Track Listing

Disc 1:

1. Fedora, opera: Amor ti vieta
2. La bohème, opera: Che gelida manina
3. Faust, opera: Salut demeure chaste et pure
4. Il Trovatore, opera: Di quella pira
5. La favorita, opera: Spirto gentil, ne'sogni miei (Romanza)
6. La forza del destino, opera: Solenne in quest'ora
7. L' Africaine, grand opera in 5 acts: Mi batte il cor...O paradiso!
8. Andrea Chénier, opera: Un dì all'azzurro spazio (Improvviso)
9. Pagliacci, opera: Recitar!...Vesti la giubba
10. Rigoletto, opera: Questa o quella
11. Rigoletto, opera: La donna è mobile
12. Il Trovatore, opera: Ah sì, ben mio
13. Aida, opera: Celeste Aïda
14. Tosca, opera: Recondita armonia
15. Tosca, opera: E lucevan le stelle
16. La forza del destino, opera: Della natal sua terra il padre...O tu che in seno agl'angeli
17. Die Königin von Saba, opera, Op. 27: Magiche note
18. Carmen, opera: La fleur que tu m'avais jetée
19. Les Huguenots, grand opera in 5 acts: Ah, qual soave vision...Bianca al par di neve
20. La Gioconda, opera in 4 acts: Cielo e mar
21. Otello, opera: Nell'ore arcane della sua lussuria...Ora e per sempre addio
22. Un ballo in maschera, opera: Di' tu se fedele
23. L'elisir d'amore, opera: Una furtiva lagrima

Disc 2:

1. Manon, opera in 5 acts: Je suis seul...Ah, fuyez, douce image
2. Lucia di Lammermoor, opera: Chi mi frena in tal memento? (Sextett)
3. La bohème, opera: O soave fanciulla
4. Rigoletto, opera: Ella mi fu rapita!...Parmi veder le lagrime
5. Manon Lescaut, opera: Donna non vidi mai
6. Stabat mater for 2 sopranos, tenor, bass, chorus & orchestra: Cujus animam
7. Otello, opera: Oh! mostruosa colpa!...Sì, pel ciel
8. La Traviata, opera: Libiamo, libiamo (Brindisi)
9. Requiem Mass, for soloists, chorus & orchestra (Manzoni Requiem): Ingemisco
10. La reine de Saba, opera: Faiblesse de la race humaine!...Inspirez-moi, race divine
11. Le Cid, opera: Ah! tout est bien fini!...Ô Souverain, ô Juge, ô Père!
12. Macbeth, opera: O figli, o figli miei...Ah, la paterna mano
13. Eugene Onegin, opera, Op. 24: Pour moi ce jour est tout mystère
14. Les Pêcheurs de perles, opera in 3 acts: A cette voix quel trouble...Je crois entendre encore
15. Rigoletto, opera: Bella figlia dell'amore (Quartett)
16. Lucia di Lammermoor, opera: Chi mi frena in tal momento? (Sextett)
17. Serse (Xerxes), opera, HWV 40: Frondi tenere e belle...Ombra mai fu (Largo)
18. Germania, opera: Studenti! Udite!
19. Petite messe solennelle, for soloists, 2 pianos, harmonium & choir: Crucifixus

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #69241 in Music
• Brand: RCA
• Released on: 1999-05-25
• Number of discs: 2
• Dimensions: .25 pounds

Customer Reviews

If You Only Buy One Caruso . . .
let this be it! Wonderful, generous selection of his singles for Victor, most of them solos, but a few duets, quartets, quintets, and a sextet. The accompanying booklet makes a great deal of including his first and last recordings, but by far the most important here is Caruso's 1907 recording of Vesti la giubba, the first classical recording to sell over a million copies in the United States. If you listen to it, you'll know why--it's every bit as melodramatic as the minstrel show singles with which it shared the top of the early twentieth-century charts.

A nice overview of Caruso's legacy
Enrico Caruso was one of the first "media stars," with his recordings selling widely in the early twentieth century; he helped popularize the recording industry. He was one of the leading tenors of his day, and is regarded as one of the tops of the twentieth century (although he began serious singing in the late 19th century).

This CD features some of his "greatest hits," among which are his well reputed version of "Vesti la giubba" (from I Pagliacci, one of his signature operas); arias from Verdi's Rigoletto, including the bold "Questa o quella" and "La donna e mobile"; some of his most popular recordings from Puccini, including "E lucevan le stelle," "Recondita armonia," and "Che gelida manina." Nice additions to the CD are wonderful ensemble pieces, such as the sextet from Lucia di Lammermoor (including the voice of Luisa Tetrazzini) and the quartet from Rigoletto (with Amelita Galli-Curci).

Interesting tidbits include his first recording, from 1902, and his last, from 1920.

All in all, this is a very nice representation of his work. I'm not sure that it compares with the old LP (with him in clown outfit) that includes Rossini's nearly unsingable "La danza," among other items. But it is a terrific introduction to the art of Caruso. Anyone who has not listened to this tenor's works before would be well advised to use this as their entree to his oeuvre.

Unearthly
Forget toiling for a BMW, enjoy finer things in life.One of my personal favorites is ''Le pecheurs de perles'', but the offer is overwhelming.