Bizet - Carmen / Berganza, Domingo, Cotrubas, Milnes, Abbado

Editorial Reviews
Amazon.com
This is a super performance, slightly outside the common mold. In 1977, when this was recorded, Claudio Abbado was a great opera conductor, filled with sharp insights and a nice sense of the architecture of whole operas. He always seemed to know where he was going, and his ability to build to climaxes was second to none. Abbado has a rather elegant Carmen here in the smallish-voiced, introspective Teresa Berganza, a gorgeous singer who patently refuses to force her voice or her character into vulgarity. It's a fine reading. Placido Domingo is at his best in both intimate and maniacal moments, and Ileana Cotrubas's Micaela almost makes us care about this sappy little gal. Sherrill Milnes's Escamillo has plenty of swagger and voice. Berganza's subtlety combined with the wild passions of those around her make this a very good Carmen indeed. --Robert Levine

Bizet - Carmen / Berganza, Domingo, Cotrubas, Milnes, Abbado, Music, Georges Bizet, Claudio Abbado, Teresa Berganza, Plácido Domingo, Ileana Cotrubas, Sherrill Milnes, Richard Amner, Robert Lloyd, Yvonne Kenny, Classical, Classical Music, French Romantic Opera, Opera, Opera / Operetta / Oratorio, Opera/Operetta

Bizet: Carmen
Average customer rating:

Great blending of elegance and strenght

A good international performance (no French, please)

A well done "Carmen" from the 1977 Edinburgh Festival (but a studio recording)

Overall, quite charming.

A Worthwhile Carmen

Bizet: Carmen

Manufacturer: Deutsche Grammophon
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Romances | Classical (c.1770-1830) | Historical Periods | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music
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ASIN: B0006ZFQNA
Release Date: 2005-03-08

Tracks:

Prelude
Sur La Place Chacun Passe
Regardez Donc Cette Petite
Avec La Garde Montante
Repos!
Allons! Allons!
Dites-Moi, Brigadier?
La Cloche A Sonne
Mais Nous Ne Voyons Pas La Carmencita
Quand Je Vous Aimerai?/L'Amour Est Un Oiseau Rebelle
Carmen, Sur Tes Pas Nous Nous Pressons Tous
Monsieur Le Brigadier?/Parle-Moi De Ma Mere!
Votre Mere Acec Moi Sortait De La Chapelle
Ma Mere Je La Vois...
Que Son Fils L'Aime Et La Venere/Eh Bien, Eh Bien!
Au Secours!
Voyons, Brigadier.../Tra La La La...
PRes Des Remparts De Seville
Le Lieutenant!... Prenez Garde!
Entr'acte
Les Tringles Des Sistres Tintaient
Vous Avez Quelque Chose A Nous Dire
Tout Est Bien Alors/Vivat! Vivat Le Torero!
Votre Toast... Je Peux Vous Le Rendre/Toreador, En Garde
Nous Avons En Tete Une Affaire
Amoureuse... Ce N'Est Pas Une Raison, Cela/Halte-La! Qui Va La?

Tracks:

Je Vais Danser En Votre Honneur
La Fleur Que Tu M'Avais Jetee
Non! Tu Ne M'Aimes Pas!
Hola! Carmen! Hola!
Suis-Nous A Travers La Campagne
Entr'acte
Ecoute, Compagnon, Ecoute
Halte! Nous Allons Nous Arreter Ici...
Melons!/Melons!/Coupons!
Carreau, Pique... La Mort!
Parlez Encore, Parlez, Mes Belles
Eh Bien, J'Avais Raison
Quant Au Douanier, C'est Notre Affaire
Nous Y Sommes
Je Dis Que Rien Ne M'Epouvante
Mais... Je Ne Me Trompe Pas.../Je Suis Escamillo, Torero De Grenade
Hola, Jose!
Halte!... Quelqu'un Est La Qui Cherche A Se Cacher
Entr'acte
A Deux Cuartos
Les Voici! Voici Le Quadrille
Si Tu M'Aiomes, Carmen
C'est Toi?/C'est Moi!

