Adriana Lecouvreur, opera: Act 4. No, la mia fronte
Adriana Lecouvreur, opera: Act 4. Che? Tu tremi
Track Listings (11) - Disc #13
Gemma di Vergy, opera: Overture
Gemma di Vergy, opera: Act 1. Quel guerriero - su bruno destriero
Gemma di Vergy, opera: Act 1. Una preghiera unanime per Gemma... Mi togliesti a un sol ardente
Gemma di Vergy, opera: Act 1. Nuove contese? Oh cielo!... Una voce al cor d'intorno
Gemma di Vergy, opera: Act 1. Nessun sogno a te predisse
Gemma di Vergy, opera: Act 1. Oh vengogna? Me infelice!... Perchè il Conte scacciami? Perchè?
Gemma di Vergy, opera: Act 1. Dritto al segno vibrasti io l'ho feri
Gemma di Vergy, opera: Act 1. Qui un pugnale! Ch'l confisse... Ah! Nel cuor mi suona un grido
Gemma di Vergy, opera: Act 1. Guido! Io tremo! Questo sangue?
Gemma di Vergy, opera: Act 1. Assissino che il fero immergesti
Gemma di Vergy, opera: Act 1. Tigre uscito dal deserto
Track Listings (13) - Disc #14
Gemma di Vergy, opera: Act 1. Mio signor, non più mio sposo
Gemma di Vergy, opera: Act 1. Di' ch'io vada in Palestina
Gemma di Vergy, opera: Act 1. Basta, o Gemma... Fui tradita, ah, dileale!
Gemma di Vergy, opera: Act 2. Come luna, che al tramonto... Mi suonan pianto così mesti accenti
Gemma di Vergy, opera: Act 2. Ecco il pegno ch'io le porsi!... Questa soave immagine
Gemma di Vergy, opera: Act 2. Vieni, o bella, e ti ristora
Gemma di Vergy, opera: Act 2. Non fuggir che invano il tenti
Gemma di Vergy, opera: Act 2. È dessa in mio potere
Gemma di Vergy, opera: Act 2. Quartet. Quella man che disarmasti
Gemma di Vergy, opera: Act 2. Tutto tace d'intorno a sol rischiara
Gemma di Vergy, opera: Act 2. Eccomi sola alfine
Gemma di Vergy, opera: Act 2. O giusto ciel! Che sento?
Gemma di Vergy, opera: Act 2. Chi m'accusa, chi mi grida
Seven complete operas starring the magnificent Montserrat Caballé - great live opera recordings at budget price in one space-saving set! Exciting live recordings taped 1965-1975! Along with Maria Callas ("La Divina"... more »), and Joan Sutherland ("La Stupenda"), Montserrat Caballé (b. 1933) took her place as one of the Big Three sopranos of the second half of the 20th century. When Caballé made her New York debut in 1965, she was instantly heralded as "La Superba," a sure sign she had reached the pinnacle of diva fame. Caballé was especially noted for her pure legato, effortless phrasing, and ability to float soft high notes of breathtaking beauty. Her generosity and down-to earth humor have endeared her to her fans. In 1987, she astonished classical and pop fans alike by recording a duet of the song Barcelona with the rock star Freddie Mercury of the rock group Queen.« less
Seven complete operas starring the magnificent Montserrat Caballé - great live opera recordings at budget price in one space-saving set! Exciting live recordings taped 1965-1975! Along with Maria Callas ("La Divina"), and Joan Sutherland ("La Stupenda"), Montserrat Caballé (b. 1933) took her place as one of the Big Three sopranos of the second half of the 20th century. When Caballé made her New York debut in 1965, she was instantly heralded as "La Superba," a sure sign she had reached the pinnacle of diva fame. Caballé was especially noted for her pure legato, effortless phrasing, and ability to float soft high notes of breathtaking beauty. Her generosity and down-to earth humor have endeared her to her fans. In 1987, she astonished classical and pop fans alike by recording a duet of the song Barcelona with the rock star Freddie Mercury of the rock group Queen.
CD Reviews
LA DIVA AT HER BEST & ALMOST FREE
Bartolome Mesa Gil | Malaga, SPAIN | 04/01/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This is truly a bargain for anyone wanting to explore the great art of Montserrat Caballé. Made in China by the American company Allegro, the package looks as cheap as the price. But what is inside is what really counts and that is absolutely magnificent. Seven complete operas captured live in variable but mainly very good sound, from the Lucrezia Borgia of 1965 at Carnegie Hall, that made her an overnight superstar (a truly amazing performance, pure bel canto) to the Naples Gemma di Vergy of 1975. A very good survey of her best decade, when the Caballé sound had no rival in the world, it saves for posterity some of her best roles, including her legendary Norma of Orange (1974), apart from her Arabella (Rome, 1973), Salome (Rome, 1971), Adriana Lecouvreur (Paris, 1975) and Butterfly (Madrid, 1968). Many collectors may have some of these performances (they have been released previously by several labels at fullprice) and I had all of them. But for the price this is a neat way of having a great sample of Caballé's art in a very small space (14 CDs on clear sleeves and a thin but cute booklet). Tho you still have to look elsewhere for the Parisina of Canegie Hall (1974), an amazing performance, pure magic, that have to be heard to be beleived. Unfortunately in the Norma of Orange her breathtaking "Dormono entrambi" scene is missing, as it is in all previous pirate issues, a mistake of the original release that all the following ones have copied! Fortunately, there is a recording on film of this Orange performance (regarded by Caballé herself as the best of her entire career and available on DVD) which is absolutely complete. In any case, a must for anyone interested in great singing. And at this price you have to be mad to let it pass."
7000 stars for for the operas. 2 stars for the booklet
Claudia N. Davidsen | Ruskin, FL | 08/17/2009
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This is an update of an earlier review. I continue to love all the performances in this 7-opera box set, and find myself returning to it frequently--sometimes to cherry pick, but sometimes to listen to an entire work. Caballe fans will love this for the early performances, ranging from 1965 - 1975. The Lucrezia Borgia is the 1965 Carnegie Hall performance. The audience went berserk and for good cause. If you are a real sentimental romanticist, you will appreciate the Butterfly with Bernabe Marti. The Norma is the historic 1974 Orange performance. Adriana Lecouvreur: Adriana's Maurizio is Placido Domingo. The booklet, however, is a POC! The "...rare historic photos...": there are precisely none. There are few photos, and nothing special. The more I look at that booklet, the less I like it.
Regarding Lucrezia: Played it this morning. Bless her heart, Madame's stage scream at the end is so real that my husband ran in to see which finger I had cut off. Yeah. He thought it was me.
I still like this set for driving music. You can cover a lot of road with this one set."
Caballe's Lucrezia 'full of such sweet poison'
Gerard Fagan | Dublin Ireland | 06/04/2008
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Monserrat Caballe in her performance of Donizetti's 'Lucrezia Borgia' intimates very quickly what all the fuss was about.She is instantly cast as queen of bel canto in Donizetti's fiendishly difficult role and is well flanked by Alain Vanzo as her fly-blow Gennaro. One is left at the end lamenting that she has too much german repertoire to sing. Leave german to the germans is what I say and let Caballe concentrate on what she does best. Viva L'Ítalia!"