Search - Giacomo Puccini, Gaetano Donizetti, Giuseppe Verdi :: A Tenors Valentine

This collection of previously released material is one of the best and least expensive featuring the Three Tenors, but its link to Valentine's Day, with red hearts, flowers, and a candy box added to the cartoon on the cover, is rather contrived. Most of the songs are about love and many (e.g., "Una furtiva lagrima," "Che gelida manina," the duet from Madame Butterfly, and "Recondita armonia") are about a Valentine's Day kind of love. But the aria from Gianni Schicchi is about love of a city, not a person, and many are about lost love ("Vesti la giubba," "E lucevan le stelle," the bitter end of Carmen, and "Addio fiorito asil.") And one ("La donna e mobile") has a cynicism unsuited to the lovers' day. Still, the selection is all prime material, and the singing (with a few trifling exceptions) is outstanding. Note that this is a compilation from various recordings, not an actual Three Tenors concert--and a few sopranos show up for duets. No texts or translations are provided; it would be unrealistic to expect them at this price. --Joe McLellan