Rating: 
Summary: GOOD PICTURE! GOOD SOUND! STUPENDOUS SINGING!
Review: Ignore the "basher" who says the sound and film is not good. It is a DVD, the sound and video is fine. I happen to own this dvd, so I know, and I consider it one of my treasures. The singing by the very young Dame Joan is incomparable. The voice itself is so fresh and girlish. Yet so large and flexible. What she does with the coloratura fireworks is nothing short of spectacular.The highlights are too many to name. But for sure the mad scene from Hamlet is one of them. She tosses off coloratura scales and runs like they were nothing, staccatos like a machine gun, and her high notes are awesome! They are huge... yet full of ring and they are as clear as can be. Oh, yeah, they're also dead on and effortless. As for her celebrated trill, it's in full bloom here. She can do it flawlessly with ease and as high as high B! Absolutely the highlight of the entire set is another mad scene, the one from "Lucia di Lammermoor". Dame Joan sings this better than both of her legendary recordings for Decca Records. You have to see this one to believe it. I personally had my jaws dropped on the floor for the entire scene. Actually my jaws were dropped from the first aria of this monumental DVD to the last. This really is Dame Joan Sutherland in her prime. The very best. I give this the highest recommendation I can make.
Rating:
Summary: voice of splendor
Review: Joan Sutherland's most memorable takes on these arias were recorded decades ago, here, on this very dvd. She has since retired and will be remember as a very great artist indeed. Any one who loves the human voice will enjoy this dvd immensely, as I did. The singing is never less of stupendous. This captures one of the most beloved and talented soprano at the peak of her art.
Rating: 
Summary: Sutherland isn't great in my opinion
Review: Let me state that "Voice of the Century" is in itself purely an opinion. And I truly do not believe Sutherland deserves this title. Her voice in it's prime was unbearable to listen to at times because of it's shrillness, especially those HUGE (huge notes do not equal beautiful tone, as so many of you seem to think) high Eflats, E's, and F's. They blow out my eardrums. If you ask me, that's not pretty at all. And then later on in her career, starting even from as early as 1963, the voice started becoming mushy, mushy, mushy. And that's not pleasant either. Sounds like she has a frog in her throat. I can't tell you how many times when I listen to her, it makes me clear my throat or want to clear my throat. Listen to the pure voices of Price, Freni, Caballe, Gruberova, Tebaldi, Janowitz (especially Janowitz!!), Nilsson, Moffo, and Te Kanawa. Don't get me wrong, Sutherland had an excellent technique (hence one star instead of none), but I believe the negatives outweigh the positives. Opera is more than just making pretty sounds. Acting was terrible and voice acting wasn't on par either. And don't you dare jump on me for this review, cuz this is my opinion. You fans are not entitled to protect your precious Sutherland DVD's/CD's like guard dogs, and then say others' opinions don't count, cuz other people have the right to dislike something and follow suit with a negative review, just as much right as you have to post positive reviews. You are hence in return being disrespectful. Perhaps the earlier negative review has not seen the DVD, but I have, and I have the right to say I didn't enjoy it at all. So there, these are my thoughts.
Rating:
Summary: The ultimate display of singing
Review: No words can describe the perfection that Joan Sutherland displays in this dvd. If there is one operatic recording I can take to a desert island, it would certainly be this one. A whole galaxy of stars for this gem.
Rating: 
Summary: A testament of a great singer
Review: Nothing more needs to be said that has not been said (especially by the descriptive reviews here). Miss Sutherland sings all her signature arias and scenes perfectly. She is a true bel canto princess and will always be known for her voice and flexible technique. Get this DVD to cherish one of this century's most beloved sopranos.
Rating:
Summary: SUTHERLAND FANS' DREAM COME TRUE
Review: Opera lovers who consider themselves fans of Joan Sutherland's art will want to run out and buy this DVD as soon as possible. These performances (roughly 14 in all) are taken from Bell Telephone Hour telecasts from 1961 (eight months BEFORE her Metropolitan Opera debut)through 1968 and capture Miss Sutherland in her absolute prime. All are in color except for two: HAMLET and OTELLO in 1961. The picture quality is somewhat grainy, especially in the earlier color excerpts, but VAI has vastly improved the sound quality over their recently released VHS tapes of this material, especially the NORMA excerpt which was painfully distorted. Picture quality is the only reason to give this DVD less than a 5-star rating. Musically, it should be given a 10-star rating!... This is Sutherland at her greatest, vocally, with many of her signature roles represented: Lucia, Puritani, Sonnambula, Traviata and Lakme with a bit of more rare repertoire thrown in, such as Ernani, Tosca and Crispino E La Comare. Trills, roulades, arpeggios, staccatos and high notes are all brilliantly and flawlessly executed and the Lucia Mad Scene is the closest performance in prime vocal quality to her Met debut that we will ever hear (or see). The 1968 appearances in duet, quartet and sextet allow us to see Sutherland performing
with the likes of Tito Gobbi, Nicolai Gedda and Jerome Hines as an extra bonus. This DVD's 102 minutes fly by. You will want this release from VAI as a reminder of what great singing was like back in the 60's. VAI is to be applauded for continuing to release DVD's of televised performances of great artists in their prime. One can only hope many more such releases are planned.
