Released: 1992
Tracks: “La forza del destino” Overture; [from Aida] Triumphal March; Ballet Music; Celeste Aida…; Se Quel Guerrier io fossi… [from Nabucco] Prisoners’ Chorus; [from Rigoletto] Questa e quella; La Donna e mobile; [from Il Trovatore] Anvil Chorus; [from La Traviata] Prelude; E strano e strano; Pura Siccome un angelo; Lunge de lei…De’ miei bollenti spiriti; Finale
Best track: N/A
Track to skip: N/A
Hm, opera. This is a cheapo compilation put out on the “Classical Heritage” label. There is very little info on what’s here…only that track 1 is by the Slavonic Philharmonic Orchestra, tracks 2-5 & 7-14 are by the Nuremberg Symphony Orch. and track 6 is by the Ljubljana Radio Orch. There is no information on the main vocalists. I was wondering if this would be all orchestral since no performers are listed, but it was not to be since operatic vocals started up during the Aida highlights. I know squat about opera, and I don’t really enjoy it, so it’s hard for me to say much about this recording. As you can guess, this ain’t one of mine. The only pieces I was familiar with were La Donna e mobile & Anvil Chorus. So, naturally, the stuff I tended to like more were those from Rigoletto and Il Travatore. The liner notes say that La Traviata is one of Verdi’s most popular, but it didn’t terribly move me. I know that if I actually knew the stories (no librettos included here) or understood Italian, then maybe I could enjoy it more. I don’t really care for opera anyway, so that was a strike against this to begin with. It’s not ‘bad’ by any means though. Clearly the singers and musicians are immensely talented. The quality is pretty good on this thing and there aren’t any mistakes that I can hear. So, regardless of how much I enjoy opera, I still wasn’t too offended by this. It’s really just impossible for me to review stuff like this: music I’m not familiar with in a language I can’t possibly understand. I’m willing to bet there are better “Verdi Greatest Hits” out there. The grade is not really a reflection of the music itself or the performances of the singers, just of my enjoyment.
Rating: 71
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