Charles Hart - The Phantom of the Opera (Original 1986 London Cast)
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Free Music Notes for The Phantom of the Opera (Original 1986 London Cast)
Free Music Review: Beautiful Music, Beautiful Cast
Hit: 5 Stars
The Phantom of the Opera is an incredible musical. Spanning a whole range of emotions and vocal levels, from the crashing chords of the Phantom's theme to the soft tones of "All I Ask of You," this musical must have overwhelmed those fortunate people who saw its premiere in London. I would like to have been there, only I was -4 at the time, which complicates matters!
But those who could not be or were not there can experience something similar with this recording, featuring the original 1986 London cast.
We have as Christine the wonderful Sarah Brightman, whom Andrew Lloyd Webber actually had in mind when he wrote that role. (She was his wife at one time.) She handles the soaring high notes with seemingly no difficulty at all (her wordless vocalizing at the end of track 6 is quite amazing), and with a powerful voice to boot one would be hard-pressed to find someone better suited.
Then there is Michael Crawford as the Phantom. I believe he won an award for best vocal acting for this recording--I will gladly accept correction if I am wrong--but if he did it is well deserved. He expresses a tremendous range of emotions with his voice, and I still have no idea how he manufactures such a convincing laugh. Listening to him and Sarah Brightman sing together is quite amazing.
Steve Barton as Raoul is a solid singer as well, and he handles his role nicely. He fits nicely with Sarah Brightman, too, and their "All I Ask of You" duet is very good.
Rosemary Ashe as Carlotta has a powerful enough voice to be the lead soprano of an opera house, as well as the ridiculous overdramatization that is the essence of the Italian diva. Her one fault is that at one small point in the music she loses her Italian accent and belts out some rather American Rs. For the most part, however, her accent is quite convincing. I still wonder why that one part of the recording was not done-over, however.
And of course Monsieurs Andre and Firmin--the two opera house managers and providers of most of the comic relief--are quite excellent. They present a very colorful performance, which is necessary for such colorful characters.
This is an excellent recording with few flaws to speak of--I am hard-pressed to think of any at the moment, except Carolotta's one accent slip, and that is hardly a flaw to speak of. If you enjoy this musical it is well worth your time.
Free Music Review: The Angel of Music has blessed us with this score!
Hit: 5 Stars
The Phantom of the Opera...what can I say? It is arguably the greatest musical of all time. The story of a deformed man who yearns for love and the terror he brings to the opera house he haunts is told here in actulal operaetic form, and with some of the most brilliant music ever written.The original London cast defined the roles, and many devoted phans still consider them the best. This is the recording where you can hear why Andrew Lloyd Webber's version is so beloved, with the awe-inspiring performances of Michael Crawford as Phantom and Sarah Brightman as Christine, with Steve Barton as Raoul. Their performances are beyond words.
This edition is newly remastered, and there is quite a noticible difference in sound quality between it and previous releases. For a few years before buying this version, I only had the highlights album, featuring only the most essential tracks. The excerpts that appear there were taken directly from the previous, non-remastered two-disc edition. Listening to it just before getting this, it was very fine and certianly listenable. But when I then put on this remaster, I found it to be much clearer, crisper and even more pleasing to the ear than before. The other (now out-of-print) version (replaced by this one) is certianly servicable, but this one is much better.
The two discs feature silk-screen artwork of the Phantom's mask. The standard CD jewel case is then further enclosed in a cardboard slipsleeve case. The included booklet features beautiful photographs from the musical and lists the various scenes. Another completely seperate booklet is included, slipping into the cardboard case snugly right next to the CD jewel case. This includes the complete liberetto.
Would I reccomend replacing your old version with this new one? That depends on just how much you love the show. If you're a phanatic and want to have the best-sounding version possible, then yes. If you want the pictures, booklet or liberetto but do not own them in another format, then yes. But since the liberetto was also included in the original release, if you are only a casaul phan, there's not much need to buy it again unless you are upgrading from the highlights version to the full recording. If you do not have The Phantom of the Opera represented in your collection at all, despite being expensive, this is most definately the recording and the version to get. It is a must!
Free Music Review: a great recording
Hit: 5 Stars
Okay, so a few bars are lifted from Italian verismo operas. Still, Phantom of the Opera is an incredible collection of melodies with heavy hitting lyrics. Plus, for being relatively recent and composed in a classical style, it sounds beautiful and melodic, not dissonant and mishmashed like so many modern compositions.Most people either love or hate this musical. It's hard to hate it, though, with so many catchy melodies and ecstatic two- and three-octave jumps by sopranos with sugar sweet voices. Musically, it's an incredibly heartfelt and passionate score, with music often illustrating scenes, emotions, and actions with no aid from words. But when paired with impeccable lyrics about love, hate, and everything in between, it makes for a very moving and surprisingly dramatic experience.
