J. C Clark | Overland Park, KS United States | 07/14/2003
(4 out of 5 stars)
"There are arguments aplenty about whether a listener can really appreciate an opera when its "Greatest Hits" are extracted. That argument applies in spades on a disc such as this, which goes for the big, big guns from some of the most delightful vocal music ever composed.Nevertheless, there are many fine singers in here. This is no second-string collection of unknowns from Eastern Europe, though one of my favorite Mozart interpreters, Thomas Allen, is missing. And some of the versions included are relatively weak. But as a very reasonably priced introduction to Mozart's vocal music, this is quite listenable. Good tunes, good playing, usually fine singing, and a logical sequence makes this a tasty intro at a tasty price."