La Traviata

I doubt if Giuseppe Verdi ever heard of Sigmund Freud (Verdi died a year after the publication of "The Interpretation of Dreams"), but many of his operas have strong Oedipal undercurrents. Typically they revolve around a dashing young lover, a somewhat sinister father figure, and a heroine torn between love and duty. "La Traviata" is Verdi's most accessible opera and probably the most frequently recorded. The only one of his works based on a contemporary subject, along with "Carmen" it is one of the foundational works of verismo (although the conventions of the time forced it to be staged in the period of Louis XIV until 1906!) and dramatically, though not musically, functions as a proto-Puccini opera. There are obvious parallels with "La Boheme": the Paris setting, the consumptive heroine, even the feminine article in the title. This recording has perhaps the strongest vocal cast of any. Joan Sutherland's Italian diction may be mushy (she sometimes sounds like she's singing with cotton in her mouth) but it is refreshing to hear a true dramatic coloratura in a role often given to lyric sopranos who come to grief in the role's florid moments. She tosses off the most demanding passages with almost insolent aplomb, and her high notes are awe-inspiring. Carlo Bergonzi is my favorite tenor in the Italian repertory (just as Wolfgang Windgassen was my favorite in the German wing) and he does not disappoint here, sounding appropriately youthful as the callow and immature Alfredo. His phrasing is exemplary. Before he became a New York icon for singing "The Star-Spangled Banner" at Yankee games, Robert Merrill was one of the finest of a long line of American Verdi baritones (including Lawrence Tibbett, Leonard Warren, Cornell McNeil and Sherril Milnes). This is actually the third studio recording Merrill made of the elder Germont, the other two being the legendary Toscanini set with Licia Albanese and Jan Peerce, and the excellent Fernando Previtali set with Anna Moffo and Richard Tucker. Merrill is authoritative as the father figure and his Italian diction is exemplary. He is less hammy here than in other roles, but his rich, virile baritone remains undiminished. Although the score is performed uncut, John Pritchard moves the performance along at a fast clip, clocking in at 2 hours 12 minutes. The orchestral sound is splendid, the chorus is first-rate, and the secondary roles are carefully cast. This recording has everything a lover of bel canto could desire.

my favorite traviata had been always bonynge/sutherland/pavarotti's version, but this one is as good as it gets, sutherland is supperb in both of them , bergonzi is verdi's heroic tenor by excelence & merrill is one of the best baritons of the 20th century. pritchard direction of this uncutted early stereo version of traviata is ver good. i readed someone complaining about the sound like being recorded in a bathroom, i really don't share that opinion, the sound is well balanced, if you wanna hear something recorded in a steam room of a sauna, get the sonnambula's command perfiormance by sutherland also 60's early stereo, that is really recorded under water, but the performance is so good you have to have it, the best in recorded history. in the 80's on tape this was one of my first traviatas, after caballe's & cotrubas & before bonynge's. now on cd is my 6th one after sutherland/pasvarotti/bonynge's, studder/pavarotti/levine's (pavarotti has no voice over there; he sounds like raul gimenez) sills/gedda/cecatto's, gheorgiu/lopardo/solti's (horrible. i sent it last month as a birthday pressent to someone; the worst traviatta i've ever heard after the cutted all over cotrubas/domingo version) & caballe/bergonzi/petre's & i'm stopping here. no more traviatas for me... or is it?

