Search - Giacomo Puccini, Giuseppe Sinopoli, Philharmonia Orchestra :: Giacomo Puccini: Madama Butterfly - Mirella Freni / José Carreras / Teresa Berganza / Juan Pons / Ambrosian Opera Chorus / Philharmonia Orchestra / Giuseppe Sinopoli

A very masterful performance

M. Mclain | VA | 07/24/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I have the equally impressive Karajan recording and only listened to this one to try and get a feeling for Sinopoli's conducting. I was expecting to be disappointed, but I had quite the opposite experience. I am a little confused about the comments about this recording, since I am not familiar with Sinopoli's controversial reputation; this seems as orthodox recording as one could expect (and no where near as heavy handed as Karajan (the only serious rival)). The tempos are very expressive, especially in the first act when there are dramatic and sudden shifts that are handled masterfully. He masters the subtleties quite well, managing to restrain the passion and yet exploding at the right moments, always with a tremendous amount of control. I was blown away by the sheer beauty and total lack of sentimentality. It's definitely a very Italian recording, with a much more restrained and tempered orchestral sound than the Wagner-like Karajan recording. Carreras sounds beautiful, quite a different sound than Pavoratti (on the Karajan). Really both are suited very well for the different conductors, and since both recordings star Freni (odd coincidence? of course not, she's the Puccini soprano of our lifetimes) you can rest assured that the incredibly difficult task of Cio Cio San will be handled. The most glaring advantage over the Karajan recording is the better balance between orchestra and vocalists. Sinopoli's style is very clear and balanced, fairly opaque but very sensitive. Imagine James Levine, but instead of playing every note robotically, playing with the same quality sound in a very passionate and fiery but restrained way. I think it is a very beautiful and sensitive recording; it's also such a perfect effort that many may miss just how astounding it is. I have a hard time believing that this will disappoint anyone, although the price will be a definite limit to less adventurous buyers."

A Lovely Butterfly

M. Mclain | 08/03/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"No one could make Puccini's music live as Mirella Freni did. She is superb as Butterfly on this recording. Jose Carreras may have been past the glorious lyric voice of his early days, but his Pinkerton is emotionally wonderful.There may be strong versions of this opera, but I have never heard one with more emotion."

Beautiful

PhantomOfTheOpera | Norway | 10/11/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"As I've only heard this particular recording of the opera, I'm not able to make any comparisons to other recordings that may or may not be better than this one. There might be better versions out there, but I find this one to be more than adequate. Mirella Freni and Jose Carreras sounds wonderful together as they did in "Aida" and "Don Carlo"; their voices blending perfectly and they are capable of creating moments of pure delight. You'd go a long way trying to find someone sweeter sounding than these two singers, especially in the aria at the end of act I (Bimba dagli occhi pieni di malia). Butterfly's arias are beautifully sung by Freni who impresses me more and more and I find her voice to be suitable for this kind of repertoire. The final aria of this opera is heart wrenching.



Jose Carreras sings his heart out as the American lieutenant Pinkerton; mostly in the duets with Butterfly where he sounds exceptionally wonderful and sweet voiced. His singing is as captivating as ever even if several critics claim that his voice had lost most of his beauty by this time.(This was recorded in april 1987). As I've said before; no-one can stir emotions like Carreras and I find his voice to be incredibly sweet and honeyed sounding in this recording. I melt like a snowman in the sun when he's singing the duets with Freni.



Juan Pons is a perfect choice for the role of Sharpless; his voice dark and velvety is absolutely beautiful and a pleasure listening to. Teresa Berganza also puts in a good performance as Suzuki. I can't say I cared much for Anthony Laciura's Goro and the prince Yamadori of Mark Curtis. They are both in possession of a voice that I find to be slightly nasal and not particularly enjoyable listening to.



The rest of the supporting cast sounds great and they all contribute in making this Butterfly worthwhile."