The quality of an anthology always depends on the source recordings a label has to choose from. In the case of Angela Gheorghiu, both Decca and EMI have plenty of good material -- so much so that both released compilations in 2004, each of which is an excellent capsulation of Gheorghiu's art and career, and neither of which duplicates the other's musical selections. Decca was Gheorghiu's label during the first years of her international career, and so The Essential Angela Gheorghiu is limited to recordings made before 2000. ...
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The quality of an anthology always depends on the source recordings a label has to choose from. In the case of Angela Gheorghiu, both Decca and EMI have plenty of good material -- so much so that both released compilations in 2004, each of which is an excellent capsulation of Gheorghiu's art and career, and neither of which duplicates the other's musical selections. Decca was Gheorghiu's label during the first years of her international career, and so The Essential Angela Gheorghiu is limited to recordings made before 2000. But, even though these selections are a few years old, they represent many of the core roles of her repertory. Most notable is her Violetta (Verdi's La traviata) with Georg Solti from 1995. It was the role that launched Gheorghiu into the big time, and having her "Ah, fors' è lui...sempre libera" from that time of her career is a great opportunity to hear the qualities that first made her famous. Equally important are the arias from La bohème, which is a centerpiece of her...
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