In just a few weeks two releases have arrived of aria collections
from swiftly emerging Azerbaijani soprano Dinara Alieva; both are
superbly performed. Championed by Montserrat Caballé as “a singer
who possesses the gift of heaven” Alieva is a singer of exceptional
talent. A promising future on the world stage is assured.
A graduate of the Baku Music Academy, Azerbaijan, Alieva joined the
Bolshoi Theatre, Moscow as a soloist in 2010. She has appeared in
a number of mainly Russian and European opera houses and concert halls
in roles that have included: Donna Elvira (Don Giovanni),
Violetta (La Traviata), Tatiana (Eugene Onegin),
Giulietta (Les Contes d'Hoffmann), Mimi and Musetta
(La Boheme), Liù (Turandot), Leonora (Il Trovatore),
Michaela (Carmen), Nedda (Pagliacci) and Marfa (The
Tsar’s Bride).
Her debut CD on American Delos samples Verdi, Puccini, Catalani, Cilea
and Leoncavallo; a valuable collection of thirteen, mainly familiar,
Romantic arias. This Italian repertoire especially suits Alieva who
displays her creamy, dusky-hued, fluid, lyric tones to best advantage.
How impressively she demonstrates her feeling for the words. Nevertheless
I did soon find myself wanted additional tonal colour. The first two
Verdi arias E strano!... Sempre libera degg'io
and Addio del passato, both from Traviata, reveal
an appealing, almost effortless coloratura. Puccini’s Vissi
d'arte from Tosca and also Chi il bel sogno
di Doretta from La Rondine are fine examples of Alieva’s
ability to generate emotion including an enchanting tenderness. At
the point of hearing O mio babbino caro from Gianni Schicchi
I began to notice this singer's vibrato which is not unattractive
and never intrudes. A fine example of comfortably achieving the high
notes is to be found in Chi il bel sogno di Doretta from
La Rondine. The splendidly sung Ebben? Ne andró lontana
from Catalani’s La Wally is perfect for demonstrating
her vocal power. Other good examples of her strength of attack can
be heard in the Verdi arias Tacea la notte placida from Trovatore
and the title track Pace, pace mio dio from La forza
del destino. Marcello Rota and the Czech National Symphony Orchestra
contribute greatly with thoughtful and sensitive playing. The sound
is warm, clear and well balanced. The booklet notes are an admirable
example of best practice containing Italian text and English translations.
There's also a most helpful explanation of each aria’s
plot context. I have a minor grumble in that no recording date is
provided.
Those requiring Russian repertoire will be especially attracted to
Alieva’s Naxos release: a compilation of ten well-known and
less familiar Russian Songs and Arias. This is well sung,
however, I didn’t enjoy the same level of satisfaction as with
her Delos collection. After a while the rather narrow palette of dark-tinged
tone colour becomes wearing and under pressure something approaching
shrillness begins to intrude. Nevertheless, I found particularly impressive
Alieva’s fluid tone and overall vocal control in both ‘Lisa’s
Aria’ from The Queen of Spades by Tchaikovsky and Ivan
Sergeich from The Tsar's Bride from Rimsky-Korsakov.
The high register presents no problem for this soprano and this is
aptly displayed in the high tessitura of Uzh polnoch blizitsya
from The Queen of Spades. She generates commanding emotional
intensity in Kabï znala ya and Ya li v pole da ne travushka
bila? both fine arrangements for voice and orchestra. The famous
‘Letter Scene’ from Eugene Onegin is a striking
example of strong, fluid singing in an opera to which Alieva seems
eminently suited.
Credit is due to the New Russia State Symphony Orchestra under the
baton of Dmitry Yablonsky for providing unfailing support. The sound
is clear, cool and dry. A warmer setting would have assisted the forwardly
positioned Alieva. We get neither texts nor translations in the booklet
but these can be obtained via the link in the liner notes to the Naxos
website.
Michael Cookson
Previous reviews: Robert
J Farr (Italian arias) ~~ Gorän
Forsling (Russian songs and arias)
Track listings
Delos
Giuseppe VERDI (1813-1901)
1. La Traviata: Sempre libera [7.26]
2. La Traviata: Addio del passato [7.10]
Giacomo PUCCINI (1858-1924)
3. Tosca: Vissi d'arte [3.25]
4. Gianni Schicchi: O mio babbino caro [2.30]
5. Madama Butterfly: Un bel di vedremo [4.46]
6. La Rondine: Chi il bel sogno di Doretta [2.56]
7. Turandot: Tu che di gel sei cinta [2.56]
Alfredo CATALANI (1854-1893)
8. La Wally: Ebben? Ne andro lontan [3.54]
Francesco CILEA (1866-1950)
9. Adriana Lecouvreur: Io son l'umile ancella [3.36]
Ruggero LEONCAVALLO (1858-1919)
10. I Pagliacci: Qual fiamma avea nel guardo! .... Hui! Stridono lassu [5.03]
Giuseppe VERDI (1813-1901)
11. Il Trovatore: Tacea la notte [5.47]
12. Il Trovatore: D'amor sull'ali rosee [6.08]
13. La forza del destino: Pace, pace mio Dio! [6.06]
Naxos
Sergei RACHMANINOV (1873-1943)
1. 14 Songs, Op. 34, No. 14: Vocalise (version for voice and orchestra) [7.07]
Pyotr Il'yich TCHAIKOVSKY (1840-1893)
2. The Queen of Spades: Otkuda eti slyozi, ‘Lisa's Aria’ [4:22]
Nikolai RIMSKY-KORSAKOV (1844-1908)
3. The Tsar's Bride: V Novgorode [6.07]
4. The Tsar's Bride: Ivan Sergeich, khochesh’ v sad poydyom? (orchestrated Ivan Sergeyevich) [5.37]
Sergei RACHMANINOV (1873-1943)
5. 6 Songs, Op. 4, No. 4: Ne poy, krasavitsa, pri mne (arranged Ruben Stepanyan for voice and orchestra) [4:24]
6. Francesca da Rimini: O, nye rïday, moy Paolo, nye nado…, ‘Francesca's Aria’ [2:45]
Pyotr Il'yich TCHAIKOVSKY (1840-1893)
7. The Queen of Spades: Uzh polnoch blizitsya … Akh, istomilas' ya, ‘Lisa's Aria’ [4:54]
8. 7 Romances, Op. 47, No. 1: Kabï znala ya, kabï vedala (arranged Odysseus Dimitriadi for voice and orchestra) [5:53]
9. 7 Romances, Op. 47, No. 7: Ya li v pole da ne travushka bila?(version for voice and orchestra) [6:27]
10. Eugene Onegin: Puskay pogibnu ja, ‘Letter Scene’ [12:27]