Sarah Brightman, "crossover" work aside, is an incredible Broadway actress. Her voice plucks notes from thin air (precision second to none) with a tone that electrifies with its combination of ecstasy and purity. Michael Crawford is seething with hatred and self-loathing, his best work by far, and a true portrait of how a "character voice" can be used to an actor's advantage. Steve Barton, though static as Raoul, gives a solid performance with an easy baritone that mingles neatly with Brightman's soprano. Rosemary Ashe as Carlotta gives a powerfully understated performance as the scorned diva, her shrill high notes filed with shattering energy.
The orchestra is perfect, never overpowering the singers, yet standing wonderfully alone during the Entr'Acte. Mike Reed conducts with gusto and verve, the music always leading forward and driving the story along.
The recording itself is good, with only a few scratches that are barely noticeable. The balance is excellent and every instrument is audible. Meg and Giry sometimes fade in the climactic ensemble numbers, but other than that nothing is missed. A full libretto is included as well as a book with some pictures and a general synopsis of scenes and musical numbers. The only thing that would have made the recording better would have been the inclusion of spoken dialogue between the musical numbers so that the plot is better understood, but that is something to be saved for the theater alone.
For the sheer mellodrama of it all, this is a recording to own, second only to a live production.
Free Music Review: A New York Experience
Hit: 5 Stars
I am very fortunate to live so close to the broadway stage, for with such proximity, I can re live my experience with this show over and over, just by walking past the Majestic Theater where Phantom has reigned king for so many years.Like so many others, I listened to this audio production to the point where I could perform any part of the show from memory. It was probably 400 + times I had listened to it before I got a chance to see the show on broadway, and not in any seat available, but in the 9th row, center. These seats were only available after a 6 month wait. It was worth it.
There are some who critisize the production; some who say this part or that part was not as expected, and others who were less than impressed with other parts of the performance. For me, the evening was perfect, for it gave me a visual image for the production I had burned into my mind for so long.
With absolute truth, one can say that the music is the centerpiece of the production. Andrew Lloyd Weber, with his team of writers, put together what is clearly the most impressive, and the most heart warming musical scores ever to grace the broadway stage. And you must remember, it was written for the stage, and not for the living room sound system. To see it performed in its true element, is to see and hear it in perfection.
"Wishing you were some how here again", and "Wandering Child" were to me, the pearl of the performance. I longed to see it, and treasured every moment.
I was fortunate to have seen the show a second time,( 11th row, center ) and in doing so, experienced a different phantom for each production; both on the same stage. In each production, the story was just slightly different; In the first, christine is torn in the end, as she has fallen deeply for the phantom. In the second production, christine sees the lunacy and madness in him, and flees from her captor when she gets the chance, but only after one last kiss. Of course, the acting of the second phantom displayed the temperament of a lunatic; In the first, he was more endearing and sincere. Had I not seen it twice, I would not appreciate the difference.
For those who can, make every effort to experience this work of art in its true element; on stage. but, untill then, enjoy the music untill you wear out the grooves.
Free Music Review: The music is wonderful. The problems are elsewhere.
Hit: 5 Stars
Andrew Lloyd Webber's greatest hit, PHANTOM OF THE OPERA, has received so much attention because of the spectacle involved in the show: the intricate costumes, the mammoth staircase, the fog, the candles, the fireballs, and, of course, the chandelier that has required theaters around the world hosting touring productions to have their ceilings reinforced. However, nobody would have been willing to sink the capital into the original production if it hadn't been for the magnificent score of Sir Andrew. The score is the star of the show. Shortly after the show reached Broadway, I spent a year listening to this show virtually non-stop and learning to play most of its songs on the piano. When I finally saw the show in Toronto a few years later, I was severely disappointed: the music and sets are incredible, but the characters are of seemingly incidental importance. For all the time that the Phantom and Christine spend on stage, one is surprised to realize how little we have learned about them by the end of the show....
...but the original cast recording is a pure joy. The music is incredible, and, for once, Sir Andrew has written enough music without the listener getting the impression that the second act exists only to reprise the songs from the first act. The orchestrations, like everything else in this production, are grand and sweeping. Every song is a hit, from the simple tunes of "All I Ask of You" and "Angel of Music," to the complicated counterpoints in "Prima Donna" and the reprise of "The Point of No Return." Even the atonal passages (associated with Phantom's own compositions) work well. Michael Crawford and Sarah Brightman have poor vocal techniques, but since they have become so associated with these roles their foibles seem to come off as character traits. (However, listening to - or even worse, seeing - either of them perform other music is torture, since Crawford croons instead of taking vocal risks and Brightman sings in higher registers than God probably intended for her.)
My advice: buy the recording, and since all the music is great, don't skimp and buy the highlights. The first time you play it, make sure you can listen to scenes 7-9 of Act II in a darkened room with no distractions. Then will you fully appreciate Sir Andrew's musical talents!