Rating:
Summary: La Stupenda's greatest hits
Review: The Callas basher here obviously never heard the YOUNG Sutherland's voice (circa 1960-1968 here). In those days La Stupenda is world renowned for having the clearest, most crystline voice in the world. She's Justly famous for having one the most beautiful voice around. Trill for trill, runs for runs, high notes for high notes, and staccato for staccato, she's unbeatable. For over 30 years she ruled the operatic heaven as the Queen of bel canto. I think that's the reason the Callas crowd has always hated her. It is so plainly obvious that Sutherland is vastly superior to Callas vocally and technically. And her emergence in 1959 as Lucia made La Stupenda the overnight toast of the operatic world and certainly help force the Greek diva into an early retirement - not wanting to be second best. This collection of the toughest bel canto arias sung by La stupenda sets the standards by which all other coloraturas who follow should and must be judged by. No one, and I repeat no one, past, present and in the future are likely to compare favorably to Sutherland's command of the art of coloratura singing, let alone come close to these definitive interpretations of these most taxing arias ever written. If you want to hear mind boggling, jaw dropping singing that epitomizes a vocal virtuosa, this is the DVD for you. For the shere beauty and possibilities of the human voice, this collection of bel canto warhorses is invincible.
Rating:
Summary: Breathless and speechless
Review: The most breathtaking singing I've ever heard. And I've been an opera buff for over 50 years. Sutherland had the ultimate instrument...huge, lush, silvery, and capable of anything and everything.
What does Sutherland do on this DVD? She simply thrills and trills all the way through it.
There has never been and there will never be a singer with such astonishing God-given talent vocally. And in these early recordings of Dame Joan, she really showed that she was a fabulous actress too.
Do not miss this one. This is the best I've even heard - NO exceptions.
Rating:
Summary: To be treasured
Review: The reviewer who nastily shows his bottom and ridicules Sutherland's accent and sobriquet "La Stupenda" should be stood up against a wall and have old tomatoes thrown at him. What nonsense! She was a singer, for god's sake, not a linguist! So she couldn't pronounce Italian, so what! Incidentally, this reviewer (an Italian) who donated his invaluable time to crucify Sutherland's Italian accent could use a few lessons in English grammar. I'd seen Sutherland's Lucia (the MET version) on VHS and liked it (and have since bought it on DVD), and very much wanted to see this collection of arias. I was not disappointed. I dislike (as I do with Sills) so many of the tunes Sutherland chooses to excerpt that it's painful (like that minor or modal (I'm no musician) mad scene from Hamlet, or the Bell Song from Lakme, or the bouncy thing from the end of Sonambula, to name just three), but it was worth it just to see as well as hear her. Have you noticed that her eyebrows usually go up when she sings a high note? I found that in Lucia long ago. I recommend this DVD, these numbers received the deluxe treatment, sets, costumes, chorus members, and star-studded ensembles for the quartet and sextet. The mad scene from Lucia is breathtaking. I was disappointed in only one thing (beyond her selection of arias), and that was that Desdemona's final aria was truncated, I almost didn't buy the DVD when I read that (only The Willow Song), I was very unhappy, but am glad after all I bought it. I'll watch this DVD a lot of times. A note. Sills I think was just a nice person. Sutherland though a nice person always strikes me as having been a little cold, not much of a mixer (this could be completely wrong, it's just an impression I get from watching her), though she was close friends with Noel Coward. Callas on the other hand (and I'm about to take down my picture of her) was not a nice person. I have an example of her supercilious venom on a live CD I bought many years ago. She was just sublimely gifted. I love her voice, but (alas, I like to think well of my heroes) I do not love not her. Such cruelty is ridiculous. But not to end on a negative note, this DVD of Sutherland is well worth the money, and it's not very expensive either, oh yes, and the recording is fine, sound and picture.
Rating:
Summary: To be treasured
Review: The reviewer who nastily shows his bottom and ridicules Sutherland's accent and sobriquet "La Stupenda" should be stood up against a wall and have old tomatoes thrown at him. What nonsense! She was a singer, for god's sake, not a linguist! So she couldn't pronounce Italian, so what! Incidentally, this reviewer (an Italian) who donated his invaluable time to crucify Sutherland's Italian accent could use a few lessons in English grammar. I'd seen Sutherland's Lucia (the MET version) on VHS and liked it (and have since bought it on DVD), and very much wanted to see this collection of arias. I was not disappointed. I dislike (as I do with Sills) so many of the tunes Sutherland chooses to excerpt that it's painful (like that minor or modal (I'm no musician) mad scene from Hamlet, or the Bell Song from Lakme, or the bouncy thing from the end of Sonambula, to name just three), but it was worth it just to see as well as hear her. Have you noticed that her eyebrows usually go up when she sings a high note? I found that in Lucia long ago. I recommend this DVD, these numbers received the deluxe treatment, sets, costumes, chorus members, and star-studded ensembles for the quartet and sextet. The mad scene from Lucia is breathtaking. I was disappointed in only one thing (beyond her selection of arias), and that was that Desdemona's final aria was truncated, I almost didn't buy the DVD when I read that (only The Willow Song), I was very unhappy, but am glad after all I bought it. I'll watch this DVD a lot of times. A note. Sills I think was just a nice person. Sutherland though a nice person always strikes me as having been a little cold, not much of a mixer (this could be completely wrong, it's just an impression I get from watching her), though she was close friends with Noel Coward. Callas on the other hand (and I'm about to take down my picture of her) was not a nice person. I have an example of her supercilious venom on a live CD I bought many years ago. She was just sublimely gifted. I love her voice, but (alas, I like to think well of my heroes) I do not love not her. Such cruelty is ridiculous. But not to end on a negative note, this DVD of Sutherland is well worth the money, and it's not very expensive either, oh yes, and the recording is fine, sound and picture.
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