Emma Calvé Complete Victor Recordings 1907-16

Record and Artist Details

Composer or Director: Stephen Collins Foster, Georges Bizet, Jules (Emile Frédéric) Massenet, Charles-François Gounod, Sebastián de Yradier, Traditional, Claude-Joseph Rouget De Lisle, Félicien(-César) David, Pietro Mascagni, Johann Paul Aegidius Martini

Label: Romophone

Magazine Review Date: 6/1997

Media Format: CD or Download

Media Runtime: 63

Mastering:

Mono
Acoustic
ADD

Catalogue Number: 81024-2

Tracks:

Composition	Artist Credit
(La) Perle du Brésil	Félicien(-César) David, Composer Emma Calvé, Soprano Félicien(-César) David, Composer Victor Orchestra
Cavalleria rusticana, Movement: Voi lo sapete	Pietro Mascagni, Composer Emma Calvé, Soprano Pietro Mascagni, Composer Victor Orchestra
Carmen, Movement: L'amour est un oiseau rebelle (Habanera)	Georges Bizet, Composer Emma Calvé, Soprano Georges Bizet, Composer Victor Orchestra
Old folks at home	Stephen Collins Foster, Composer Anonymous Pianist(s), Piano Emma Calvé, Soprano Stephen Collins Foster, Composer
Hérodiade, Movement: ~	Jules (Emile Frédéric) Massenet, Composer Emma Calvé, Soprano Jules (Emile Frédéric) Massenet, Composer Victor Orchestra
Ma Lisette	Traditional, Composer Anonymous Pianist(s), Piano Emma Calvé, Soprano Traditional, Composer
Au printemps	Charles-François Gounod, Composer Anonymous Pianist(s), Piano Charles-François Gounod, Composer Emma Calvé, Soprano
Plaisir d'amour	Johann Paul Aegidius Martini, Composer Anonymous Pianist(s), Piano Emma Calvé, Soprano Johann Paul Aegidius Martini, Composer
Canción española	Sebastián de Yradier, Composer Anonymous Pianist(s), Piano Emma Calvé, Soprano Sebastián de Yradier, Composer
Sérénade	Charles-François Gounod, Composer Anonymous Pianist(s), Piano Charles-François Gounod, Composer Darius Lyons, Flute Emma Calvé, Soprano
Carmen, Movement: ~	Georges Bizet, Composer Charles Dalmores, Tenor Emma Calvé, Soprano Georges Bizet, Composer Victor Orchestra
Frère Jacques	Traditional, Composer Emma Calvé, Soprano Remualdo Sapio, Piano Traditional, Composer
Au clair de la lune	Traditional, Composer Emma Calvé, Soprano Remualdo Sapio, Piano Traditional, Composer
(Une) Poule	Traditional, Composer Emma Calvé, Soprano Remualdo Sapio, Piano Traditional, Composer
(La) Marseillaise (Hymne des Marseillais)	Claude-Joseph Rouget De Lisle, Composer Claude-Joseph Rouget De Lisle, Composer Emma Calvé, Soprano King's Orchestra New York Metropolitan Opera Chorus

Author:

Calve is still a name to conjure with – the great revealer of Carmen in the 1890s, the “irresistibly moving and beautiful” Santuzza (Shaw’s phrase), the first Suzel in L’amico Fritz, the ‘creator’ of Massenet’s Navarraise. She was as exciting and extending a force in her time as Callas in hers, and, like that other great artist, was for a while among the most famous women in the world. Today her records have to be represented in any self-respecting anthology, and yet, scanning the current Gramophone Database, one sees no recital disc devoted to her alone. An edition announced as containing “the complete known issued recordings” did indeed appear on Pearl, and collectors who already own that set may reasonably assume they have no need to concern themselves with this new Romophone disc. It does, however, include the ‘death-bed’ speech, and also has four Victors that were re-recorded and issued under the same catalogue number.
Still, perhaps some who have heard one of Calve’s records in a ‘historical’ collection (usually the 1907 Habanera is chosen) may object that the sample gave them no great pleasure; and certainly the beauties of her records have to be sought out. A starting-point might be the folk-song Ma Lisette, sung first in an almost rough, boyish fashion but performing two little miracles on the way. Better than the 1907 Habanera is the 1916, with piano. Better than either, as affording a glimpse of the famous Carmen in action, is the ‘La-bas’ passage with Charles Dalmores (what a pity they did not record the finale). A different, more cleanly defined voice is heard in the aria from Herodiade, and the earliest of the three versions of Old Folks at Home is worth enduring (lugubriously slow with breaths in all the wrong places and emotion sticky as fly-paper) for the heavenly reprise of “All de world am sad and dreary”.
Calve was not one of those ‘golden age’ singers who suddenly appear clad in their original authentic glory. Not long after her death Ernest Newman heard some of her records played over the wireless and complained that he found hardly a single note that was properly in tune. Modern reproduction and the excellence of transfers such as these make a difference, of course, but even in their most primitive form they still contain much beauty, evident enough “would men observingly distil it out”.'