Bel Canto Spectacular
2010; Routledge; Volume: 66; Issue: 4 Linguagem: Inglês
ISSN
2769-4046
Autores Tópico(s)Theater, Performance, and Music History
ResumoBel Canto Spectacular. Juan Diego Florez, tenor; Anna Netrebko, Patrizia Ciofi, sopranos; Placido Domingo, tenor; Mariusz Kwiecien, baritone; Daniela Barcellona, mezzo soprano; Orquestra de la Comunitat Valenciana; Daniel Oren, conductor. (Decca 478 0314; 76:50) Donizetti: Amici miei, che allegro giorno! (La figlia del reggimento); maitresse du roi? (La Favorite); Venti scudi? (L'elisir d'amore); Linda! (Linda di Chamounix); Partir degg'io (Lucrezia Borgia). Bellini: Fini . . . me lassa! . . . Vieni fra queste braccia. (I Puritani). Rossini: Di che son reo? . . . D'alma celeste (Il viaggio a Reims); Partir deggio'io . . . T'amo qual s'ama un angelo (Otello). When esteemed voice teacher Herald Stark would encounter young singers whose vocalism was too effortful, he would often direct them to seek out the recordings of Richard Crooks, a lyric tenor who sang lead roles at the Metropolitan Opera in the 1930s and 1940s. Stark regarded Crooks as the epitome of graceful, healthy vocalism and an ideal singer for anyone (not just tenors) to emulate. If Herald Stark were with us today, one can well imagine him directing his young charges to listen to the recordings of Peruvian tenor Juan Diego Florez for the same reason. And of all the recordings which Florez has made in his relatively young career, none embodies beautiful singing as much as his most recent release, aptly titled Bel Canto Spectacular. Unlike some of the tenor's previous disks that are so heavily laden with vocal fireworks, this collection achieves a commendable balance between dolce and brio, while also presenting the contrasting shades of bel canto's great triumvirate: Donizetti, Bellini, and Rossini. The only misstep of any kind is the opening track, which features Florez in one of the most spectacular bel canto showpieces for tenor, Ah mes amis from Donizetti's La Fille du regiment. Undoubtedly because it has already appeared on two of the tenor's previous recital collections, it is heard here in its Italian translation. Florez unleashes the nine high Cs with typical ease and does what he can to make this cumbersome text work, but the ultimate impression is of Fred Astaire dancing in hiking boots. The arias that follow-from La Favorite, Linda di Chamounix, Lucrezia Borgia, and L'elisir d'amore-are an exercise in sublime flawlessness, with Florez demonstrating principles of bel canto in every measure. One commendable choice he makes is to refresh the most familiar aria on the disk, Una furtiva lagrima, by ornamenting the second verse and crowning it with an unfamiliar coda that rises to a radiant high C instead of the customary A. Yet Florez sings this so musically and sweetly that it feels utterly right and not the least bit jarring or self-serving. As superbly as Florez sings these arias, he is perhaps even more impressive in the all-star duets that round out the disk. He is joined by Russian superstar Anna Netrebko for the last act duet from Bellini's I Puritani, and the two seem completely caught up in the ecstasy of their two characters rather than in the perils of Bellini's stratospheric score. Another soprano, Patrizia Ciofi, partners Florez in the exultant love duet from Donizetti's Linda di Chamounix, an opera that has not been seen at the Met since the days of Lily Pons and the aforementioned Richard Crooks, and one that definitely deserves revival. …
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