This is a complicated disc, one that is easier to admire than enjoy. Roberto Alagna’s technique has solidified into something admirable; the high notes–of which there are dozens on this CD–are (mostly) all in place, and the sound of the voice remains very appealing. Whether or not he is suitable to the bel canto of Donizetti and Bellini (he wisely avoids Rossini, for whose music his voice is most certainly not suited) is open for debate. For the most part on this disc, his singing is too muscular for what we normally know as bel canto; it tends to tire the ear. (Ramon Vargas and Raul Gimenez are the current mainstays of this repertoire.) Furthermore, he occasionally overshoots the top notes so that they’re a trifle sharp. These are general statements; the specifics of this recital are far more positive.
Alagna’s singing of Fernand’s two arias from La favorite is quite glorious–beautifully inflected and felt–and he ends “Un ange, une femme inconnue” with an ascent to high C in falsetto that is most appropriate. One of Alagna’s strengths is his ability to vocally characterize: his Fernand is as dreamy as his Poliuto is fierce; his Nemorino is nicely innocent (but I don’t like his added embellishments to “Una furtiva lagrime”); and Tonio (in Fille) is adorably young and naïve. His Pollione and Gualtiero (Il pirata) are more heroic–he exclaims well despite a ghastly high D near the close of Gualtiero’s scene that he should never try again.
When Alagna does wind up in and hang around the stratosphere (in contrast to just having to pop a high C out of the texture, as in Pollione’s scene) he sounds somewhat uncomfortable–I would not, on the basis of “A te o cara”, want to hear him sing all of Arturo’s music from Puritani (nor is Angela Gheorghiu an Elvira, judging by this). Just because a tenor is able to sing this music doesn’t mean he should. But the beauty of his mezza voce singing is undeniable, and his legato in “Prendi, l’anel ti dono” is stunning. Throughout, his breath control is an advertisement for youth. And just for the record, he gets through Tonio’s nine high Cs like a champ.
And so, this is a mixed bag–a tenor singing music that essentially is too light for his voice, but managing often enough to make it sound right. There’s lots of beautiful stuff here, but be wary of that frequent sharp singing, and of a certain metallic quality (could the recording have helped?) to sustained high passages. Evelino Pido offers sympathetic accompaniments.
