Verdi: Rigolettoby Anonymous

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May 05, 2003: If you enjoy feeling the pathos behind the voice, this is the Rigoletto recording for you. Chernov and Studer bring real life to their characters, especially in the duet scenes. Chernov tries to add an artificial weight to his lyric baritone voice and sounds a little pushed sometimes, but hearing the drama in his voice is worth it. Studer doesn't have the ringing head-tone she once did, but her Gilda is very serviceable and she connects on a very deep emotional level with her Rigoletto. Pavarotti delivers a typically enjoyable performance, still retaining the vitality of his first recording of the role in this version. Levine has a nice feel for the score and gives Verdi's music all the attention and drive it needs, since the orchestra is essentially a main character in this opera. This is by for the most well-rounded cast on disc, Graves's Maddelena and d'Arcangelo's Monterone are stellar. If you enjoy acting singers, this is the one for you!