Search - Verdi, Sintow, Fassbaender :: Aida

Memorable night in Munich

J. Luis Juarez Echenique | Mexico City | 03/10/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Muti's studio recording of Aida is such a landmark recording that many may wonder why release a live tape with the same tenor and conductor, but this is SUCH a special performance, magnificently sung and conducted, that we must congratulate ORFEO for making it available. Good as Muti is in the EMI recording here he is even better, drawing glorious sounds from his orchestra and chorus who give it all for him. And what a pleasure it is to have Anna Tomowa-Sintow in a Verdi role. Her Aida is quite simply stupendous and one can only wonder what EMI and DG had in mind when they cast Freni and Ricciarelli in this role. As expected Domingo is in superb voice and his fiery Radames is at least as good as in his several commercial recordings. Fassbaender and Nimsgern are very good too, even if they are not as idiomatic as Cossotto and Cappuccilli.
But all in all this is a very important Aida and desirable from every point of view."

A noble try...

H. Pinsky | 02/26/2008

(3 out of 5 stars)

"First of all, I'm a fan of both Tomowa-Sintow and Domingo, but neither of them sounds particularly fantastic in this recording. I know it's live, but Domingo had more difficulty than he normally did with the high notes (though some of his interpretation was new and beautiful), and Tomowa-Sintow scooped up to virtually every high note. Her voice sounds great, but this, perhaps, was not the right role for her.



All supporting characters, with the exception of Fassbaender, who sang very well, but with little personality, were terrible. Two foghorn basses and a bass singing baritone. Really terrible stuff.



The ensembles sounded great, and I loved how it was live (sound quality was surprisingly good).



Overall, a good purchase for a collector or some one who likes Tomowa-Sintow enough to tune out her wretched colleagues."