One of the Best Versions of Rossini's Masterpiece Rossini's delightful LA CENERENTOLA is well served in this 1995 recording, which gathers some of the best Rossinians of our day. Larmore with her even, creamy mezzo soprano is a wonderful Angelina and a nice alternative to the more idiosyndratic Cecilia Bartoli. Gimenez exhudes elegance and poise as Don Ramiro. As Don Magnifico, Corbelli is, as always, a delight - ever the polished musician, subtle comedian, and master of rapid PARLANDO. (He can be heard as Dandini in the 1992 London recording.) Gino Quilico is a lightweight and stragely un-Italian Dandini (in this latter respect he makes an odd pairing with the VERY Italian Corbelli), while Miles sings Alidoro's magisterial aria with solemn dignity. Carlo Rizzi gives a quicksilver, fleet-footed reading of the score. This recording is at the forefront of modern recordings of this opera and a worthy condender with the London recording with Bartoli.
Buy This If You Like Rossini! LA CENERENTOLA is both my favorite Rossini opera and one of my favorite operas by any composer. This 1994 Teldec recording, led by Carlo Rizzi, features three of the principal singers from Teldec's 1992 recording of IL BARBIERE DI SIVIGLIA: mezzo-soprano Jennifer Larmore, tenor Raul Gimenez, and bass-baritone Alessandro Corbelli. These are three of the finest Rossinians before the public today, and they are just as excellent here as they are on that BARBIERE recording. Larmore sings Angelina ("Cenerentola") with a pure, warm, creamy tone and creates a character quite different from her vivacious Rosina in BARBIERE. Gimenez's gracious, silvery tenor is again the perfect complement to Larmore's rich sound; the two singers blend beautifully in their Act I love duet. Corbelli again takes the basso buffo role (Dr. Bartolo in BARBIERE, Don Magnifico in this opera). The bass "boom" in his voice gives Angelina's pompous stepfather a menacing quality that Bartolo does not have. Corbelli is also one of the finest "patterists" I have ever heard -- just listen to him in his three big comic arias! As Dandini, the Prince's comic valet, baritone Gino Quilico is youthful-sounding and witty. However, the ideal Dandini for me is Corbelli (he can be heard in this role on the London/Decca recording and video with Cecilia Bartoli and also in a Met telecast with Bartoli that is not yet on DVD). English bass Alistair Miles rounds out the principal cast as an authoritative yet gentle Alidoro, who fills the role of Angelina's "fairy godfather" (he is actually a "tutor" or advisor to the Prince). Rizzi conducts with ideal lightness of touch, and the recorded sound is spacious and well-balanced. Anyone wanting a fine recording of LA CENERENTOLA would do very well with this one. Also recommended: the Larmore/Gimenez/ Corbelli recordings of Rossini's two other major comedies, IL BARBIERE DI SIVIGLIA and L'ITALIANA IN ALGERI.
Very Good Performance Raul Gimenez is not to my taste. He's just neutral. Not a negative like Ernesto Palacio nor a positive like Stanford Olsen or the young Ugo Benelli.
Larmore is excellent although I think she is better in the heroic parts like Arsace in Semiramide. I prefer Bartolli in this role beut she is better than Berganza or Vallentini-Terrani.
Gino Quilico is wonderful here as he is on the video. He sings with real comic verve. Compare Quilico with the Ramey recital and hear the difference between just getting the notes right and establishing a character. We all love Ramey as Assur or Maometto II but he isn't funny.
The three bass roles are hard sometimes to distinguish. Dandini, Don Magnifico, and Alidoro all have a similar range. Alesandro Corbelli indeed has recorded all three of them. On the recent Met telecast Corbelli sang Dandini. I think he's better as Magnifico. He's not very light hearted. On one of the videos Walter Berry sings Magnifico pretty much the same way he sings Alberich - a real nasty fellow. I thnk the drama needs three different characters - Alidoro old and wise, Dandini young and impetuous, Magnifico old and foolish. The best Magnifico on records (just the first aria) is Bryn Terfel. He should record these parts but they are probably too small for the superstar baritone.
Alidoro's aria La Del Ciel was never performed until quite recently. Like Un Dottore in Barber it was considered too difficult. The Riccordi score includes Vasto Theatro as a substitute. Fortunately this recording includes La Del Ciel. This may the single most beautiful aria ever written for low voice by Rossini. Alstair Miles prformance is the best thing in the recording. In general I don't like Miles that much in Italian opera. He has a English oratorio approach that is inappropriate for Raimondo in Lucia, or Silva in Ernani. However here he is superlative. The Berganza performance suffers with the clumsy voiced Ugo Trama. Michele Pertusi on the Berganza recording is quite good but not as good as Miles. Even Ramey doesnt capture the nobility as well as Mr. Mile.
An excellent recording I agree with the previous reviewer wholeheartedly. This is a marvellous performance, full of sparkle and very well recorded. Jennifer Larmore is a superb Rossinian, with a vocal technique that makes her by far the best of the current Rossini mezzos. All the singers work well both together and as individuals, and Carlo Rizzi's conducting is enjoyably pacey without becoming rushed.
The 'Gramophone' reviewer is full of it. I was so thrilled with this recording of "Cenerentola" that I assumed others would be too, but apparently some stodgy reviewer for Gramophone felt differently. I've been listening to opera, in person and on records, since 1964, and during that time I have heard most of the complete recordings of Rossini operas because I found his music witty and enervating. Unfortunately, I was generally disappointed with recordings from the LP era, including that 1953 "Cenerentola" that the Gramophone reviewer liked so much, because they were slow, stodgy and lacking in humor. I had to turn to ancient 78s by DeLucia, Supervia, Stracciari and Borgioli to get some idea of how Rossini was supposed to go. This new "Cenerentola" is fabulous, not only because all of the singers are good but because they sing with a joie-de-vivre and rhythmic pointing of the staccato rhythms that is a delight to hear. Their ensemble is unmatched, and whatever "character deficiencies" are exhibited by Quilico, Corbelli or Gimenez is more than compensated for by the fact that THEY SING ALL THE MUSIC THE WAY IT'S WRITTEN. But don't take my word for it. There are plenty of little excerpts you can pull up and listen to, and the rest of the recording is just as good. Remember, you heard it here first.
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