At 41, German tenor Jonas Kaufmann is one of opera's hottest
properties. Up to now he has been known more for German and
French repertory than Italian, but Cavaradossi in Puccini's
"Tosca" was one of his recent successes and this new CD features
17 arias from Italian verismo operas.
The essential
verismo operas are Mascagni's "Cavalleria Rusticana" and
Leoncavallos "Pagliacci," and the tenor hits from those operas
are central here: Turiddu's drinking song and farewell to his
mother ("Cavalleria") delivered with dark-hued virility and
emotional wallop, Pagliaccio's "Vesti la giubba" a worthy and
expressive entry in a line of great tenors that began with the
legendary Enrico Caruso.
But there is much more here: an
array of excerpts from less familiar works such as Boito's
"Mefistofele," where Mr. Kaufmann rings out trumpet-like in "Dai
campi," then scales down to some exquisite pianissimi in "Giunto
sul passo." Best of all, for this listener are two thrilling
arias plus the final duet (with the superb Eva-Maria Westbroek)
from Giordano's "Andrea Chenier," an opera that seems
tailor-made for this tenor's talents. Another gem is his highly
nuanced rendition of "Cielo e mar" from Ponichielli's "La
Gioconda." This is a disc that belongs in every opera lover's
collection.