Amazon.com

This is a super performance, slightly outside the common mold. In 1977, when this was recorded, Claudio Abbado was a great opera conductor, filled with sharp insights and a nice sense of the architecture of whole operas. He always seemed to know where he was going, and his ability to build to climaxes was second to none. Abbado has a rather elegant Carmen here in the smallish-voiced, introspective Teresa Berganza, a gorgeous singer who patently refuses to force her voice or her character into vulgarity. It's a fine reading. Placido Domingo is at his best in both intimate and maniacal moments, and Ileana Cotrubas's Micaela almost makes us care about this sappy little gal. Sherrill Milnes's Escamillo has plenty of swagger and voice. Berganza's subtlety combined with the wild passions of those around her make this a very good Carmen indeed. --Robert Levine

Customer Reviews:

Great blending of elegance and strenght.......2007-03-29

Over the years, this is still my favorite Carmen: great orchestra, great conductor, force and over all elegance... Teresa Berganza is probably my favorite mezzo, and among the best opera singers, and here she probes it. Couple her with Placido Domingo and both spanish artist seems to rescue Carmen back to their native land, no matter how french the opera is.
This recording probably will be for ever in my collection, for sure in the first row.

A good international performance (no French, please).......2007-02-06

Abbado's 1977 Carmen dates form his fruitful early phase with the London Symphony, when his conducting was, if a bit tame at times, still fresh and engaging. He gained extra priase for casting two Spanish leads in Berganza and Domingo, but Carmen is French through and through, so that's no a vlaid advantage. In fact, Domingo's French is only passable, and what we have is another in a long line of Carmen recordings made without benefit of idiomatic Gallic style.

There are so few French Carmens, in fact, that one can't hold it against Abbado that none of his major singers are native speakers/singers. This is about par in three Karajan recordings (with Simianato, Leontyne Price and Agnes Baltsa), the much-loved Beecham (with de los Angeles), the Pretre (with Callas), and so on. The best of these employ French singers in minor roles as well as in the chorus. If a French singer pulcks a major part, it's usually as Escamillo.

Like most rugged collectors, I swear off Carmen every fivee years or so, only to add a few mor4e recordings when the itch comes--this is, after all, a perfect opera in its way. Didn't Wagner admire it? I know Tchaikovsky did. In any event, the Abbado isn't high on my list. The Karajan/Price recording has a wildly inappropriate Don Jose in Franco Corelli (who doesn't even attempt French, merely making up syllables as he goes). Sherilli Milnes's Escamillo is also innocent of French pronunciation, but he does sing at his best here, with a minimum of shouting.

For me, the real problem is teresa Berganza, a lovely but mild-mannered singer who firmly places Carmen in a seduction-free zone. Nor does she exhibit much anger, doom, or revenge. Abbado, too, seems content with a smooth finish, as does his British chorus. Which leaves only Domingo firing up for Don Jose, which he does admirably. He's in best voice and compares with the very best in the Flower Song as well as the final confrontation with Carmen.

I think we sitll await an revelatory French Carmen, and in the meantime all sorts of international hybrids will have to do, including this fine but not exciting one from Abbado.

A well done "Carmen" from the 1977 Edinburgh Festival (but a studio recording).......2005-09-20

"Carmen" has become one of the most popular operas in the repertoire since its premier in Paris in 1875. It was received coolly at first, but Bizet had received a nice payment for the publishing rights and it received 37 performances (the composer, however, died after the 31st performance at 36 years old). This opera has an interesting performance history as well as a very unusual plot and musical treatment.

First of all, do not be deceived by its classification as opera comique. This is a stylistic category because there is some spoken dialogue rather than using recitative. However, for performances outside France, it was supplied with recitative (not by Bizet, because he had died). This performance uses a "restored" score and does not use recitative for those passages.

