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The market is currently saturated with albums of Mozart. Distributors know all too well that Mozart sells, and hence they produce CDs such as this. The empty rhetoric on the cover – operatic dream team, irresistible anniversary tribute – will attract many.
These people should perhaps reconsider for, typically, the disc is little more than a haphazard selection of opera 'highlights', melded together with little thought for coherence or consistence.
There is nothing new here – which 'best bits' disk does not contain Lŕ ci darem la mano or Der Vogelfänger bin ich ja? Indeed, it is not just that the choices are unoriginal, but that the recordings are often not either. Those who own Claudio Abbado's Magic Flute will recognise a couple of tracks. Those who bought Bryn Terfel's Tutto Mozart will also find some correlations. And Terfel's album was only released a week ago.
This would not matter if the CD used the tracks for a purpose, but there is no semblance of that here. The pieces are not even performed in chronological order, nor are they divided into seria / buffa, nor can one find any overall structure in terms of mood or message. It seems clear that this is being presented as just as a selection of pretty arias and duets, with little to define it from the many other already released Mozart compilations. Some 'tribute' that is.
At least Anna Netrebko's tracks are original recordings, and she opens proceedings with Susannah's divine declaration of love from The Marriage of Figaro, Deh vieni, non tardar. Claudio Abbado's conducting seems rushed (the violins are not synchronised on the opening note) and Netrebko has to struggle through her accompagnato. Her voice is often radiant, but pitching can be a struggle and down below there is little projection. Her D'Oreste d'Aiace is unconvincing, with a wide vibrato in her top range, and a smudged coloratura. Elsewhere, Zeffiretti lusinghieri finally showcases her melting tone.
From Abbado's Flute recording, excellent singing is a guarantee. René Pape's Sarastro is one of the most youthful Sarastros on disk, and one of the most vibrant, while Erika Miklósa's steely soprano hits those high Fs with fury as the Queen of the Night. One does wish, however, for Abbado's reading of Papageno's entrance aria, for in the recording used here the pipe part is unevenly played and threatens to interfere with Thomas Quasthoff's singing.
Quasthoff is a bit of a mix on this CD. His attempts at characterisation often descend into crass parlando, and his Catalogue aria (Don Giovanni) is spoiled by a number of intonation problems. Better is Terfel, who is a suitably blustering Count (Figaro), while his Alfonso (Cosě fan tutte) is superb. Elina Garanca's Parto, parto, ma tu, ben mio from La clemenza di Tito is convincing, but her performance is also spoiled by inaccurate coloratura.
There are a few more minor performances on the disk, and it is a pleasure to see the gorgeously toned Miah Persson popping up on the last track. However, there is a lot of Mozart on the market, so why not pick up a complete opera or Mass? A few famous names do not justify buying such a sporadic and frankly pointless addition to the 'highlights' catalogue as this.
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