Search - Gaetano Donizetti, Gianluigi Gelmetti, Orchestra of the M. M. F. :: Donizetti: L'elisir d'amore

WONDERFUL DOCUMENT OF KRAUS' NEMORINO

L. Mitnick | Chicago, Illinois United States | 10/20/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

""L'Elisir d'Amore is an opera that Alfredo Kraus never recorded commercially, which is unfortunate because the role of Nemorino was one of his best-known roles. Happily, this live recording fills a huge gap in his recorded legacy, though the sound, while decent enough (and in stereo). is certainly not of studio quality (though it is far better than many other live recordings). I heard Kraus sing this opera in 1962 when he made his debut at Lyric Opera of Chicago. This live performance was done in 1984 ---- and the vocal differences are minimal. Truly, Kraus was an artist who nurtured and protected his vocal instrument ----- and sang only those operas that his lyric tenor could comfortably accommodate. He never ventured into the spinto or dramatic roles ----- and managed to have a constant repertoire of about twenty operas (Italian and French) that he refined and polished throughout his long career. His singing here is elegant, refined, and extremely polished. Top notes give him no difficulties, and he can spin a bel canto vocal line with nary a scratch or blemish. Luciana Serra, a bright-voiced Adina, sounds young, fresh, and most importantly, completely convincing. The audience was obviously appreciative of this performance, and why wouldn't they have been? The supporting cast is more than acceptable. For fans of Alfredo Kraus, this release (like Living Stage's release of "The Pearl Fishers"-- another opera absent from Kraus' studio discography) is especially valuable. Kraus was a model of his kind --- an artist to his fingertips who sustained an exceptionally long and impressive singing career by being intelligent, musical, and, of course, being the possessor of a truly masterful vocal instrument. He was one of the great ones --- and he never pandered to the Pavarotti-type publicity machine to prove it. All he had to do was sing, and he sang with more style and polish than any other tenor of the last forty years."