About this Artist

• Biography

Editorial Reviews

Here's a chance for you to hear the talents of José Carreras without those other two tenors sharing the limelight. The Very Best of José Carreras is a full two discs of opera scenes and arias from the Italian and French Romantic repertoire. Some of the scenes are extracted from complete opera recordings made in the '70s and '80s, which means there are a couple of jarring fade outs after Carreras' arias. The set contains some of the most popular tenor arias, such as "Vesti la giubba," "Nessun dorma," and "Salut! Demeure chaste et pure," but there are also lesser-known gems like "Ô paradis" (from Meyerbeer's "L'Africaine") and "Vainement, ma bien-aimée" (from Lalo's "Le Roi d'Ys"). Even if Carreras' voice isn't quite as smooth and supple as other tenors', he still has a way with the lyric repertoire, which is best on the second disc, beginning with selections from Verdi's "Don Carlo." He also brings a vividness to his characters, which comes through even on record. Some of the more entertaining scenes are from "Pagliacci" with Renata Scotto, conducted by Riccardo Muti; and from Offenbach's "La Périchole" with Teresa Berganza, conducted by Michel Plasson. The only drawback to this collection is the uneven engineering of the selections, which is to be expected in a compilation; it is at times frustrating to hear the vocalists drowned out by the orchestra. Patsy Morita, All Music Guide

Customer Reviews

• Listener Rating: