Track Listing

Disc 1:

1. Poveri fiori
2. O Paradiso
3. Se quel guerrier io fossi...Celeste Aida
4. Ritorna vincitor
5. Un di all'azzuro spazio
6. La mamma morta
7. Come un bel dì di Maggio
8. E la solita storia
9. Care selve
10. Dagli immortali vertici
11. Di tu se fedele
12. Eri tu, che macchiavi
13. Saper vorreste
14. Largo al factotum
15. Se il mio nome
16. Una voce poco fa...lo sono docile

Disc 2:

1. Au mont Ida trois déesses
2. Che gelida manina
3. Si, mi chiamano mimi
4. Donde lieta usci
5. Varlaam's Song
6. Zigeunerkind, wie glänzt dein Haar
7. Enfant chéri...Le Tambour-Major
8. L'amour est un oiseau rebelle
9. Près des remparts de Séville (Séguedille)
10. Chanson du Toréador
11. La fleur que tu m'avais jetée
12. Je dis que rien ne m'êpouvante (Micaela's aria)
13. O Lola, c'hai di latti la cammisa (Siciliana)
14. Voi lo sapete
15. Viva il vino spumeggiante
16. Addio alla madre
17. Non più mesta

Disc 3:

1. Les oiseaux dans la charmille
2. Hymne au soleil
3. Rêverie de Georges Brown
4. Ombra leggiera
5. Ah! mon remords te venge
6. Ella giammai m'amo
7. O Carlo, ascolta
8. A Séville, belles señoras (Sevillana)
9. Deh vieni alla finestra
10. Il mio tesoro
11. Sogno soave e casto
12. Quel guardo il cavaliere
13. Quanto è bella, quanto è cara
14. Una furtiva lagrima
15. Wer ein Liebchen hat gefunden
16. Durch Zärtlichkeit und Schmeicheln

Disc 4:

1. Merce, diletti amici...Come rugiada al cespite
2. Ernani! Ernani, involami
3. Infelice! e tu credevi
4. O, de' verd' anni miei
5. Letter Scene
6. Lontan, lontan (Lenski's Aria)
7. Salut! demeure chaste et pure
8. Il était un roi de Thul
9. Ah, je ris de me voir si belle (Jewel Song)
10. A tanto amor
11. O mio Fernando
12. Spirito gentil
13. Convien partir
14. Mein Herr
15. Czardas

Disc 5:

1. Alzatevi...La vergine degli angeli
2. Alzatevi...Solenne in quest'ora
3. Invano, Alvaro...Le minaccie, i fieri accenti
4. Pace, pace mio Dio
5. Ah! Pescator affonda l'esca
6. Cielo e mar
7. Suicidio
8. Grüß mir mein Wein
9. Sombre forêt (Cavatina)
10. Une dame noble et sage
11. Bianca al par
12. Apri la tua finestra
13. Cachés dan cet asile (Berceuse)
14. Ou va la jeune Hindoue (Bell Song)

Disc 6:

1. I do not grieve for that
2. O luce di quest' anima
3. Flammen, perdonami
4. Euch Lüften, die mein Klagen
5. In fernem Land
6. Depuis le jour
7. Cruda funesta smania
8. Aardon gl'incensi
9. Tu che a Dio spiegasti l'ali
10. Il segreto per esser felici (Brindisi)
11. Quando le sere al placido
12. Nun eilt' herbei
13. Un bel di vedremo
14. Il sogno (En fermant les yeux)
15. Obéissons, quand leur voix appelle (Gavotte)
16. Dispar, vision

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #91094 in Music
• Released on: 2000-02-15
• Number of discs: 6
• Format: Box set

Amazon.com
This spectacular collection of more than 90 arias sung by 46 of the greatest singers of the century consists of recordings made between 1906 and 1943. Naturally, they are in far from high fidelity, but this is more charming than disturbing. And all the greats are here: from the tenors Enrico Caruso, Beniamino Gigli, John McCormack, and Jussi Bjoerlong, to the sopranos Rosa Ponselle, Amelita Galli-Curci, Claudia Muzio, and Kirsten Flagstad, to mezzos Conchita Supervia and Ernestine Schumann-Heink, to baritones Giuseppe de Luca and Mattia Battistini, and basses Ezio Pinza and Feodor Chaliapin--to mention a few. The six and a half hours of listening is a veritable primer in Grand Opera; a short synopsis of each selection is included. This set lives up to its name--it is indeed a treasury. --Robert Levine

Customer Reviews

One of the Great Bargains
This is one of those rare bargains that one dreams about. I discovered it while browsing and I could not believe that one could have six disks for less than the normal cost of two. Nor is this an economy issue, transferred from what I assume is original pirate recordings along the lines of Gala and Opera d'Oro and even Myto. The transfers are clean and the collection is nonpareil. In all transfers I miss texts. But the music itself is glorious, the selection intelligent, and the artists the stars of the opera world. Unlike other collections arranged in chronological order, these use a simple alphabetic sequence of operas, so one can follow in one's own libretto or score more easily. The recordings appear to bridge the two world wars. If this is indeed volume one, I cannot wait for two.

A collection made with taste and savvy
The English just know how to do things in good taste and I must say, the elements of this Prima Voce collection have been carefully selected and arranged. Arias are grouped so that you have two or three from the same opera together. This is a sensible arrangement and each singer selected for those particular arias is one who sings it very well and in a unique way. I had already been collecting single singer albums from Prima Voce when I discovered this Treasury compilation and wish now I had bought it first, because you get a good sampling of all the great singers in their catalog and will hear artists of whom you may not have been aware. From this Treasury collection you will hear singers that especially please your ear and then you might buy albums just of them. For me, this set confirmed those choices of favorites such as Claudia Muzio and Tito Schipa. Best of all, the six CDs make for a pleasing listening experience as a whole. I listen to them while I drive. There aren't any bad performances here and quite frankly there are few contemporary artists that can match or top these. It's a great way to establish an historical foundation for your recordings if you are building a collection of singers.

Outstanding
As it happened, I bought Vol. 2 of this collection before Vol. 1, and everything I said in my review of Vol. 2 applies equally here. The breadth and depth of the operas and the singers are incredible, and the price for 6 CDs is an amazing bargain. The sound is remarkable, especially considering that some of the recordings are nearly 100 years old, though most are from the 20s and 30s. Highly recommended, whether you are new to opera or a seasoned veteran!