Great Opera Tenors: Nicolai Gedda (2 CD, WAV)

All thanks fly to Bob

Performer: Nicolai Gedda
Audio CD
Number of Discs: 2
Label: Disky
Size: 1.34 GB
Recovery: +3%
Scan: yes

CD 01
Gabriel Fauré
01. Nell, song for voice & piano in G flat major, Op. 18/1
02. Après un rêve (“Dans un sommeil”), song for voice & piano, Op. 7/1
03. Fleur Jetée, song for voice & piano in F minor, Op. 39/2

Francis Poulenc
04. À sa guitare, for voice & guitar (or harp/piano), FP 79
05. Hôtel (“Ma chambre a la forme d’une cage”), song for voice & piano (Banilités), FP 107/2

Claude Debussy
06. Mandoline (“Les donneurs de sérénades”), song for voice & piano, L. 29

Reynaldo Hahn
07. L’Heure exquise

Sergey Rachmaninov
08. Spring waters, song for voice & piano, Op. 14/11
09. How fair this spot

Modest Mussorgsky

10. V pólnoch…v sadú…u fontána

Richard Strauss
11. Kein andres, das mir so im Herzen loht

Charles Gounod
12. No.6- Air: Mon coeur est plein d’un noir souci (Act II )

Hector Berlioz
13. Merci, doux crépiscule
14. La fleur que tu m’avais jetée

Peter Cornelius
15. So leb’ ich noch… Vor deinem Fenster

Giacomo Puccini
16. Che gelida manina!

Carl Maria von Weber
17. Nein, länger trag’ ich nicht die Qualen…Durch die Wälder, durch die

Gioachino Rossini
18. Ecco ridente in cielo (Act I)

Gaetano Donizetti
19. Una furtiva lagrima

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
20. Recitativo: Qual mi conturba I sensi
21. Aria: Fuor del mare

CD 02
Ludwig van Beethoven
01. Adelaide, song for voice & piano, Op. 46

Richard Strauss
02. Ständchen (“Mach’ auf, mach’ auf, doch leise, mein Kind”), song for voice & piano, Op. 17/2 (TrV 149/2)
03. Befreit (“Du wirst nicht weinen”), song for voice & piano (or orchestra), Op. 39/4 (TrV 189/4)

Pyotr Il’yich Tchaikovsky
04. Don Juan’s Serenade, song for voice & piano, Op. 38/1

Edvard Grieg
05. Jeg elsker Dig (I Love but Thee), song for voice & piano, Op. 5/3

Jacques Offenbach
06. Auf dem Berge Ida

Adolphe Adam
07. Ronde du Postillon:Mes amis, écoutez l’histoire (Act I)

Franz Lehár
08. Schönste der Frauen, for voice & piano (or orchestra) (from “Giuditta”)
09. Der Handschuh, wie pikant-Es duftet nach Trèfle incarnat
10. Von Apfelablüten einen Kranz, for voice & piano (or orchestra) (from “Das Land des Lächelsn”)
11. Dein ist mein ganzes Herz, for voice & piano (or orchestra) (from “Das Land des Lächelns”)

Albert Lortzing
12. Hinweg! Hinweg! Dein dräuend Angesicht

Daniel-François-Esprit Auber
13. Air:J’ai revu nos amis (Act III )

Georges Bizet
14. Je crois entendre encore (Act I)

Friedrich von Flotow
15. Ach, so fromm, ach, so traut

Great small voice

Nicolai Gedda has a quite ‘small’ voice but he uses it with great technique and intelligence. It’s well focused, very smooth and not least, beautiful. In other words, a perfect lyric tenor.
The combination of technique, intelligence and beauty makes him ideal for lieder, italian bel canto operas, romantic german & french operas. And you get it on these discs. All songs have been collected from the EMI archives, assuring a high production standard. It contains highlights from most of Gedda’s most famous recordings, amongst them a lovely floating ‘flower song’ (Carmen) under Beecham, and a unbelievably beautiful and effortless ‘Je crois entendre encore’ (Nadir’s romance from the Pearlfishers). The most famous tenor-arias from der Freischutz, il Barbiere di Siviglia, l’Elisir d’amore, Martha, la Boheme, der schöne Helena and many others are featured, as well as works by Mozart, Beethoven, Gounod, Lehar, Faure and Grieg. And their all tremendously well done.
Gedda may not be a Wagner singer. Maybe not even suitable for much of Verdi’s or Puccini’s works. Therefor it’s good that these discs has none of this repertoire. It focuses on Geddas other strengths. For, what Gedda misses in extreme power and positive ‘vulgarity’ (compared to the ever popular Corelli, del Monaco and sometimes Pavarotti), he greatly compensates by the cheer beauty and intelligence of his voice. This is a school-book example of lyric tenor singing, and after listening to these discs I assure you that you will understand why Nicolai Gedda was one of the last centuries most popular tenors. Simply great! And at this price it’s almost a shame not to own it. A must för lovers of the somewhat lighter opera repertoire.

Must-have

I just got this in the mail today and have only listened to a few tracks, but the “Les pecheurs de perles” alone makes this a must-have. Sooooo gorgeous. Gedda’s voice is divine- probably the best tenor I have ever heard, tone-wise at least.