Maria Callas in Athens 1957

1. Il Trovatore, opera D'amor sull'ali rosee
Composed by Giuseppe Verdi
Performed by Athens Festival Orchestra with Maria Callas
Conducted by Antonino Votto

2. La forza del destino, opera Pace, pace mio Dio
Composed by Giuseppe Verdi
Performed by Athens Festival Orchestra with Maria Callas
Conducted by Antonino Votto

3. Tristan und Isolde, opera, WWV 90 Dolce e calmo (Libestod)
Composed by Richard Wagner
Performed by Athens Festival Orchestra with Maria Callas
Conducted by Antonino Votto

4. Lucia di Lammermoor, opera Regnava nel silenzio...Quando rapito in estasi
Composed by Gaetano Donizetti
Performed by Athens Festival Orchestra with Maria Callas
Conducted by Antonino Votto

5. Hamlet, opera in 5 acts Ai vostri, giochi...vi voglio offrir dei fiori
Composed by Ambroise Thomas
Performed by Athens Festival Orchestra with Maria Callas
Conducted by Antonino Votto

6. Hamlet, opera in 5 acts (second part)
Composed by Ambroise Thomas
Performed by Athens Festival Orchestra with Maria Callas
Conducted by Antonino Votto

7. Tosca, opera Act 2, excerpt
Composed by Giacomo Puccini
with Maria Callas
Conducted by Dimitri Mitropoulos

8. Norma, opera Oh! rimembranza
Composed by Vincenzo Bellini
with Maria Callas
Conducted by Dimitri Mitropoulos

9. La bohème, opera Si, mi chiamano Mimi
Composed by Giacomo Puccini
Performed by Royal Philharmonic Orchestra with Maria Callas
Conducted by Malcolm Sargent

10. Mefistofele, opera L'altra notte in fondo al mare
Composed by Arrigo Boito
Performed by Royal Philharmonic Orchestra with Maria Callas
Conducted by Malcolm Sargent

Tracks:

Gaspare Spontini: La vestale: Tu che invoco
Vincenzo Bellini: I puritani: La dama d'Arturo... Ah, vieni al tiempo
Gioacchino Rossini: Semiramide: Bel raggio lusinghier
Ambroise Thomas: Hamlet: Ai vostri giochi... Ed ora voi
Giuseppe Verdi: Il travatore: Vanne... D'amor sull'ali rosee
Giuseppe Verdi: La forza del destino: Pace, pace, mio Dio!
Richard Wagner: Tristan und Isolde: Dolce e calmo
Gaetano Donizetti: Lucia di Lammermoor: Regnava nei silenzio...Quando rapito in estasi
Ambroise Thomas: Hamlet: Ai vostri giochi... Ed ora a voi
Ambroise Thomas: Encore: Ed ora a voi

Amazon.com

Callas fans prefer her "live" recordings to studio outings for their extra charge of intensity, whether the singer's on the operatic stage or in concert, as she is on this disc, which is part of a series of new reissues from EMI. The first four items derive from a 1956 Radio Italiana program; the final six from her first concert in Greece after an absence of 12 years. Of course, Callas fans will want every scrap of salvaged recorded material they can find, but this will hold interest for anyone interested in the Callas phenomenon and great singing. Not that she's in prime voice here, but she never fails to thrill and enlighten. Her command of line is extraordinary, amply demonstrated by the Milan excerpt from Bellini's Puritani. And while she recorded every selection here on other occasions, such is her artistry that duplication is not a problem. So, even if you have her "Bel raggio" from Rossini's Semiramide, you'll want to hear this more austere version. And the Athens "Liebestod," from Wagner's Tristan und Isolde, sung in Italian, is more fiery than in her early Cetra recording. Her late studio recording of the mad scene from Thomas's Hamlet was in French; in Milan, with Callas singing in Italian, it has even more color and tension. The sound is acceptable; the artistry, flaws and all, exceptional. --Dan Davis

Customer Reviews:

To complete a discogrphy.......2007-01-10

There is no doubt that opera will one day look at "before" and "after" Maria Callas. She did not ever have anyhing but a big unruly voice, but it changed the world for the good.