Bizet - La jolie fille de Perth / J. Anderson ? Kraus ? Quilico ? van Dam ? Bacquier ? M. Zimmermann ? Pr?tre

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Free Music Notes for Bizet - La jolie fille de Perth / J. Anderson ? Kraus ? Quilico ? van Dam ? Bacquier ? M. Zimmermann ? Pr?tre

Free Music Review: great singing in rare opera
Hit: 4 Stars

Georges Pr?tre here makes a rather fine reading of this lyrical opera, not as histrionic or violent as some other of his performances on disc, although he still at a few times is rather unsensitive - this is though, for example, far better than his almost hysteric account of 'les pecheurs de perles' recorded 8 years before this set. He has also learnt the lesson of letting his singers step forward and work with them, not above them.

The soloists the? Well, we have a great cast here that contributes far more to the four-star rating I've made than Pr?tre: A wonderful coloratura soprano from June Andersson, her singing in the finale of act 4 is magnificent; an ever-stylish lyrical tenor from Alfredo Kraus - his ardent voice suits this kind of opera perfectly, the most famous part, the 'serenade' is very beautiful; some of the finest lower french male voices possible to get from van Dam, Bacquier and Quilico. Everyone may not like the oldfashioned timbre of Margarita Zimmerman as Mab, but she's effective and hers is a minor role.

So, the weak parts, if anything, is Pr?tre's conducting that is not perfect, not in tempi, nor in style - but it's good enough and with such singers to help him this is really good.

If you like Bizet, this probably won't disappoint you, it has all his trademarks of captivating rhytms, unbelievable beauty and lyricism, exotism. Though no Carmen, 'La Jolie fille' might well rank aside 'les pecheurs' if performed under perfect conditions. A must for Bizet lovers.

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