How should the role of Carmen be played? First, think about whom she is playing against. The male protagonist, Don Jose, is not a hero. Once he becomes enflamed by Carmen, he spirals into worse and worse behavior. These two never become of one heart or even genuinely in love. This is not a traditional love story. There are no heroes or even a clearly defined bad guy. Well, Don Jose is a bad guy, but he is also the male lead and doesn't really fill the role of a villain in the traditional sense.

The issue for playing Carmen is what kind of gypsy do you believe her to be? She is certainly flirtatious, fierce, and will not be possessed. Nowadays, we tend to admire her fierce independence rather than being shocked by it. Her casualness towards love and sex can still shock and trouble those who believe in more traditional values. Still, this Carmen, Teresa Berganza, sees a certain dignity and propriety in her and plays her with a national pride. She is Spanish and refused to play Carmen as a French caricature of a Spanish gypsy. This is not how Carmen is often seen. It is easier to excite the audience with a more erotic (lurid) performance.

The singing here is very fine with Berganza as Carmen, Placido Domingo as Don Jose, and Sherrill Milnes as Escamillo. This recording was made after this cast (largely) performed the opera as part of the 1977 Edinburgh Festival. It sounds great. The notes are helpful and the libretto is provided in the original French with an English translation by its side.

This is Bizet's masterpiece, has many familiar tunes, and much other fine music. "Carmen" is an opera that anyone can enjoy and for a variety of good reasons.

Overall, quite charming........2004-12-26

I received this from my father for Christmas. I was nervous at first because of all the albums I had sampled, Theresa Berganza was my LEAST favorite. However, having listened to this recording thoroughly, I quite enjoy the entire cast. Berganza's singing is quite lovely and passionate in most songs, although I found her Habanera a little lacking. Domingo, of course, is wonderful. Yvonne Kenny, Alicia Nafe, Gordon Sandison, and Geoffrey Pogson (the four smugglers) are BRILLIANT! The quintet is very well done, and the blend of their voices is very pleasant to the ear. I would highly suggest this album to anyone who's looking for a quality recording of the opera as Bizet originally intended it to be heard: With the original dialogue (not those wretched added in recitatives, etc) and with a quality cast and orchestra. Kudos to Claudio Abbado and the cast.

A Worthwhile Carmen.......2004-11-03

This recording stars Placido Domingo as Don Jose, Teresa Berganza as Carmen, Sherill Milnes as Escamillo and Ileana Contrubas as Micaela. With a cast like that and with conductor Claudio Abbado, you can't go wrong. It is indeed a very well-executed Carmen. My favorite and first choice is, however, Grace Bumbry in the title role and Jon Vickers as Escamillo, Mirella Freni as Micaela and the lesser known Kostas Paskalis as Escamillo in a 1970 recording. That one is the authentic Opera-Comique version that Georges Bizet produced in Paris in 1875. It is supposed to have dialogue and not recitative, which most productions of Carmen use today, which I believe is the Choudens version. There have been many Carmens in the operatic jungle- among them even sopranos who take on this role written for mezzo-soprano- Maria Callas, Leontine Price, Shirley Verrett Grace Bumbry and most recently at the LA Opera I saw Catherine Malfitano in the role. But the role is better suited for mezzo-sopranos like Teresa Berganza in this recording. Or in the very least flexible mezzos turned sopranos such as Grace Bumbry and Shirley Verrett which I've already mentioned. Berganza has a charm and wit which makes her a very enjoyable Carmen. Her voice is light but secure, and she has all the right intonation for many of the key moments- the Habanera, Seguidilla, Gypsy Dance, the moment when she learns of her inevitable death through the tarot cards and of course the finale.

