Jonas Kaufmann is without question the most versatile tenor of his generation, and his current repertoire includes an astonishing range of opera roles from Mozart to Wagner. He is also a celebrated Lieder interpreter, equally at home on the concert platform. His Decca Debut album celebrates a luscious range of Romantic opera arias, showcasing the astonishing diversity of his voice. Jonas Kaufmann has made stunning debuts in many of the world's leading opera houses in recent seasons. For example, to fabulous acclaim he appeared as Alfredo in La Traviata at the Metropolitan Opera and Chicago Lyric Opera - "smoothly burnished, beautifully focused... and always disarmingly musical" (New York Magazine). He was Don Jose in the 2007 new production of Carmen at the Royal Opera, Covent Garden - "superb" (The Guardian). Romantic Arias includes opera favorites by the Italian giants Verdi and Puccini, by French greats Berlioz and Bizet, and by Wagner, the epitome of German Romanticism. Kaufmann responds to each composer with seductive ease.
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 4.5 / 5.0
The Living End:
Yes he is the living end. Really. A gorgeous sound and amazing technique. And if you think this cd is good, go and see him in person. You won't believe it, for he is even better live, smooth as silk and phenomenal in performance. You will be swept away!!!
Interesting:
I've just received this highly vaulted recital album, which is more-or-less my introduction to Kaufmann and his voice. My first thought was that the voice is as baritonal as they say -- like listening to Robert Merrill try tenor roles, though Kaufmann is fully comfortable in the range. I found this particularly distracting in the Traviata excerpt, when I couldn't stop wondering why Germont is singing his son's lines. Some tenors (Del Monoco?) do also come to mind, but rarely his (and my) idol Fritz... more info
Tenor Arias for Mediocre Baritone:
Some very distinguished tenors started out as baritones. Such was the case with the great Carlo Bergonzi who retained a warm Caruso like baritonal timbre in his voice while still hitting ringing, spinto high B-flats and singing in sweet head voice and mezza voce. Ramón Vinay also began his career as a baritone, becoming a gifted heroic tenor before returning to the baritone repetoire as his voice darkened with age. Unfortunately, Kaufmann is not cut from the same cloth. With some effort, he... more info
A fine large-voiced tenor at work:
Jonas Kaufmann is what I would call a big voiced tenor--along the lines of Franco Corelli or Richard Tucker (I'm not saying he's that good yet--but his voice is powerful!). The liner notes begin by noting that many of us want to compartmentalize tenors--"He's a Puccini tenor," He's a Mozart tenor," "He's a Wagnerian tenor." The notes then say that ". . .Jonas Kaufmann resists [this tendency], uncompromisingly maintaining his remarkable versatility." Versatile indeed! This CD ranges from Puccini to Wagner,... more info
Tracks:
Puccini "Che gelida manina" from La Bohème
Bizet "La fleur que tu m'avais jetée" from Carmen
Flotow "Martha: Ach, so fromm" from Martha
Puccini "E lucevan le stelle" from Tosca
Verdi "Lo l'ho perduta... Io la vidi, e il suo sorriso" from Don Carlos (Aria from Italian four act version)
Weber "Nein! Länger trag' ich nicht... Durch die Wälder, durch die Auen" from Der Freischütz
Verdi "Lunge da lei... De miei bollenti spiriti ...O mio rimorso" from La Traviata (with Jana Sibera - soprano)
Massenet "Je suis seul... Ah! Fuyez, douce image" from Manon
Verdi "Ella mi fu rapita...Parmi veder le lagrime" from Rigoletto
Gounod "Quel trouble inconnu me pénètre?...Salut! Demeure chaste et pure" from Faust
Wagner "Morgendlich leuchtend im rosigen Schein" from Die Meistersinger
Berlioz "Invocation à la nature" from Damnation of Faust
![Italian Opera Arias [Includes DVD]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51nScNOaHzL._SL75_.jpg)
![Tchaikovsky - Eugene Onegin Fleming, Vargas, Hvorostovsky, Gergiev, Carsen [Metropolitan Opera 2007]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/31NNTMfZRWL._SL75_.jpg)
