{"product_id":"leontyne-price-the-prima-don","title":"LEONTYNE PRICE - THE PRIMA DON","description":"\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003e  \u003cspan class=\"ARIAL12bi\"\u003eLEONTYNE PRICE—\u003c\/span\u003e \u003cspan class=\"ARIAL12biU\"\u003eTHE PRIMA DONNA COLLECTION \u003c\/span\u003e \u003cspan class=\"BULLET12b\"\u003e• \u003c\/span\u003e \u003cspan class=\"ARIAL12\"\u003eLeontyne Price (sop); Various accompaniments \u003c\/span\u003e \u003cspan class=\"BULLET12b\"\u003e•\u003c\/span\u003e \u003cspan class=\"ARIAL12\"\u003e RCA 61236 (4 CDs: 276:29 \u003c\/span\u003e \u003cspan class=\"ARIAL12\"\u003eText and Translation) \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e  \u003cspan class=\"ARIAL12\"\u003eArias by \u003c\/span\u003e \u003cspan class=\"COMPOSER12\"\u003eBARBER, BELLINI, BIZET, BOITO, BRITTEN, CHARPENTIER, CILEA, DEBUSSY, DVO?ÁK, FLOTOW, GIORDANO, GLUCK, HANDEL, KORNGOLD, LEONCAVALLO, MASCAGNI, MASSENET, MENOTTI, MEYERBEER, MOZART, OFFENBACH, POULENC, PUCCINI, PURCELL, J. STRAUSS II, VERDI, WAGNER, WEBER, ZANDONAI \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e  \u003cspan\u003eThis B-to-Z assemblage from 1992 brought Price’s complete “Prima Donna” albums together with many recordings of arias and scenas from operas she never performed, such as Elizabeth’s “Soliloquy and prayer” from Britten’s \u003c\/span\u003e \u003cspan style=\"font-style:italic\"\u003eGloriana\u003c\/span\u003e \u003cspan\u003e, for example, or the aria of another Elizabeth, “Dich, teure Halle,” from Wagner’s \u003c\/span\u003e \u003cspan style=\"font-style:italic\"\u003eTannhäuser\u003c\/span\u003e \u003cspan\u003e. Though Price retired from the stage in 1985, she taught master classes at Juilliard and continued to sing recitals from time to time, giving her last in 1997. The recordings here were all made between 1965 and 1979 and catch her at her peak. And at her peak, she was one classy singer. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e  \u003cspan\u003eSuch a sense resides first of all in the sound of a voice: it must be literally attractive in itself. Listening to Rusalka’s “Song to the Moon” from Dvo?ák’s opera of that name, say, or to Meleagre’s aria, “Care selve,” from Handel’s \u003c\/span\u003e \u003cspan style=\"font-style:italic\"\u003eAtalanta\u003c\/span\u003e \u003cspan\u003e, one is taken by the sheer beauty of it, a sound that floated high pianissimos with dead-accurate pitch, without the slightest strain. When that beauty combined with well-focused power, as in Donna Anna’s call for revenge in Mozart’s \u003c\/span\u003e \u003cspan style=\"font-style:italic\"\u003eDon Giovanni\u003c\/span\u003e \u003cspan\u003e, “Or sai chi l’onore,” it was a spine-tingling experience for me. Add to that the fact that Price was a most intelligent singer, whose words and stage character counted for a great deal, and we are in the presence of someone who understood what musical theater was all about. Writers on music are supposed to resist using the word “thrilling,” but I can think of no other, objective, word. If you are not ravished by this sound, you are probably deaf. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e  \u003cspan\u003eWe rightly associate Leontyne Price with the great roles in Verdi and Puccini, and the core of her repertoire—perhaps of that of most lyric sopranos—was Italian Romantic opera. As near as I can tell, apart from Carmen and a go at The Prioress in Poulenc’s \u003c\/span\u003e \u003cspan style=\"font-style:italic\"\u003eLes dialogues des Carmélites\u003c\/span\u003e \u003cspan\u003e, she did not sing much French opera, and only Strauss’s Ariadne from the German repertoire. An interesting aspect of this collection, therefore, is to discover her forays into other operas, many not much known at all in the United States at the time: Dvo?ák’s \u003c\/span\u003e \u003cspan style=\"font-style:italic\"\u003eRusalka\u003c\/span\u003e \u003cspan\u003e, Korngold’s \u003c\/span\u003e \u003cspan style=\"font-style:italic\"\u003eDie tote Stadt\u003c\/span\u003e \u003cspan\u003e, Zandonai’s \u003c\/span\u003e \u003cspan style=\"font-style:italic\"\u003eFrancesca da Rimini\u003c\/span\u003e \u003cspan\u003e, Weber’s \u003c\/span\u003e \u003cspan style=\"font-style:italic\"\u003eOberon\u003c\/span\u003e \u003cspan\u003e, Britten’s \u003c\/span\u003e \u003cspan style=\"font-style:italic\"\u003eGloriana\u003c\/span\u003e \u003cspan\u003e, and still others. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e  \u003cspan\u003ePrice fans will already have this collection. For those who have never heard this wonderful singer, it will make a generous introduction to a great artist. It is good to note that it has been re-released by arkivmusic.com. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e  \u003cspan style=\"font-weight:bold\"\u003eFANFARE: Alan Swanson \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e","brand":"RCA","offers":[{"title":"CD","offer_id":49606161203480,"sku":"090266123629","price":44.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0687\/4346\/3192\/files\/0118343.jpg?v=1777617170","url":"https:\/\/hbdirect.com\/products\/leontyne-price-the-prima-don","provider":"HBDirect","version":"1.0","type":"link"}