across the U.S. in 2003. With the close of the second leg of Josh's tour, Lucia is recording her debut album in New York and London with producer Paul Schwartz. Musical selections will range from the works of composers Ravel and Ennio Morricone to David Bowie.  (less)

is the first alternative to appear on CD since the problematic version with Beverly Sills from the 1970s. While far from flawless (curiously, it was recorded in two stretches, with a pause of 15 months between them), it makes a mostly convincing case for the stirring beauty of Massenet's much-misunderstood work. For Thaïs , with its exotic setting in Egypt of the early Christian period, achieves much more than the sentimental romanticism often conveyed in out-of-context performances of its best-known excerpt, the violin instrumental Meditation . A kind of Tannhäuser in reverse, this story of sin and an illusory quest for salvation (adapted from Anatole France's novel) has its two main figures--the monk Athanaël and the beautiful courtesan Th...  (less)

easy, and his ability in coloratura admirable, making him particularly valuable in the operas of Rossini. He is also an intelligent musician and has a natural feel for a melodic line. On this CD, he tackles the occasional aria that is a bit too heavy for him, i.e., Rodolfo's aria from La Bohème , an excerpt from Verdi's Un Ballo in Maschera , and Lensky's aria from Eugen Onegin , but on disc, at least, he finds no need to force, and the results are good. In general, he's ardent without being overly sentimental, and except for a vaguely desperate sounding high D flat(!) (as at the end of the fine scene from Donizetti's Roberto Devereux ), he keeps the tone lovely. And his selection of arias here contains enough rarities among the chestn...  (less)

about a precious young poet who falls hopelessly in love with a woman promised to another is a study in suicidal tendencies and thus must achieve a kind of dramatic force far different than its leading singers--both bel canto specialists--are used to delivering. So while there's no wrong reason to buy a recording by mezzo-soprano Vesselina Kasarova, one wishes she would've waited another five years for her voice to darken before singing Charlotte. In the title role, Ramon Vargas, isn't about to wait for his voice to grow into Werther: He pushes, sometimes hard, resulting in a stressed, vibrato-laden sound that would be more at home with the virile Cavaradossi in Tosca than with the more wistful poet of this opera. And neither sings French like a nativ...  (less)

Janet Baker scored one of the biggest triumphs of even her distinguished career. This is a valuable record of a great singer in her prime. Her singing is outstandingly lovely, and she brings out the many facets of Charlotte's character, from the conventional stand-in mother of the opening scenes to the despairing woman of a very moving final act. Her diction and use of words throughout (the performance is in English) are exemplary. John Brecknock is an ardent, fresh-voiced Werther, and there is sterling support from, in particular, Joy Roberts as Sophie and Patrick Wheatley as Albert. Notable in the small role of the Magistrate's neighbor is a young John Tomlinson. The ENO orchestra plays superbly for Mackerras in a recording charged with t...  (less)