Title : Andrea Bocelli - Sacred Arias / Myung-Whun Chung
Author : George Frideric Handel
Release Date : 19991109
Binding : Audio CD
Regular Price : $18.98
Amazon.com Price : $10.99
(42
%) VISIT AMAZON.COM'S PAGE
Editorial Reviews : When he was growing up, Andrea Bocelli recalls finding inspiration in a favorite recording of sacred music performed by tenor legend Franco Corelli. Bocelli--who in the meantime has come to inspire millions of fiercely loyal fans himself--returns to the genre as the guiding theme of Sacred Arias, the release of which coincides with the first English-language biography of the singer. These performances are filled with the singer's phenomenally well-known vocal signature: his flair for long, sweetly floating high notes and the gentle sense of cadence he brings to a melody. It's a mistake to compartmentalize Bocelli into a singer of 'operatic' versus 'popular' styles: in truth his approach is at heart the same. Lack of color and control in his phrasing remains a drawback, but the emotional empathy Bocelli evokes is never in doubt. The arias collected here sample some of the most famous devotional pieces: Schubert's 'Ave Maria' and Mozart's transporting 'Ave Verum,' as well as an arrangement of 'Silent Night' in which Bocelli tries out his English. There's also a decidedly odd choice of bedfellows for a program of 'sacred' music, such as a song from Wagner's Wesendonck Lieder (whose 'angel' is the object of an overpoweringly erotic attraction) and Handel's figurative ode to a tree, 'Ombra mai fu.' Still, Bocelli sings with an unfeigned directness that is sure to expand his already enormous following even further.
Buyer Reviews : This is so deep with so much feeling. I wish I could sing like that.
