Editorial Product Review: :Anyone discovering this album who had never heard or heard of Luciano Pavarotti would immediately recognize greatness, a one-of-a-kind, one-per-generation (maybe) talent and personality that commands attention, respect, and yes, even love. These 35 selections are an astonishing achievement: Taken, for the most part from the tenor's prime--the 1970s and '80s (although there are four earlier and three from 2003)--what we hear is golden tone, impeccable diction, an innate sense of style and line and where the music should be going, absolutely natural phrasing, an evenness of production from C to (shining) ...
Editorial Product Review: :The labels that are now gathered under the Universal Classics umbrella have a pretty impressive scorecard in the area of classical compilations. We've seen The Greatest Opera Show on Earth, The Yellow Guide: Classical Music, Best of the Millennium, and now there's The No. 1 Opera Album. But that's no surprise, since Universal has some of the finest interpreters in its catalogue to draw from. This two-CD set (at the price of one), for example, brings together the likes of Cecilia Bartoli, Renée Fleming, Luciano Pavarotti, Kiri Te Kanawa, Sir Georg Solti, ...
Editorial Product Review: essential recording:The score for La Bohème comes to glowing life under Herbert von Karajan's baton, and Mirella Freni and Luciano Pavarotti make beautiful music together as the ill-fated lovers. The smaller parts are wonderfully sung, the comedy sharply profiled, and the pathos contained in such a way that the opera's ending proves remarkably gripping. London's sound is excellent. --Ted Libbey
Editorial Product Review: essential recording:These excerpts were taken from the recording that has established itself as the standard by which all others should be measured. Herbert von Karajan's orchestra is no less than perfect, as much a virtuosic performer as the singers, evoking each moment's unique mood. Can there be any doubt that Luciano Pavarotti and Mirella Freni were born to sing Puccini? Their sweet, creamy voices splendidly blend, creating a complete aural portrait of the bohemians' souls. Elizabeth Harwood is a wonderfully high-strung Musetta, with the vocal talent to support her many moods. ...
Editorial Product Review: essential recording:Ordinarily, it pays to be wary of collections such as these, which often promise a lot but deliver a mishmash of disconnected excerpts. This disc, however, is something of an exception: you really do get just about all of Puccini's best arias, which is possible, because he didn't write so many operas that choosing the best moments becomes a matter of the producer's personal taste. Also, Puccini's operas are so popular that every major label has excellent complete recordings of all of them, so in making this compilation it was ...
Editorial Product Review: essential recording:Ordinarily, it pays to be wary of collections such as these, which often promise a lot but deliver a mishmash of disconnected excerpts. This disc, however, is something of an exception: you really do get just about all of Puccini's best arias, which is possible, because he didn't write so many operas that choosing the best moments becomes a matter of the producer's personal taste. Also, Puccini's operas are so popular that every major label has excellent complete recordings of all of them, so in making this compilation it was ...
Editorial Product Review:Album Description:Best Callas 100 (part of the Best Classics 100 series) features 6 CDs of the best and most popular operatic arias and duets sung by legendary soprano Maria Callas from her EMI catalog of complete operas and recital albums. Each CD contains approx. 16-17 tracks. CD 1 The Operas of Bellini CD 2 The Operas of Donizetti and Rossini CD 3 The Operas of Verdi CD 4 The Operas of Puccini CD 5 French Operatic Heroines CD 6 Dramatic Heroines
Editorial Product Review: essential recording:This Karajan Falstaff has much to recommend it: Fedora Barbieri's Mistress Quickly is a force of nature, Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, only slightly affected, is a liquid, appealing Alice Ford, and Luigi Alva and the young Anna Moffo are ideal as the young lovers, Fenton and Nanetta. But the star--as it should be--is Tito Gobbi in the title role. As is usual with this great singing actor, his characterization comes from within--his is a Falstaff born to be deflated, arrogant and self-deluding on a level that is actually funny. And the nice ...
Editorial Product Review: essential recording:This Karajan Falstaff has much to recommend it: Fedora Barbieri's Mistress Quickly is a force of nature, Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, only slightly affected, is a liquid, appealing Alice Ford, and Luigi Alva and the young Anna Moffo are ideal as the young lovers, Fenton and Nanetta. But the star--as it should be--is Tito Gobbi in the title role. As is usual with this great singing actor, his characterization comes from within--his is a Falstaff born to be deflated, arrogant and self-deluding on a level that is actually funny. And the nice ...
Editorial Product Review: essential recording:Lucia was another one of Callas's signature roles; in fact, one might argue that she made people listen to it in a manner they had neglected since its inception. Long the territory of canary-like high sopranos with no interest in drama (e.g., Lily Pons), Callas brought the role into the same dramatic focus it had been created for. At its premiere in 1835, members of the audience wept audibly at Lucia's lunacy. With her darker tone and psychological probing, Callas made us hear what was in the poor girl's soul--she ...
On paper, the Mio DigiWalker P550 looks to be an attractive gadget for the mobile professional, combining the capabilities of a PDA and GPS into one device. However, its poor battery life and subpar navigation skills tell a different story.
Though it won't appeal to the masses quite yet, the Nokia N800 Internet Tablet is a nice, portable device for on-the-go Web browsing, and it has some worthy upgrades.
Though it's expensive, the Sony VAIO VGN-TX670P delivers a great combination of business and entertainment features, long battery life, and unparalleled connectivity in an incredibly ultraportable package.