Search - Gioachino Rossini, Arthur Fagen, Vesselina Kasarova :: Vesselina Kasarova - Rossini Arias and Duets / Flórez, Fagan

Vocally Astounding

07/12/2001

(4 out of 5 stars)

"In terms of vocal power, talent and technique, this may well be the most impressive collection of Rossini arias on record. This is a unique, very powerful voice, with shades of the rare agility of a coloratura contralto, as we are told Malibran was.Much of the lightheartedness of Rossini's world is lost in these readings, though--and this will be a problem for many listeners accustomed to the aura of playfulness convention has taught us is central to Rossini's work, the tongue-in-cheek naivete of the Rossini Heroine. And while there IS at times more gravity in the readings than the music seems to demand, this untraditional interpretation also challenges many popular preconceptions about the a major composer of the mezzo/contralto repitoire. And when it works--wow. Kasarova's "Una volta c'era...Un soave non so che" from *La Cenerentola* is the most rivoting performance of the aria I have ever heard. With simply a bit more variation in her shadings, Kasarova will become even better than she is, which is really, really good."

An exquisite Falcon

Emma de Soleil | On a holiday In Ibiza, then back to the UK for stu | 02/03/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Madame Kasarova is an exquisite Falcon-Soprano (Natural Mezzo capable of doing soprano-roles) in the tradition of del los Angeles. Her mezzo-range is most powerful but she has acuti that would make sopranos pea-green with envy. I love her in Rossini and if you like romantic opera buy "Werther" with her as Charlotte, the most fantastic Charlotte since Victoria de los Angeles. She also AMAZING in Donizetti, esp. as Giovanna in "Anna Bolena". Enjoy this fabulous CD!"

Valuable for both the voices presented here

Ralph Moore | Bishop's Stortford, UK | 06/21/2010

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I haven't listened to this disc, which was recorded in 1998, for quite a while but revisiting it has reminded me how stellar are the voices of both Kasarove and Florez. He was only 25 at the time but already a mature and accomplished artist and his participation in three duets adds lustre to this recital. Kasarove has an extraordinary voice: its character is instantly recognisable and will not be confused with similarly gifted contraltos, mezzos or falcon sopranos such as Podles or Horne. That she has two and a half octaves of properly registered voice is evident; it has a rather shrill, piercing quality at the top, a plummy lower register, a quick, slightly tremulous vibrato and a breathy, smoky timbre, all of which combine to make the sound very individual - much more so than, say, DiDonato. She can negotiate runs, triplets and coloratura ornamentation with ease, although the voice has little of the smile we expect in the comic Rossinian roles and she thus always sounds rather stern, even when that is not quite what we want and even when we can hear that she is attempting to apply humour to her characterisation, that is how it tends to come over: as applied. Vocally, she affords the listener enormous pleasure and I do not want to suggest that she is in any sense bland. I seem to have heard less of her in recent years but she has a very successful career, branching out from Mozart, Rossini and Donizetti into Carmen, Charlotte ("Werther") and even Oktavian ("Der Rosenkavalier").



An attractive, if not especially original, selection of arias and duets is given here; the only peculiarity is the four minute duet from "Otello" using an arrangement allowing Kasarova rather than a tenor to sing the eponymous "Moor of Venice" - and if you can swallow that, you'll swallow anything. The accompaniments and conducting are considerate and discreet; nice playing and singing from the Munich orchestra and choir caught in exemplary sound."