Inva Mula - (Il) Bel Sogno

An Albanian soprano comes into her own in the French repertoire here

Record and Artist Details

Composer or Director: Jules (Emile Frédéric) Massenet, Charles-François Gounod, Giacomo Puccini, Giuseppe Verdi

Genre:

Opera

Label: Virgin Classics

Media Format: CD or Download

Media Runtime: 0

Mastering:

Stereo
DDD

Catalogue Number: 6945380

Tracks:

Composition Artist Credit
(La) Rondine, '(The) Swallow', Movement: Chi il bel sogno di Doretta Giacomo Puccini, Composer
Giacomo Puccini, Composer
Inva Mula, Soprano
Ivo Lipanoviç, Conductor
Zagreb Philharmonic Orchestra
(La) Bohème, 'Bohemian Life', Movement: Sì. Mi chiamano Mimì Giacomo Puccini, Composer
Giacomo Puccini, Composer
Inva Mula, Soprano
Ivo Lipanoviç, Conductor
Zagreb Philharmonic Orchestra
(La) Bohème, 'Bohemian Life', Movement: Donde lieta uscì (Mimì's farewell) Giacomo Puccini, Composer
Giacomo Puccini, Composer
Inva Mula, Soprano
Ivo Lipanoviç, Conductor
Zagreb Philharmonic Orchestra
Gianni Schicchi, Movement: O mio babbino caro Giacomo Puccini, Composer
Giacomo Puccini, Composer
Inva Mula, Soprano
Ivo Lipanoviç, Conductor
Zagreb Philharmonic Orchestra
Mireille, Movement: ~ Charles-François Gounod, Composer
Charles-François Gounod, Composer
Inva Mula, Soprano
Ivo Lipanoviç, Conductor
Zagreb Philharmonic Orchestra
Mireille, Movement: Voici la vaste plaine Charles-François Gounod, Composer
Charles-François Gounod, Composer
Inva Mula, Soprano
Ivo Lipanoviç, Conductor
Zagreb Philharmonic Orchestra
Manon, Movement: ~ Jules (Emile Frédéric) Massenet, Composer
Inva Mula, Soprano
Ivo Lipanoviç, Conductor
Jules (Emile Frédéric) Massenet, Composer
Zagreb Philharmonic Orchestra
Faust, Movement: ~ Charles-François Gounod, Composer
Charles-François Gounod, Composer
Inva Mula, Soprano
Ivo Lipanoviç, Conductor
Zagreb Philharmonic Orchestra
Faust, Movement: Il ne revien pas Charles-François Gounod, Composer
Charles-François Gounod, Composer
Inva Mula, Soprano
Ivo Lipanoviç, Conductor
Zagreb Philharmonic Orchestra
Thaïs, Movement: O mon miroir fidèle Jules (Emile Frédéric) Massenet, Composer
Inva Mula, Soprano
Ivo Lipanoviç, Conductor
Jules (Emile Frédéric) Massenet, Composer
Zagreb Philharmonic Orchestra
(La) traviata, Movement: ~ Giuseppe Verdi, Composer
Giuseppe Verdi, Composer
Inva Mula, Soprano
Ivo Lipanoviç, Conductor
Zagreb Philharmonic Orchestra
Rigoletto, Movement: ~ Giuseppe Verdi, Composer
Giuseppe Verdi, Composer
Inva Mula, Soprano
Ivo Lipanoviç, Conductor
Zagreb Philharmonic Orchestra
One of Inva Mula’s early appearances on disc was as the maid Lisette in the Pappano recording of Puccini’s La Rondine. Soon afterwards she graduated to the title-role, so it’s understandable that she chooses to open this recital with Magda’s aria, “Chi il bel sogno di Doretta”. Of course, it’s an intoxicating melody, but Mula does not have that “floaty” quality in her voice that made this such a show-stopper in the past for singers such as Ljuba Welitsch, Leontyne Price and Montserrat Caballé.

The other Puccini favourites go well enough, but it is in the arias by Gounod that Mula really comes into her own. In the big scene from Mireille, in which the heroine is walking across the Crau desert, she impresses with her dramatic declamation and commitment. Similarly, in the beautiful aria for Marguerite in Act 4 of Faust, “Il ne revient pas” – so often cut – there is a strong sense of character and involvement. Of the two Massenet extracts, the role of Thaïs would seem to suit her better than the gentle Manon: the cry of “Je serai belle – éternellement!” brings quite a thrill.

It seems a little odd to have the two arias from La traviata presented in the wrong order, “Addio, del passato” (both verses) first and then “Ah, fors’è lui”. I suppose it seemed like a good idea to sign off with “Sempre libera”, and it makes a suitably effective finale to an attractive disc.

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