Rating: 
Summary: Paris recital b/w 1958
Review: The triumphant Maria Callas and the brilliant Tito Gobbi are here a revelation for those to whom opera is only and too simply listening for beautiful sounds. It's true that Callas' high notes are on occasion acidic at this Paris debut and that Gobbi tends to bark from time to time. But these are criticisms best suited to people who'd no more look at an opera singer than stare at a radio. If one listens externally for purity of notes, one will in spots be disappointed. But if one is open to how incarnational an art Callas and Gobbi practiced, the supreme suitability of phrasing to the required emotion, the brilliance of facial expression and body movement overwhelm any quibbles as to this or that note not being perfectly in place. In short, neither of these great artists is merely singing notes. They're inside their roles and singing the hell out of them. As a singing lesson, this is about as good as it gets.
Rating: 
Summary: "Singing Actors", Not Merely 'Opera Singers.'"
Review: The triumphant Maria Callas and the brilliant Tito Gobbi are here a revelation for those to whom opera is only and too simply listening for beautiful sounds. It's true that Callas' high notes are on occasion acidic at this Paris debut and that Gobbi tends to bark from time to time. But these are criticisms best suited to people who'd no more look at an opera singer than stare at a radio. If one listens externally for purity of notes, one will in spots be disappointed. But if one is open to how incarnational an art Callas and Gobbi practiced, the supreme suitability of phrasing to the required emotion, the brilliance of facial expression and body movement overwhelm any quibbles as to this or that note not being perfectly in place. In short, neither of these great artists is merely singing notes. They're inside their roles and singing the hell out of them. As a singing lesson, this is about as good as it gets.
Rating:
Summary: Paris recital b/w 1958
Review: This DVD was previously issued in some markets as "The Paris recital". The evening was hosted by Marie Claire magazine and attended by the creme of 50s Paris - including Bardot, Chaplin, Onassis, and the Windsors. The recital, needless to say, is excellent, a great document to a legendary singer. In the Tosca excerpt the performance of Tito Gobbi as Scarpia is superbly malevolent. There's even a moment of priceless humour as the unfortunate last minute stand-in for the scheduled tenor gaffes by briefly relapsing into the local French version after his big aria. Callas remains totally unfazed.TECHNICAL: Running time 91 minutes, mainly black and white except for a short introduction to the Palais Garnier where the recital was filmed and end titles, which are in colour. The DVD subtitles include English, French and very usefully 'libretto' - which allows one to follow the text of Norma, Il Trovatore, and Tosca in Italian, but during the intervals subtitles Paul Tchernia's French commentary in French. But be warned that not all of the other EMI Callas DVDs have this option.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent addition to a Callas collection
Review: What I have enjoyed the most is watching the contrasts of this performance to the Callas Covent Garden video recording. Here, Callas is at her glamourous best. For example, the TOSCA in this recording presents a coutured diva whose dramatics are down a notch from the CG performance. Vocally, I think she is better here - but dramatically, the CG performance is superior.
I am glad to have this, if only to compare the two performances of ACT II TOSCA. It is also an excellent lesson in the grace and deportment of a true opera star. Such style! Such expression! (The concert portion of this is similar to the Hamburg recording.)
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