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If you chance to put this record on without looking at the very meager documentation - as I did - you may be startled by the sound of a pristine voice. You will then find that the recording was made of a recital in the Vienna State Opera on September 16, 1988, which explains why it is so good. Carreras never had the personality of "The Great One" or the versatility of Domingo but he had - indeed, still has - a musicianship that sets him on his own pedestal. A good look at the table of contents shows this to be the sort of event that pleases everyone. There are French and Spanish art songs, unusual works of none other than Liszt, a brace of Puccini songs, Tosti - of course! - And to top the evening our old friend Granada. But the crème-de-la-crème is the three Liszt songs totaling almost twenty-two minutes that make this a very worthwhile record. The voice - especially in the extremely difficult I Vidi In Terra Angelici Costumi - is amazing. Here is Liszt, living in Rome and writing Italianate opera as it were. But these are no aping of Bellini, Donizetti or Rossini but Liszt at his greatest. And they are sung with voice - yes of course! - But more than that with exquisite taste. Next in line are the Puccini songs and I would have foregone a few of the Tosti for several more. Only near the end does the voice become a tad shrill above the staff. Not really bad you understand. The rest of the recital is nice but these mentioned are what are best and this is why the record is a 'must buy'. The piano playing is satisfactory but one can imagine a better pianist for the Liszt. By the by: All bands but 3, 4, 5, 16, 17 and 18 are noted as 'Arranged by Franz Isaac' but my ears note no radical changes in the Liszt, aside from a perfectly legitimate key change. Sound is not bad and the audience intrudes hardly at all.
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Jose
Carreras: The Recital
