Album

If any were needed, this album is a reminder of the extent of Bryn Terfel's achievement: the robust, disciplined voice, the versatility, the musical intelligence, the passion, and the interpretive depth he brings to whatever he sets his mind to. Mozart was the composer in whose work Terfel first came to prominence, particularly in the comic roles. "Non più andrai" is a marvel of sly wit, and Terfel's investment in the role is absolute; this is the kind of performance that made him an international sensation. He brings the same insouciance and sure grasp of the comic potential of every phrase to Leporello's Catalogue Aria. As accomplished as Terfel is in Mozart, he seems equally at ease in Wagner and in core 19th century repertoire. "Song to the Evening Star" from Tannhäuser is luminous, with luster both in Terfel's voice and in the orchestra. Some of the repertoire recorded here was new to the singer when he made this recording: Italian, French, and Russian roles he had not yet sung on-stage. Malatesta's "Bella siccome un angelo" is Terfel's first Donizetti, but he fully inhabits it, and the aria from Prince Igor, his first work in Russian, is fully persuasive. The same commitment, musicality, and understanding are evident in his arias from Les contes d'Hoffmann, Faust, La cenerentola, Macbeth, and Falstaff. James Levine, a master of making singers and orchestras sound their very best, leads the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra in this repertoire in which it is unmatched, and the performances dazzle with apparent effortlessness and a secure grasp of such diverse idioms. Deutsche Grammophon's sound is clean and well balanced.

© Stephen Eddins, All Music Guide

CD 1
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Composer Le nozze di Figaro (The Marriage of Figaro), K.492 (opera buffa)...Act 1 Work Recorded 1994 Bryn Terfel Bass-baritone, Metropolitan Opera Orchestra Orchestra, James Levine Conductor
1	21.Aria: Non più andrai, farfallone amoroso	3:51			$0.99
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Composer Don Giovanni, K.527 (opera buffa)...Act 2 Work Recorded 1994 Bryn Terfel Bass-baritone, Metropolitan Opera Orchestra Orchestra, James Levine Conductor
2	6.Canzonetta: Deh vieni alla finestra	2:07			$0.99
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Composer Don Giovanni, K.527 (opera buffa)...Act 1 Work Recorded 1994 Bryn Terfel Bass-baritone, Metropolitan Opera Orchestra Orchestra, James Levine Conductor
3	10.Aria: Madamina, il catalogo è questo (Catalogue Aria)	5:35			$0.99
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Composer Così fan tutte, K.588 (opera buffa)...Scene 12 Work Recorded 1995 Bryn Terfel Bass-baritone, Metropolitan Opera Orchestra Orchestra, James Levine Conductor
4	15b.Rivolgete a lui lo sguardo (Alternative aria)	4:52			$0.99
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Composer Die Zauberflöte (The Magic Flute), K.620 (Singspiel)...Act 1 Work Recorded 1995 Bryn Terfel Bass-baritone, Metropolitan Opera Orchestra Orchestra, James Levine Conductor
5	2a.Papageno's Aria: Der Vogelfänger bin ich ja	2:53			$0.99
Richard Wagner Composer Tannhäuser (opera), WWV 70...Scene 2 Work Recorded 1994 Bryn Terfel Bass-baritone, Metropolitan Opera Orchestra Orchestra, James Levine Conductor
6	6.Wie Todesahnung, 7.O du mein holder Abendstern	5:52			$0.99
Richard Wagner Composer Der fliegende Holländer (The Flying Dutchman; opera), WWV 63...Act 1 Work Recorded 1994 Bryn Terfel Bass-baritone, Metropolitan Opera Orchestra Orchestra, James Levine Conductor
7	5.Die Frist ist um; 6.Wie oft in Meeres tiefsten Schlund; 7.Dich frage ich, 8.Nur eine Hoffnung	11:53			$1.99
Jacques Offenbach Composer Les contes d'Hoffmann (opera)...Act 4 (performed as Act 3 in some version) Work Recorded 1995 Bryn Terfel Bass-baritone, Metropolitan Opera Orchestra Orchestra, James Levine Conductor
8	5.Scintille, diamant	3:42			$0.99
Charles Gounod Composer Faust (opéra)...Act 4 Work Recorded 1994 Bryn Terfel Bass-baritone, Metropolitan Opera Orchestra Orchestra, James Levine Conductor
9	9.Vous qui faites l'endormie	2:59			$0.99
Alexander Borodin Composer Prince Igor (opera; completed by Rimsky-Korsakov and Glazunov)...Act 2 Work Recorded 1995 Bryn Terfel Bass-baritone, Metropolitan Opera Orchestra Orchestra, James Levine Conductor
10	13.Aria: Ni sna ni otdycha izmucennoj duse (Prince Igor's aria)	8:10			$1.49
Gaetano Donizetti Composer Don Pasquale (opera)...Act 1 Work Recorded 1995 Bryn Terfel Bass-baritone, Metropolitan Opera Orchestra Orchestra, James Levine Conductor
11	3a.Bella siccome un angelo	2:56			$0.99
Gioacchino Antonio Rossini Composer La cenerentola (Cinderella; opera)...Act 1 Work Recorded 1994 Bryn Terfel Bass-baritone, Metropolitan Opera Orchestra Orchestra, James Levine Conductor
12	9.Miei rampolli femminini; 10.Mi sognai fra il fosco e il chiaro 11.Fertilissima regina	5:37			$0.99
Giuseppe Verdi Composer Macbeth (opera)...Act 4 Work Recorded 1994 Bryn Terfel Bass-baritone, Metropolitan Opera Orchestra Orchestra, James Levine Conductor
13	7.Perfidi! All'anglo contro me v'unite!; 8.Pietà, rispetto, amore	5:22			$0.99
Giuseppe Verdi Composer Falstaff (commedia lirica)...Act 1 Work Recorded 1994 Bryn Terfel Bass-baritone, Metropolitan Opera Orchestra Orchestra, James Levine Conductor
14	3b.Ehi! paggio! Andate a impendervi; 4.L'onore! Ladri!	4:31			$0.99