This is a very strange recording of La Traviata. It features, of course, Joan Sutherland in most glorious voice. She puts on a spectacular bravura performance, with virtually flawless technique. Her performance, however, is characterized by an almost total lack of consonants (For instance, "addio" comes out sounding like "aa-eee-oo".) Even vowel sounds sometimes get distorted -- presumably in order to get an even smoother musical flow. Surprisingly, Sutherland also demonstrates just how dramatic such singing can be -- pure sound to express a wide variety of emotions. It is an amazing performance -- it needs to be heard just to see how such intense drama can be achieved with such an approach. This is all fine, except for two things. First, the sound is somewhat lacking. Especially in Act 1, it sometimes sounds as if Sutherland is singing in an echo chamber. It also makes her middle range sound surprisingly mature -- she was at the beginning of her career when this recording was made of an age where one would expect vocal freshness matching Violetta's vulnerability--she is not the rather broken down cortesan which so many sopranos well on in their careers make her sound. Second, the other principals are using a quite different asthetic. Bergonzi as Alfredo turns in a sterling, rather traditional performance, with words well articulated and designed to have their meaning bring out the drama. Unfortunately, in the duets, the contrast in approach with Sutherland does not enhance things. This contrast is also present in the duets with Germont -- sung more than adequately by Robert Merrill -- though there it matters less since Germont's character and values differ so much from Violetta's. Pritchard's conducting, which is rather eratic in the crowd scenes, taking on a frenetic agitation at inappropriate moments, broadens out in other places, allowing slow speeds which accentuate Sutherland's mooning style at the expense of the drama she is so successfully communicating. The only comparable recording I know is the one with Caballe -- again with Bergonzi -- where the eratic features of the soprano's glorious singing clash harshly with the conductor's approach. Given the peculiarities of the performance, the choices London/Decca made in bringing out this set are unfathonable. There is no libretto, but a rather poorly done "listening guide" -- and no discussion of place of the opera. In addition, there are few tracks, and those provided combine material which both logically and musically are distinct and should be on separate tracks. This makes dipping into parts of the recording frustrating. Overall -- this is a performance to be enjoyed and savored. It is not a good recording to have as a first version of La Traviata. The fact that it remains in the catalogue after so many years -- and with so many other recordings of the opera either still available or fallen by the wayside that would be substitutes for it-- speaks volumes for the essential merits and appeal of this recording.

Just the most beautiful Traviata I ever heard. Great to get as a refreshingly different interpretation of this over recorded work. Bergonzi and Sutherland at their prime-what more could you want. And as for those who complain about Pritchard's conducting being so slow-it works great with these singers. one last thing-the price! best bargain you can get for an opera cd

Diese herausragende Aufnahme ist fast sechzig Jahre alt und nach wie vor ganz oben in der Spitzengruppe der Einspielungen der wohl populärsten Verdi-Oper anzusiedeln. Vergleichbar gelungene, adäquat besetzte und musikalisch überzeugende Aufnahmen sind seitdem einige erschienen, eine, die sie richtig in den Schatten stellen würde, meines Erachtens nicht: weder die vielgerühmte mit Netrebko und Villazon noch die wegen des Dirigats von Carlos Kleiber gepriesene mit Ileana Cotrubas und Placido Domingo (der als Alfredo für meinen Geschmack eine glatte Fehlbesetzung ist) und auch nicht die Live-Aufnahmen aus der Bayerischen Staatsoper (mit Fritz Wunderlich und Hermann Prey bzw. mit Anja Harteros unter Zubin Metha). Sie alle haben ihre Meriten, nicht zu vergessen natürlich die mit Pilar Lorengar unter Lorin Maazel. Aber die junge Joan Sutherland als Violetta und Carlo Bergonzi als Alfredo setzten damals kaum zu erreichende Maßstäbe, wobei Bergonzi mit seinem herrlichen Belcanto-Tenor und seiner Ausrucksintensität die Sutherland - die "stupenda", wie sie genannt wurde - noch überragt. Dringende Kaufempfehlung für alle Opernfreundinnen und Opernfreunde, leider gar nicht mehr so leicht aufzutreiben.

Très beau coffret bien présente.Magnifique interprètes.Bonne qualité sonore.

I have been looking for ages for the complete La Traviata. Traditionally bits have been cut. True Sutherland is not the most exiting Violetta. Her technique is second to none, but there her performance doesn't move you to tears. There have been better Violettas and in my eyes Callas is still unrivalled. But this is the famous 1962 recording from the Maggio Fiorentino with Bergonzi and Merrill. To be enjoyed

What can I say, bought this cd because I was exposed to opera a good deal as a youngster and now as an almost 50 year old man found out that i really enjoy this kind of music... Well this was recorded one month before I was born... just found out by reading the notes. Given this fact i'm blown away about how good the recording is. Besides all this sentimental and technical talk, this is a very enjoyable piece of art!

Eine super Aufnahme! Tolle Künstler und Stimmen! Für Liebhaber von "La Traviata" sehr zu empfehlen. Die Musik von Verdi ist einfach schön.