Search - Robert Merrill, Giuseppe Verdi, Gioachino Rossini :: The Best of Italian Opera

Not a better cd at this price

Robert A. Dunn | Alabama, USA | 10/27/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Whether you are an opera lover already or want to find out if opera is something you would enjoy, this is a cd for you. I bought this cd on a whim because of the price and now I would gladly pay five times that to replace it in my collection. The voices are phenomenal and filled with emotion as I think they should be in opera."

A Great Introduction to Italian Opera

A student | 04/30/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The artists on this CD succeed in their goal to create a CD that displays great Italian opera. Carlo del Monte and Victoria de los Angeles open the disc with the Brindisi from La Traviata. Victoria de los Angeles is not the best Violetta, but she does the job, along with her parner Carlo del Monte, an underappreciated tenor. Victoria de los Angeles also appears on the CD in "Un bel di vedremo" from Madama Butterfly, a role she was well known for. Swedish tenor Nicolai Gedda appears on the disc twice. His first appearence is a superb rendition of "La donna e mobile" from Rigoletto. His final performance on this disc is in the heroric aria "Celeste Aida", a performance in a role that was not in his voice range. Anna Moffo is the star on this CD, appearing three times in three very different roles. First is her beautiful "Una voce poco fa", normally a role that calls for a mezzo-soprano. Her second is "Voi che sapete" from Le Nozze di Figaro, another mezzo-soprano role. Her final appearence is her best, "The Mad Scene" from Lucia di Lammermoor. Underrated tenor Giuseppe Campora performs "Che gelida manina" with a great tenor voice. Soprano Reri Girst is excellent in her performance of "Caro nome" from Rigoletto. One of my favorite baritones appears on this CD. Robert Merrill is a perfect Count di Luna, and it is evident in his rendition of "Il balen del suo sorriso". Another baritone appears on this CD: mario Sereni. He is not a world famous baritone, but he should have been. Overall, this is an excellent introduction to the world of Italian opera."

The Ultimately Unbeatable

an amateur soprano | Walnut, CA United States | 01/14/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Best deal of Italian opera CD collection is found from this album. Although featuring Verdi's opera works, Mozart's Voi Che Sapete from Le Nozzi di Figaro was excellently recorded. Sound quality is excellent, and what a great gift idea this is!"