Search - Marcelo Alvarez :: The Verdi Tenor

A Verdi crooner, actually

Santa Fe Listener | Santa Fe, NM USA | 03/07/2009

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Marcelo Alvarez is a stalwart at the Met, and his stylish lyric tenor, which has a very appealing tone, comes in handy for many roles. It naturally fits Donizetti and Rossini, but in these days of tenor scarcity, it's ample enough for Puccnini. And Vrdi? The opening item on this nicely produced recital is Celestre Aida, and it sounds like a singer marking his part in rehearsal -- we are hearing mezza voce, at worst crooning. If Rhadames is a ludircrous stretch, maybe Riccardo in Un ballo? Well, not that, either, because besides lacking weight and heft vocally, Alvarez doesn't have the right heroic swagger. He confines himself more or less to the same lyric pathos number after number, with much sentimental swooning.



Almost nothing here suits him, and it's unfortunate that he attempts the heavier roles, because in the big aria from Ernani, the singer shows that Verdi's early writing, which is closer to Donizetti, would work well. The voice strains on top and anytime he pushes it. Alvarez is an admirable singer in many ways, but here, I kept being reminded of Aesop's fable about the frog who wnated to be as big as an ox."

Awe-inspiring Verdi tenor

La Gioconda | Orange County, CA | 02/14/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Another outstanding CD from a very special artist.The beauty of the voice, range of colors and dynamics are unsurpassed. No other tenor sings "Celeste Aida" with more refinement,"Di'tu se fedele"(Un Ballo in Maschera),"O tu che l'alma adora"(Ernani) with such elegance.



In "Otello"the word "Gloria" in "Oh! Gloria!" is beyond brilliant. "Morta" evokes profound sadness and pain,"Ah, un'altro baccio" is full of tenderness. This is the ultimate example of acting through voice. Bravissimo Álvarez!"

Verdi arias done right

Michael E. Brady | rome, ny United States | 04/04/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"The idea that Un Ballo in Maschera is a heavy tenor role is totally alien to its performance history since Riccardo was a central role in the repertoires of Alessandro Bonci, Beniamino Gigl, Jan Peerce, Jussi Bjorling, etc. none of whom was a candidate for Otello. Signor Alvarez sings this music with clear tone and a good legato. The Trovatore arias are sung with a vocal brilliance totally beyond any current tenor with really thrilling top notes. The Luisa Miller scena receives its best overall performance since Richard Tucker's Met performances with the cabaletta deserving special praise for its thrilling delivery. I do have a slight problem with the Celeste Aida since he should have sung the aria in a lyrical manner for the whole performance. Celeste Aida is, afterall, a love song not an invitation to bray. The Otello piece is well done but it wouldn't sound this good in a big house. The arias from I Lombardi, Ernani, Don Carlo, and Forza are very well sung with the Forza aria receiving its best performance since Tucker and Corelli. The tenor has a really beautiful and thrilling sound and to judge from the broadcast Trovatore he's able to shine in the opera house as well as on a CD. Lastly, the Macbeth aria "Ah, la paterna mano" is heartfelt."