Opposite Teresa Berganza is Placido Domingo who is sensational as Don Jose. The role fits him like a glove, especially because the character is so passionate. The fact that Domingo and Berganza are Spanish and are in a sense playing Spanish characters makes it even more delicious. Ileana Contrubas, who has been acclaimed as a fine Violetta in Traviata makes a very touching performance as the anguished and innocent Micaela. Micaela was apparently a part thrown in at the last minute to provide the dark opera with some light and romance. Only her feelings are pure and untouched by adult machinations. Her arias are noble and beautiful (Je Dis Que Rien" is like a prayer) while the others seem to express conflict and verisomo forces of passions, sex, violence and vulgarity. Baritone Sherill Milnes had a Heaven-blessed baritone voice that is perfect for the macho part of Escamillo the bullfighter. Everything he did is pure gold, from his Scarpia in Tosca to his Count Di Luna in Verdi's Trovatore to his Rigoletto. Carmen is an opera about passions and fatal attraction. The liberated and undefeated Carmen is so free-willed that even her death seems to have been embraced by her. Living a criminal and reckless life, she was certain her death would come some day. She never dreamed it to come from an otherwise naive and infatuated young soldier.

Average customer rating:

Bizet: Greatest Hits

Manufacturer: Decca
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

Suites | Forms & Genres | Classical | Styles | Music

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ASIN: B00022LJL0
Release Date: 2004-05-11

Tracks:

Overture
La Garde Montante
L'amour Est Un Oiseau Rebelle (Habanera)
Aragonaise
Pres Des Remparts De Seville
Les Dragons D'Alcala
Danse Boheme (Bohemian Dance)
Votre Toast, Je Peux Vous Le Rendre (Toreador Song)
La Fleur Que Tu M'avais Jetee (Flower Song)
Intermezzo
Marche Des Contrebandiers (March Of Smugglers)
Je Dis Que Rien Ne M'epouvante
Les Voici! Voici Le Quadrille! (March Of The Toreadors)
Au Fond Du Temple Saint
Prelude
Minuetto
Adagietto
Carillon

Bizet - Carmen / Berganza, Domingo, Cotrubas, Milnes, Abbado

Average customer rating:

Great blending of elegance and strenght
A good international performance (no French, please)
A well done "Carmen" from the 1977 Edinburgh Festival (but a studio recording)
Overall, quite charming.
A Worthwhile Carmen

Bizet - Carmen / Berganza, Domingo, Cotrubas, Milnes, Abbado
Georges Bizet , Claudio Abbado , Teresa Berganza , Plácido Domingo , Ileana Cotrubas , Sherrill Milnes , Richard Amner , Robert Lloyd , and Yvonne Kenny
Manufacturer: Deutsche Grammophon
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

French | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Operettas | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music

Deutsche Grammophon: Music | Specialty Stores | Music
Similar Items:

Rossini - Il barbiere di Siviglia / Prey · Berganza · Alva · Dara · Montarsolo · LSO · Abaddo
Donizetti - Lucia di Lammermoor / Sutherland · Pavarotti · Milnes · Ghiaurov · ROH Covent Garden · Bonynge
Puccini - La Bohème / Freni, Pavarotti, Harwood, Ghiaurov, Karajan
Rossini: The Barber Of Seville with Maria Callas, Tito Gobbi, Alceo Galliera, Philharmonia Orchestra & Chorus
Verdi - La Traviata / Cotrubas · Domingo · Milnes · Bayerisches Staatsorchester · Carlos Kleiber

ASIN: B000001G89
Release Date: 1990-10-25

Tracks:

