Search - Akie Amou, Roswitha Grabmeier Müller, Thomas Ruf :: Rossini: Matilde di Shabran / Amou · R. Müller · Ruf · Corti

For archivists, not listeners

cameron161 | Montreal | 09/12/2003

(2 out of 5 stars)

"I have two recordings of this opera - this Bongiovanni/Corti/Amou CD based on Rossini's Vienna version of 1822; and a tape of his initial Rome version of 1821, performed as an oratorio in Paris in 1981. Both versions are authentic, but the Paris recording flows with an immediacy and urgency that make this CD set a real let-down in comparison. I particularly regret the absence on the CD of a perfectly electrifying tenor aria in Act 2 (borrowed, actually, by Rossini from an earlier opera - but that's Rossini). If the Paris production were available on CD, I would recommend it without reserve and would pay almost any price for it."

Exhilerating

John Cragg | Delta(greater Vancouver), B.C Canada | 06/09/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"This is a rather uneven opera and performance. The libretto is weak and indeed silly, but for Rossini, especially when we are only talking about the audio part of a performance, that is not very relevant and this work has a great deal of complicated and exciting music. The conducting by and large is very good with a great deal of enthusiasm, moving things along in a brisk though not very nuanced fashion, and the singing is by and large accomplished. The exception, unfortunately, is Akie Amou singing the title role. She has a huge and very agile voice that can be beautiful, but it is not always under control and her high loud notes, especially in a crescendo, often become ugly shrieks -- mal canto rather than bel canto. Despite this, this is a very enjoyable set, recommended to those who are beyond the standard Rossini works -- which are indeed better material and have better performances."