Traviata-Comp Opera

As many reviewers have noted (not only here but elsewhere), Sutherland is vocally spectacular. What a voice she had!!! I own many of her recordings and am always flabbergasted by her coloratura skills and her trills and spectacular high notes and breath control. But ohhhhhh ... in the slower passages especially, it is sometimes so painful - she has a beautiful voice but she moons a lot and there's no or little drama. What a pity she never pushed herself but I suppose that explains her vocal longevity. Callas is the other famous Violetta. Yes, Callas is very famous. It's Callas this and Callas that. Callas is best at this and best at that - Tosca, Turandot, Norma, Violetta. But oh... her best recordings are in mono!! Then of course, there is Cotrubas in Kleiber's recording in excellent stereo. So what's wrong with that one? I don't really know. I think it may have to do with the fact that it's too hard driven - Kleiber drives the party music very hard and he's rather mechanical and rigid. And the recording sounds rather harsh. Perhaps it is the conducting, perhaps it is the sounds engineers and the recording. Whatever the reason (which I can't quite pinpoint), that recording also never clicked for some reason even though I tried hearing it over and over again many times.

So, like the reviewer below, I never really enjoyed this opera...until I heard Solti's recording!! What makes Solti's special? I think it is a confluence of many factors. First of all, the Decca digital sound is absolutely gorgeous and beautifully balanced. Voices and orchestra are all clear - not too close, not too far. The sound itself ravishes the senses. But sound alone is insufficient. Solti's conducting is also fantastic, helped by the superb playing of the orchestra. The orchestra is ravishing and tender where needed - listen to the opening of Act 1 and Act 3. Where needed, the orchestra is light, fast and deft - listen to the party music - it is light, fun and skips along with a lot of joy. At the climaxes, there is that "BANG!" that is superbly judged - not too bombastic, not too reticent. Then of course, there is Gheorghiu herself. her voice is not as beautiful as some people make it out to be. It DEFINITELY IS beautiful. But not in the class of say, Renee Fleming or even Karita Mattila both of whom I think have more beautiful voices than Gheorghiu in this Traviata. Nevertheless, Gheorghiu's voice IS VERY BEAUTIFUL and makes you want to listen to her again and again. Her coloratura is not perfect either. Cotrubas has better coloratura. But whatever, Gheorghiu is still superb and her vocal acting is so good that you just overlook her faults. Frank Lopardo is the other magnificent singer. I actually prefer Lopardo to Domingo in Kleiber's recording. Maybe it has to do with the recording rather than the singer. But I actually find Lopardo's singing more magnetic - more passionate and more memorable. Nucci is excellent as Germont. Not voiceless as some mean guy has said. Added to this is the fact that this is a live recording with all the 'live' atmosphere that is so hard to define. The record is, how should I say, "living"?

The end result is that the sum adds up to much more than its parts. Golden age of singing over? No!!!! Perhaps there is a lack of successor to Nilsson and Sutherland. But otherwise, there are still lots of outstanding opera singers around. Only narrow minded people who are not willing to accept the varying interpretations of singers would live in a world in which the golden age of singing is over. For people like me, there are still lots of singers around who can rival opera singers of yesteryears.

Conclusion: My personal judgement is that this is the best La Traviata around on the market and I strongly recommend it to anyone as a first choice or as a sole representation of the work in your collection.