Carmen: Prelude - Georges Bizet
Carmen: Act One, No. 1 - Intro: 'Sur La Place Chacun Passe' - Georges Bizet
Carmen: Act One, No. 1 - Intro: 'Regardez Donc Cette Petite' (Micaela) - Georges Bizet
Carmen: Act One, No. 2 - Marche Et Choeur Des Gamins: 'A Vec La Garde Montante' - Georges Bizet
Carmen: Act One, No. 2 - Marche Et Choeur Des Gamins: 'Repos!' (Don Jose) - Georges Bizet
Carmen: Act One, No. 2 - Marche Et Choeur Des Gamins: 'Allons! Allons!' - Georges Bizet
Carmen: Act One, No. 2 - Marche Et Choeur Des Gamins: 'Dites-Moi, Brigadier?' (Don Jose) - Georges Bizet
Carmen: Act One, No. 3 - Choeur Et Scene: 'La Cloche A Sonne' - Georges Bizet
Carmen: Act One, No. 3 - Choeur Et Scene: 'Mais Nous Ne Voyons Pas La Carmencita' - Georges Bizet
Carmen: Act One, No. 3 - Choeur Et Scene: 'Quand Je Vous Aimerai?' - No. 4 - Havanaise: 'L'amour est un oiseau rebelle' (Carmen) - Georges Bizet
Carmen: Act One, No. 5 - Scene: 'Carmen, Sur Tes Pas, Nous Nous Pressons Tous' (Don Jose) - Georges Bizet
Carmen: Act One, No. 5 - Scene: 'Monsieur Le Brigadier?' - No. 6 - Duo: 'Parle-moi de ma mere!' (Micaela) (Don Jose) - Georges Bizet
Carmen: Act One, No. 6 - Duo: 'Votre Mere Avec Moi Sortait De La Chapelle' (Micaela) (Don Jose) - Georges Bizet
Carmen: Act One, No. 6 - Duo: 'Ma Mere, Je La Vois...' (Don Jose) (Micaela) - Georges Bizet
Carmen: Act One, No. 6 - Duo: 'Que Son Fils L'Aime Et La Venere' (Don Jose) (Micaela) - Georges Bizet
Carmen: Act One, No. 7 - Choeur: 'Au Secours' - Georges Bizet
Carmen: Act One, No. 7 - Choeur: 'Voyons, Brigadier' - No. 8 - Chanson et Melodrame: 'Tra la la la...' (Don Jose) (Carmen) - Georges Bizet
Carmen: Act One, No. 9 - Chanson (Seguedille) Et Duo: 'Pres Des Remparts De Seville' (Don Jose) (Carmen) - Georges Bizet
Carmen: Act One, No. 10 - Finale: 'Le Lieutenant!... Prenez Garde.' (Don Jose) (Carmen) - Georges Bizet

Tracks:

Carmen: Entr'acte - G. Bizet
Carmen: Act Two, No.11 - Chanson: 'Les tringles des sistres tintaient' (Carmen) - G. Bizet
Carmen: Act Two, No.11 - Chanson: 'Vous avez quelque chose ous dire' (Carmen) - G. Bizet
Carmen: Act Two, No.11 - Chanson: 'Tout est bien alors' - No.11 - Choeur et Ensemble: 'Vivat! vivat le tor!' (Carmen) (Escamillo) - G. Bizet
Carmen: Act Two, No.13 - Couplet (Air du Toreador): 'Votre toast... je peux vous le rendre' - No.13 bis - Choeur: 'Toror, en garde' (Escamillo) (Carmen) - G. Bizet
Carmen: Act Two, No.14 - Quintette: 'Nous avons en t une affaire.' (Carmen) - G. Bizet
Carmen: Act Two, No.15 - Chanson: 'Amoureuse...ce n'est pas une raison' - 'Halte-lQui va l (Don Jose) (Carmen) - G. Bizet
Carmen: Act Two, No.16 - Duo: 'Je vais dancer en votre honneur' (Carmen) (Don Jose) - G. Bizet
Carmen: Act Two, Air de la Fleur: 'La fleur que tu m'avais jet (Don Jose) - G. Bizet
Carmen: Act Two, Air de la Fleur: 'Non! Tu ne m'aimes pas!' (Carmen) (Don Jose) - G. Bizet
Carmen: Act Two, No.17 - Finale: 'HolCarmen! hol (Don Jose) (Carmen) - G. Bizet
Carmen: Act Two, No.17 - Finale: 'Suis-nous ravers la campagne' - G. Bizet

Tracks:

