Track Listing

1. La bohème, opera: Quando m'en vo' soletta
2. Manon Lescaut, opera: In quelle trine morbide
3. Gianni Schicchi, opera: O mio babbino caro
4. Madama Butterfly (Madame Butterfly), opera: Un bel dì vedremo
5. Le villi, opera: Se come voi
6. La Rondine (The Swallow), opera: Ore dolci e divine
7. Don Giovanni, opera, K. 527: Ah! Fuggi il traditor
8. Hänsel und Gretel, opera: Der kleine Sandmann bin ich
9. Requiem, for orchestra, organ & chorus; for organ & chorus; for small ensemble, organ & chorus, Op. 9 (3 versions): Pie Jesu

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #17112 in Music
• Brand: Sony
• Released on: 2005-10-18
• Number of discs: 1
• Format: Original recording remastered
• Dimensions: .21 pounds

Customer Reviews

Greatly improved sound
The original CD release of this collection of Verdi & Puccini arias was a major disappointment. On the CBS label, the sound levels were extremely low, and the depth of the sound field extremely limited. Recorded at a time when Te Kanawa's voice was at it's most glorious, and popularised by the use of two of the Puccini arias in the Merchant Ivory film "Room with a View" (Chi il bel sogno di Doretta (La Rondine) & O mio babbino caro (Gianni Schicchi))the CD release was a major disappointment. Sony have thankfully righted this wrong, and with the use of their proprietory Direct Stream Digital (DSD) remastering, the result is a massive improvement. In addition, as the original CD was a bit on the short side, they have included 5 welcome bonus tracks to bring the total time of the disc to a reasonable 69.13 minutes. Admittedly, not all the releases in this series should qualify as "Great Performances", but this is certainly one that does, and a most welcome re-release at a bargain price. Highly recommended. Grab it while you can.

hits the spot
The most desired album request for my wifes 50th. The spots were played off her ancient inferior tape. Apparently there was a question of some studio problem on an earlier CD. Anyhow.....It was past time for renewal. This CD is the prize of our collection;as usual the bargain merchants at Amazon made this purchase possible.

Disappointing music selection
The Puccini aias are very good. I was disappointed by the selection of Verdi arias.