Elîna Garanca: mezzo-soprano / Orchestra Sinfonica Nazionale della RAI, Coro Filarmonico del Regio di Torino, Karel Mark Chichon
Balfe: I Dreamt I Dwelt in Marble Halls (from The Bohemian Girl) arr. Chicon Barbieri: Canción de Paloma (from El Barberillo de Lavapiés) Bernstein: I Am Easily Assimilated 'Old Lady's Tango' (from Candide) Bizet: Près des ramparts de Séville (Séguedille) (from Carmen) - Roberto Alagna, tenor / Les tringles des sistres tintaient (from Carmen) - Cristina Antoaneta Pasaroiu, soprano), Giuseppina Bridelli, mezzo / L'amour est un oiseau rebelle 'Habanera' (from Carmen) / L'amour est un enfant Bohème (first version of Habanera from Carmen) Chapí: Cunado está tan honda 'Romanza de Socorro' (from El Barquillero) del Rey: Canción del amor - Alberto Barletta, Enrico Maria Baroni, José Maria Gallardo del Rey, Geri Brown, Massimo Macri, Cesare Maghenzani, Roberto Vozmediano Falla: Canción del amor dolido (from El amor brujo) / Nana (No. 5 from Siete canciones populares españolas) arr. del Rey / Jota (No. 4 from Siete canciones populares españolas) arr. del Rey Lehár: Hör' ich Zymbalklänge (from Zigeunerliebe) P. Luna: El Niño Judío: De España vengo Montsalvatge: Canción negra No. 4, Cancion de cuna para dormir a un negrito Obradors: El Vito (from Canciones clásicas españolas) arr. Cuello Ravel: Vocalise-étude en forme de habanera - arr. Hoerée Serrano: Cancion de la gitana (from Le alegria del battallon)
Gramophone Editor's Choice - October 2010
Elîna Garanca’s supple, seductive mezzo is aflame with the neon hues and rhythmic dash of Romany in excerpts from beguiling Gypsy roles in opera and operetta. Stand alone numbers add to the panache of Habanera.
With gorgeous pieces eliciting every gift Elîna Garanca boasts as a musician, Habanera's instrumental accompaniments – whether RAI’s full orchestra, small ensemble or guitar – add to the sultry atmosphere.
Conductor Karel Mark Chichon contributes taut yet elastic leadership that enhances the charm and variety of Elîna Garanca’s selections.
On this album, the ‘dialects’ derived from Gypsy musical language include Bizet’s Carmen, Chueca’s Tango de la Ermenegilda, Bernstein’s Candide, Lehar’s Hör ich Zymbalklänge and unknown gems like Obradors’ El vito (see the exceptional music video) making for a musically enlightening and delightful program.
Every generation has its “must see” Carmen. In 2010, the list of definitive gypsy seductresses – glittering with names like Baltsa, Bumbry, Calvé, Farrar, and Stevens – is enriched by the addition of Elīna Garanča.
Price: $16.98