Carmen: Entr'acte - G. Bizet
Carmen: Act Three, No.18 - Introduction: 'Ecoute, compagnon, ute!' (Don Jose) (Carmen) - G. Bizet
Carmen: Act Three, No.18 -Introduction: 'Halte! Nous allons nous arrr ici...' (Don Jose) (Carmen) - G. Bizet
Carmen: Act Three, No.19 - Trio: 'Mns!...Mns!...Coupons!' - G. Bizet
Carmen: Act Three, Air des Cartes: 'Carreau, pique...la mort!' (Carmen) - G. Bizet
Carmen: Act Three, Air des Cartes: 'Parles encore, parlez, mes belles' (Carmen) - G. Bizet
Carmen: Act Three, Air des Cartes: 'Eh bien, j'avais raison' (Carmen) (Don Jose) - G. Bizet
Carmen: Act Three, No. 20 - Morceau d'Ensemble: 'Quant au douanier, c'est notre affaire' (Carmen) - G. Bizet
Carmen: Act Three, No. 20 - Morceau d'Ensemble: 'Nous y sommes' (Micaela) - G. Bizet
Carmen: Act Three, No.21 - Air: 'Je dis que rien ne m'uvante' (Micaela) - G. Bizet
Carmen: Act Three, No.21 - Air: 'Mais...je ne me trompe pas...' - No.22 - Duo: 'Je suis Escamillo, tor de Grenade.' (Escamillo) (Don Jose) - G. Bizet
Carmen: Act Three, No.23 - Finale: 'HolJos (Carmen) (Escamillo) (Don Jose) - G. Bizet
Carmen: Act Three, No. 23 - Finale: 'Halte! Quelqu'un est lui cherche e cacher.' (Carmen) (Don Jose) (Micaela) - G. Bizet
Carmen: Entr'acte - G. Bizet
Carmen: Second Tableau, No. 24 - Choeur: 'A deux cuartos' - G. Bizet
Carmen: Second Tableau, No.25 - Choeur et Scene: 'Les voici, voici le quadrille' - G. Bizet
Carmen: Second Tableau, No.25 - Choeur et Scene: 'Si tu m'aimes, Carmen' (Escamillo) (Carmen) - G. Bizet
Carmen: Second Tableau, No.26 - Duo Final: 'C'est toi?...C'est moi.' (Carmen) (Don Jose) - G. Bizet

Amazon.com

Customer Reviews:

Great blending of elegance and strenght.......2007-03-29

A good international performance (no French, please).......2007-02-06

A well done "Carmen" from the 1977 Edinburgh Festival (but a studio recording).......2005-09-20

Overall, quite charming........2004-12-26

A Worthwhile Carmen.......2004-11-03

Bizet: Carmen (Highlights) / Abbado, Domingo

Average customer rating:

Bizet: Carmen (Highlights) / Abbado, Domingo

Manufacturer: Deutsche Grammophon
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

French | Languages | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

Operettas | Opera & Vocal | Styles | Music

General | Classical | Styles | Music

Deutsche Grammophon: Music | Specialty Stores | Music
ASIN: B000001GG1
Release Date: 1992-09-15

Tracks:

Carman: Prelude
Carman: Act I: Voici la cloche qui sonne, mon lieutenant (Don Jose) ; La cloche a sonne
Carman: Act I:Mais nous ne voyons pas la Camencita (Carmen)
Carman: Act I: L'amour est un oiseau rebelle (Carmen)
Carman: Act I : Monsieur le brigadier? (Don Jose) ;Parle moi de ma mere!
Carman: Act I : Pres des remparts de Seville (Don Jose)
Carman: Act II : Les tringles des sistres tintaient (Carmen)
Carman: Act II: Votre toast...je peux vous le rendre (Escamillo,Carmen,Andres)
Carman: Act II: La fleur que tu m'avais jetee (Don Jose)
Carman: Act III: Je dis que rien ne m'epouvante (Micaela)
Carman: Act III: Je suis Escamillo, torero de Grenade
Carman: Act III: Les voici, voici le quadrille
Carman: Act III: Si tu m'aimes, Carmen (Escamillo,Carmen)
Carman: Act III: C'est toi? / C'est moi (Carmen,Don Jose)