The Metropolitan Opera: Centennial Gala

Rating:
Summary: Opera Centennial of the Century
Review: 3 hours and 49 minutes of excellent and moving performances by present and past opera singers and conductors with the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra. 23 operatic vocals including arias, duets, trios, a sextet, and a septet. There are two overtures and a ballet. Nota bene that an older DVD player had terrible sound problems with this and other Pioneer Classics like La Boheme. This Centennial Gala and La Boheme sound fabulous on the new DVD player. The lighting, colors, and perspectives are as good as you will see on television and better than VHS. The English subtitles are optional. There is a DVD 58 page history of the Metropolitan Opera. This is a jewel in my operatic collection. Enjoy!

Rating:
Summary: Superb
Review: A priceless treasury of some of the greatest voices and conductors of all times all in one place. Excellent sound.
You'll love Leona Mitchell. What happened to her? She is the obvious successor to Leontyne Price, my heroine of opera.

Rating:
Summary: Superb
Review: A priceless treasury of some of the greatest voices and conductors of all times all in one place. Excellent sound.
You'll love Leona Mitchell. What happened to her? She is the obvious successor to Leontyne Price, my heroine of opera.

Rating:
Summary: The greatest show on earth
Review: First of all, I would like to thank Amazon and Pioneer Classics for bring us the chance of enjoy such a wonder like this "Centennial Gala" in DVD format. I love classical music, and of course, I adore the opera. And this is the perfect ocassion to FEEL and ENJOY the talent of all the magnificent artists that keep music alive. There is only one objection I would like to say about this DVD edition. I understand that the gala was too long and cuts must be done, but I wouldn't mind paying more money as long as I would have the entire gala, because is in my opinion, an unequalled celebration. For example, there was a magnificent quintet of Bizet's Carmen with excelent voices of members of the Met, which is not included in this DVD release. I'm sorry but mutilations like these are not wellcome. As student of a Music Conservatory and pianist, I consider that this marvelous Gala must be released ABSOLUTELY COMPLETE, in two or three DVDs if it's necessary. Anyway, thanks again for give us the opportunity of enjoy the Centennial Gala: the greatest show on earth of all times.

Rating:
Summary: I could have watched the whole thing --
Review: I could have watched the whole thing, which lasted for six hours, but for some reason the people who put out both the video and the DVD decided to trim it by two hours. Why? Since this was a once-in-a-lifetime celebration, why cut a third of it?
I taped this myself when it was originally broadcast, so I have it all, but my enthusiasm for a couple of the very performeances that were edited out have created some slight damage to those parts of my twenty year-old tape. I hoped I'd find the complete performance when I bought this, and was really disgusted when I realized how much had been cut. Among many others that I have often enjoyed were: the sextet (or is it the septet) from La Italiana in Algeri, with the wonderful Edda Moser doing her high notes, Ara Berberian sounding out like a bass drum; Neil Shicoff and the Met male chorus doing the Kleinzach song from Les Contes d'Hoffmann. this was the first time I ever saw Shicoff and I was a fan of his from that point. If I'd been given the choice of who or what to cut, I could have found some performances I could have lived without, but for this special occasion, I would really have voted to leave them all in. When will we see their like again?

Rating:
Summary: A mishandled jewel
Review: I now own this DVD as well as the VHS original, the only improvement is visual, I find the recording very very poor. I would venture to say that with proper adjustments I can get better sound and volume from the VHS. Should you buy the DVD ? Yes ! Yet don't expect much, and try to enjoy it as a photo/video album of dying stars.

Rating:
Summary: Great sound
Review: I second all the positive reviews posted here. As for the few who claim this DVD has bad sound...check your DVD player, nothing's wrong with the DVD. Maybe the player just won't play this DVD, I don't know, perhaps you have an old model. I love this DVD, it has most of my favorite singers and they're all wonderful!

Rating:
Summary: The Recording Crime of the Century
Review: The 1983 Metropolitan Opera Centennial Gala was perhaps the classical concert of the century, with most of the greatest, still-living voices in attendance and participating. But Pioneer Classics DVD recording of this concert is the recording crime of the century. From the opening notes of the Overture to the Bartered Bride to the final "Happy Birthday", the sound is so grossly distorted that it is almost totally unlistenable. When I played the first copy of the disc I bought, I thought that there was something wrong with my speakers or my DVD player, but other DVDs sounded wonderful. I returned the first disc and ordered a second thinking that the first was simply badly copied. But the second disc is just as bad. Pioneer Classics should withdraw this DVD from production until a recording worthy of the event can be produced. Please don't waste your money on this DVD. If you love this music and these performers as I do, you will only be enraged at the injustice which has been done to both.

Rating:
Summary: Wonderful
Review: The Gala DVD was as good as I remember the Gala. What a pleasure to hear and see the singers from 1983. Thanks for the DVD release.

Rating:
Summary: Wonderful
Review: The Gala DVD was as good as I remember the Gala. What a pleasure to hear and see the singers from 1983. Thanks for the DVD release.