Classical Music Forum banner

Looking for recommendations for a La Sonnambula CD

24K views 95 replies 16 participants last post by  MAS 
#1 · (Edited)
I have 3 CDs of La Sonnambula and one DVD with the following Aminas:

Luba Orgonasova
Mariella Devia
Maria Callas (1957 Live)
Eva Mei on DVD (wish this were on a CD also)

So I am looking at the Sutherland Pavarotti La Sonnambula and like it a lot, but people are saying Sutherland sings better on one from the early 1960s. I checked one of those out and it did not seem to have as good of sound quality, so I am leaning towards the one with Pavarotti which I believe is about 1980. Also the price is much better.

I might be open to other Aminas too, but was kind of drawn back to this opera because of Sutherland.

Oh, I suppose Bartoli would be an interesting Amina, though I thought Amina was supposed to be a soprano.
 
#64 · (Edited)
So now I have

Bartoli
Callas 1955 live
Callas 1957 live
Callas 1957 studio
Dessay
Devia
Gruberova
Lind
Orgonasova (NAXOS set)
Pagliughi
Sutherland 1980
Sutherland 1962 (is in shipping right now)
Lucia Aliberti (is in shipping right now)

I still need Scotto. This is the one I want:
 
#65 · (Edited)
Just discovered there is another recording of July 1994, but the lone copy I find available is selling for an atrocious price of $79.99!




"Among Patrizia Ciofi's assets are a careful, caring musicianship, a head voice that works, and the fact that her lovely lyric soprano is governed by an artistic sensibility. In her throat, almost all of those floated entrances Bellini has so graciously designed are delicately radiant. Sometimes her upper-register tone is unsupported, which causes it to turn tremulous, but when she's 'under it', she is exceptionally good. Anyone who can take that rising and falling phrase (up to the B and down) on 'risuona' as beautifully as Ciofi does near the beginning of Act 2 merits recognition. Her floated top voice is about as easy as Devia's and a tad more ethereal, though no one can really match the older soprano for just plain security. Ciofi's sweet-toned way with the recitativi in both sleepwalking scenes, those outwardly 'spoken' manifestations of Amina's unconscious, capture Bellini's tone exactly: this is innocence, not burgeoning tragedy."
Found on this page which attributes the quote to Opera Quarterly Summer 2001
 
#72 · (Edited)
#73 ·
So there appear to be four Sutherland Sonnambula sets. Of them, 1980 has the best sound quality, followed by 1962. The 1960 is decent, but (and this only from clips) the 1961 was poor. I have all but the 1961 and preferred 1980 over 1962. But today my 1960 set arrived and it is excellent in spite of the poorer sound than 1980 and 1962.

1980:


1962:


1961:


1960:
 
#78 ·
I need a Callas fan to help me out here. I want to run poll on favorite Callas Sonnambula recording but don't really know how many La Sonnambula commercial recordings are there with Maria Callas? Listings on Amazon are confusing.

I think there are four and I think they are listed in order of best sound to worst sound:

1957 Votto, live

1957 Votto, Studio

1957 Votto, live Edinburgh Festival

1955 Bernstein, live

This discography says there are four:

1955 Orch. Teatro alla Scala Milano, Leonard Bernstein (cond.)
Maria Callas (A), Cesare Valletti (E), Giuseppe Modesti (R), Eugenia Ratti (L) Gabriella Carturan (T), Pier Luigi Latinucci (Al)

1957 Orch. Teatro alla Scala Milano, Antonino Votto (cond.)
Maria Callas (A), Nicola Monti (E), Nicola Zaccaria (R), Eugenia Ratti(L), Fiorenza Cossotto (T), Giuseppe Morresi (Al)
reissued as:

1957 Orch. Teatro alla Scala Milano, Antonino Votto (cond.)
Maria Callas (A), Nicola Monti (E), Nicola Zaccaria (R), Marietta Angioletti (L), Fiorenza Cossotto (T), Dino Mantovani (Al)

1957 Orch. Teatro alla Scala Milano, Antonino Votto (cond.)
Maria Callas (A), Nicola Monti (E), Nicola Zaccaria (R), Edith Martelli (L), Fiorenza Cossotto (T), Dino Mantovani (Al)

If I am going to run a poll I want the selections to be right as they are hard to revise (need moderator assistance).
 
#79 ·
Well, that's a tricky question. First off there is the studio recording, which is this one in your list:
1957 Orch. Teatro alla Scala Milano, Antonino Votto (cond.)
Maria Callas (A), Nicola Monti (E), Nicola Zaccaria (R), Eugenia Ratti(L), Fiorenza Cossotto (T), Giuseppe Morresi (Al)
Rectangle Font Poster Pattern Parallel


Then there are four complete live recordings and one selection of excerpts from the opera in chronological order:
1955 Orch. Teatro alla Scala Milano, Leonard Bernstein (cond.)
Maria Callas (A), Cesare Valletti (E), Giuseppe Modesti (R), Eugenia Ratti (L) Gabriella Carturan (T), Pier Luigi Latinucci (Al)
Smile Font Flash photography Poster Musical instrument


1957 Orch. Teatro alla Scala Milano, Antonino Votto (cond.)
Maria Callas (A), Nicola Monti (E), Nicola Zaccaria (R), Marietta Angioletti (L), Fiorenza Cossotto (T), Dino Mantovani (Al)
Wedding dress Dress One-piece garment Bridal party dress Bride


Then excerpts from a second performance with the same cast:
Dress Wedding dress Poster Formal wear One-piece garment


1957 Orch. Teatro alla Scala Milano, Antonino Votto (cond.)
Maria Callas (A), Nicola Monti (E), Nicola Zaccaria (R), Edith Martelli (L), Fiorenza Cossotto (T), Dino Mantovani (Al)
Musician Musical instrument Coat Music Entertainment


And there's another performance from the same run with the same cast.

You can find further details of the Cologne and Edinburgh performances on the Divina Records website.

N.
 
#80 ·
You can find further details of the Cologne and Edinburgh performances on the Divina Records website.
That is a nice website for Callas fans. I wish they would put a few sound clips up on the various recordings. Looks like a poll might be easier to list the main recordings and have an "other" category just in case any other recordings show up.
 
#88 ·
Found this statement on an Amazon review regarding recordings of La Sonnambula. A shame Beverly didn't record La Sonnambula.

Beverly Sills (who did record the great cavatina of Act I, in 1968) should have been in their number, but her scheduled "La sonnambula," for the Opera Company of Boston (1977), was changed to "Rigoletto" (with Susanne Marsee as Maddalena).
 
#95 · (Edited)
Ummm, now I can't say that I have every Sonnambula recording. Worse, who knows what recording the one I posted above on the Melodram label is. One could assume August 7, but...

Only safe bet is to buy all four Divina Records sets. Well, maybe three as the date on my Cologne set should be valid as the 4 July 1957 set.

So potentially I need three more Callas sets! :eek::lol:
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top