2023 | Chandos

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Five years after her solo debut recording, Direct Message, which programmed 20th and 21st century works for trumpet and piano, trumpet player Matilda Lloyd departs the traditional repertoire (aside from the two Arban arrangements from the Complete Conservatory Method for Trumpet). Instead of following more well-worn routes, Lloyd elects to present a program of Romantic period opera arias, mostly in arrangements for trumpet and chamber orchestra (undertaken here by the Britten Sinfonia under Rumon Gamba) by William Foster, who worked closely with Lloyd on this project. Lloyd's skill as a musician is evident throughout, though the two Arban tracks most clearly allow her abilities to shine. The arrangements throughout are good, though how much they add to the performances rather than transcriptions and transpositions is up for debate. Lloyd notes with excitement the decision to include two pieces by Pauline Viardot, and one of the highlights here is the treatment of Viardot's Havanaise. This is certainly a trumpet release aimed at a wider audience than trumpet and brass circles, and it has already found success on the retail market. Chandos delivers just the right atmosphere from the Church of St. Augustine, Kilburn, in London. The future is bright for this trumpeter, and one looks forward to where her path may take her. © Keith Finke /TiVo
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Eternità d'amore

Zachary Wilder

Classical - Released April 20, 2018 | La Musica

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