The Tenor's Passion

1	La bohème, opera: Che gel
2	Madama Butterfly (Madame
3	Tosca, opera: Recondita A
4	Tosca, opera: E lucevan l
5	Manon Lescaut, opera: Don
6	Turandot, opera: Nessun d
7	L'Arlesiana, opera: Lamen
8	Fedora, opera: Amor ti vi
9	Andrea Chénier, opera: Co
10	La Gioconda, opera in 4 a
11	Martha, opera: M'appari
12	Der Rosenkavalier, opera,
13	I Puritani, opera: A te,
14	L' Africaine, grand opera
15	Le Roi d'Ys, opera in 3 a
16	Carmen, opera: La fleur q
The Tenor's Passion
1.	La bohème, opera: Che gelida manina 5:01
	Composed by Giacomo Puccini
	Performed by Dresden Staatskapelle and Marcelo Álvarez
	Conducted by Marcello Viotti
2.	Madama Butterfly (Madame Butterfly), opera: Addio, fiorito asil 1:50
	Composed by Giacomo Puccini
	Performed by Dresden Staatskapelle and Marcelo Álvarez
	Conducted by Marcello Viotti
3.	Tosca, opera: Recondita Armonia 3:04
	Composed by Giacomo Puccini
	Performed by Dresden Staatskapelle, Marcello Viotti and Marcelo Álvarez
	Conducted by Marcello Viotti
4.	Tosca, opera: E lucevan le stelle 3:26
	Composed by Giacomo Puccini
	Performed by Dresden Staatskapelle and Marcelo Álvarez
	Conducted by Marcello Viotti
5.	Manon Lescaut, opera: Donna non vidi mai 2:43
	Composed by Giacomo Puccini
	Performed by Dresden Staatskapelle and Marcelo Álvarez
	Conducted by Marcello Viotti
6.	Turandot, opera: Nessun dorma 3:24
	Composed by Giacomo Puccini
	Performed by Dresden Staatskapelle and Marcelo Álvarez
	Conducted by Marcello Viotti
7.	L'Arlesiana, opera: Lamento di Federico 4:39
	Composed by Francesco Cilea
	Performed by Dresden Staatskapelle and Marcelo Álvarez
	Conducted by Marcello Viotti
8.	Fedora, opera: Amor ti vieta 1:52
	Composed by Umberto Giordano
	Performed by Dresden Staatskapelle and Marcelo Álvarez
	Conducted by Marcello Viotti
9.	Andrea Chénier, opera: Come un bel dì maggio 3:01
	Composed by Umberto Giordano
	Performed by Dresden Staatskapelle and Marcelo Álvarez
	Conducted by Marcello Viotti
10.	La Gioconda, opera in 4 acts: Cielo e mar 5:26
	Composed by Amilcare Ponchielli
	Performed by Dresden Staatskapelle and Marcelo Álvarez
	Conducted by Marcello Viotti
11.	Martha, opera: M'appari 3:28
	Composed by Friedrich von Flotow
	Performed by Dresden Staatskapelle and Marcelo Álvarez
	Conducted by Marcello Viotti
12.	Der Rosenkavalier, opera, Op. 59 (TrV 227): Di rigori armato il seno 2:34
	Composed by Richard Strauss
	Performed by Dresden Staatskapelle and Marcelo Álvarez
	Conducted by Marcello Viotti
13.	I Puritani, opera: A te, o cara 3:32
	Composed by Vicenzo Bellini
	Performed by Dresden Staatskapelle and Marcelo Álvarez
	Conducted by Marcello Viotti
14.	L' Africaine, grand opera in 5 acts: O Paradis 3:22
	Composed by Giacomo Meyerbeer
	Performed by Dresden Staatskapelle and Marcelo Álvarez
	Conducted by Marcello Viotti
15.	Le Roi d'Ys, opera in 3 acts: Vainement ma bien aimée 3:50
	Composed by Edouard Lalo
	Performed by Dresden Staatskapelle and Marcelo Álvarez
	Conducted by Marcello Viotti
16.	Carmen, opéra-comique in 4 acts: La fleur que tu m'avais jetée 4:27
	Composed by Georges Bizet
	Performed by Dresden Staatskapelle and Marcelo Álvarez
	Conducted by Marcello Viotti

Barnes & Noble

The race to succeed the legendary "Three Tenors" has been on for years now, and many strong artists have emerged, including Juan Diego Flórez, Roberto Alagna, and Rolando Villazón. Marcelo Álvarez's two previous aria recitals were impressive, but he has waited to offer a program devoted to those big numbers in which Pavarotti and company excel and that have been making audiences swoon ever since Caruso's time. Finally, on the The Tenor's Passion, Álvarez goes head to head with the big three: These are the arias that make or break a superstar tenor, and Álvarez sings them with the confidence of one who knows he has the chops to pull them off, adding a surplus of drama and emotion to the technique and style that he has amply exhibited in the past. The opening set of six Puccini arias establishes Álvarez's credentials as a romantic leading man -- the thrilling climax of "Nessun dorma" can be set against the best -- and a tour of high-octane solos culminates with an equally ardent "Flower Song" from Carmen. The unexpected highlights, however, are "M'appari," from Flotow's Martha -- no longer quite the chestnut it was in Jussi Björling's time -- and Lalo's "Vainement ma bien-aimée," which shows that Álvarez's excursion into heavier repertoire has not diminished the appealing finesse of his earlier recordings. This tenor's Passion should remind us that there's no need to limit ourselves just to three among this abundantly talented generation of young singers. Scott Paulin

All Music Guide

The Tenor's Passion marks Marcelo Álvarez's move into heavier repertory. By his own account, he has given himself a technical makeover in recent years, acknowledging the inevitable darkening of his voice with age by re-gearing his singing for bigger roles. So, in making this recording he has left behind the lighter stuff that first catapulted him into the spotlight and taken up the capital "T" tenor warhorses usually associated with more dramatic voices. The audible change in his sound is striking, and not altogether welcome. He certainly has developed the appropriate heft and carrying power for this music; you don't get the sense that he is a lightweight in over his head. But the tonal evenness, smiling brilliance, and flowing legato that marked his early recordings are gone. His basic tone color now changes drastically between the middle, upper-middle, and high ranges of his voice, often jarringly so in the middle of phrases. The top range is as extensive and reliable as ever (he makes the high C sharp in "A te, o cara" from "I Puritani" sound much easier than Pavarotti ever did), but the lean brilliance that used to characterize those high notes has given way to a thicker, slightly unfocused sound. And whereas he used to sing with an elegant legato, he now sings with a disconnected ponderousness, punctuated by scoops and other stereotypical tenor mannerisms.

So is this a bad album? No. Álvarez is still a recognizably excellent singer, and there are many beautiful moments. Marcello Viotti and the Staatskapelle Dresden are deluxe partners. And the selection of arias, while wholly unoriginal, is great. But in comparison with his own past work, Álvarez's latest effort is less special, less distinctive, and entirely less interesting as a listening experience. Clearly his vocal transformation is no parlor trick. But he doesn't seem comfortable with it yet, and his singing doesn't have the spontaneous engagement, musical refinement, or sense of polish that it once did. Allen Schrott

Time Out New York

The Tenor's Passion is a winning program, displaying this still-young artist's impressive growth. Marion Lignana Rosenberg