<< 1 >>
Rating: 
Summary: Good for the Beginner
Review: Although the reviewer above knows far more than I about opera, I think this was an excellent book for getting the feel of the history of tenors. I acknowledge that there are errors, but as a basic starter book, I enjoyed it very much. As a devoted Jose Carreras fan, I was amused that the author quoted him as saying one of his dreams was to sing the title role of Manon Lescaut (a 15 year old soprano). Almost anyone would love to see that (especially the costumes! ).
Rating: 
Summary: THE GREAT TENORS FALL SHORT.
Review: It takes courage and little responsibility to provide and develop a ranking of past and present great tenors into a book of world-wide appeal without a thorough search, knowledge and listening experience. I doubt whether Helena ever heard or listened to recordings of Giacomo Lauri-Volpi (1894-1979) otherwise she would have included him among the greats. Giacomo is tops, perhaps even greater than Enrico. I am saying perhaps because it would be unfair to compare Caruso's archival records even boosted by digital refinements with Lauri-Volpi's fine and well preserved operatic highlight records (currently available on CDs) of the early forties. Lauri-Volpi's voice intelligently combined the sensuous beauty of the young Carreras' legato singing with Pavarotti, Domingo or Melchior's resounding high C's.
Rating: 
Summary: THESE TENORS ARE TOPS
Review: The phenomenal success of the Three Tenors concerts featuring Luciano Pavarotti, Placido Domingo, and Jose Carreras leaves little doubt that tenors are the chosen voices - they receive the most romantic roles in opera, and their high notes elicit shouts of "Bravissimo!"As well as the current big three listed above The Great Tenors, a luxe coffee table volume, also features twelve other renowned singers: Enrico Caruso, Beniamino Gigli, Tito Shipa, Lauritz Melchior, Richard Tauber, Jussi Bjorling, Mario del Monaco, Giuseppe di Stefano, Franco Corelli, Carlo Bergonzi, Nicolai Gedda, and Alfredo Kraus. Accompanying the volume is a 77-minute CD with such beloved arias as Leoncavallo's "Vesti la giubba" sung by the incomparable Caruso; Wagner's "Wintersturme" offered by Lauritz Melchios; Pavorotti's unforgettable "Messa da Requiem" by Verdi, plus many more audience pleasers. Fascinating glimpses into the personal and professional lives of these golden voices informs and entertains. Arguably the most legendary of all opera stars is Enrico Caruso. When he sang a few bars for the fabled Puccini, the great composer asked, "Who sent you to me, God?" Yet, Caruso's fantastic voice alone does not explain his popularity among many who had never entered an opera house. Such was his renown among New Yorkers that a tumultuous crowd gathered outside his hotel "the moment Armistice was declared and refused to budge until the great man had sung The Star Spangled Banner and the British, French and Italian anthems from his ninth-floor balcony." Surely the most famous heldentenor of all time is the great Dane himself - Lauritz Melchior, whose career lasted almost 40 years. Known for achieving success with even the most difficult Wagnerian roles, the 6' 3 ½" Norseman also had an indefatigable sense of humor (sometimes to the chagrin of his leading ladies). Deemed first a great musician and then a great singer, Austrian Richard Tauber "was once called "'a Jekyll-and-Hyde tenor' due to his excellence in singing both Mozart and operetta and light songs." After appearing in the film "Blossom Time," he became a matinee idol in Britain, where he gained a reputation as a lady-killer with boundless charm. Caruso's widow once told Swedish Jussi Bjorling, "Jussi, you are the only one worthy of dear Rico's mantle." This may have been true as Bjorling, like Caruso, had uncommon gifts permitting him to "excel in every area of the tenor repertoire." While surely blessed with a rare voice and distinctive range, an accompanist described him as "obstinate, difficult, taciturn, and unusually lazy," finding all manner of excuses not to rehearse. Stories and music abound in The Great Tenors, which also boasts seldom seen archival photos of the men who possessed some of this century's finest voices. This assiduously researched volume will be a pleasure for any opera buff, and is a valuable contribution to the archives of musicology.
Rating:
Summary: Good for the Beginner
Review: This coffeetable book was obviously intended for those shallow pseudo-operaphiles who actually think an outing by three certain tenors (two of which should have retired a decade ago) is opera. However, even thumbing through it shows so many errors that it's useless even for them. A few examples are a photo of Lauritz Melchior from LOHENGRIN shows him with Lotte Lehmann (who is given another name by the author); the section on Jussi Bjoerling starts with a full-page picture that claims to be Bjoerling in MANON. First, the photo is Tito Schipa, not Bjoerling, and MANON wasn't one of Bjoerling's roles anyway (he did sing Puccini's MANON LESCAUT), the following page has a photo of his that says TOSCA (doubtful since the character is writing which happens in act 3 and the costume isn't appropriate for that); and then the author claims a photo with Bjoerling and Tebaldi is from a telecast of LA BOHEME from the Met. Wrong again. The shot was made during a program called "Producer's Showcase" in which they performed the last half of the first act. A Met telecast of LA BOHEME wouldn't happen for another 20+ years. These are just errors found on a casual look. I'd hate to think how many waft their way through the text! Did anyone bother to proof this book or where they all hoping for big sales by plastering Domingo on the cover? Sure seems that way. The book has a tenor CD but so does one published by Black Dog. There are also any number of tenor compilations available from any CD outlet. Definitely a book to be avoided and neophytes would be done no favors by being given a copy as a gift.
Rating: 
Summary: an error-filled waste of money
Review: This coffeetable book was obviously intended for those shallow pseudo-operaphiles who actually think an outing by three certain tenors (two of which should have retired a decade ago) is opera. However, even thumbing through it shows so many errors that it's useless even for them. A few examples are a photo of Lauritz Melchior from LOHENGRIN shows him with Lotte Lehmann (who is given another name by the author); the section on Jussi Bjoerling starts with a full-page picture that claims to be Bjoerling in MANON. First, the photo is Tito Schipa, not Bjoerling, and MANON wasn't one of Bjoerling's roles anyway (he did sing Puccini's MANON LESCAUT), the following page has a photo of his that says TOSCA (doubtful since the character is writing which happens in act 3 and the costume isn't appropriate for that); and then the author claims a photo with Bjoerling and Tebaldi is from a telecast of LA BOHEME from the Met. Wrong again. The shot was made during a program called "Producer's Showcase" in which they performed the last half of the first act. A Met telecast of LA BOHEME wouldn't happen for another 20+ years. These are just errors found on a casual look. I'd hate to think how many waft their way through the text! Did anyone bother to proof this book or where they all hoping for big sales by plastering Domingo on the cover? Sure seems that way. The book has a tenor CD but so does one published by Black Dog. There are also any number of tenor compilations available from any CD outlet. Definitely a book to be avoided and neophytes would be done no favors by being given a copy as a gift.
<< 1 >>
| 
