Repackaging Pavarotti recordings for reissue seems to be a thriving cottage industry for Decca. You would think a 2-CD “Best Of …” set would suffice, but hard on the heels of the monster 10-disc Pavarotti Edition comes this entry in Decca’s The Singers series. The recordings were made between 1967 and 1983, unwisely beginning with the later ones where The Big Guy sings an overwrought “Che faro” from Gluck’s Orfeo ed Euridice and a couple of swollen song arrangements. The Singers’ producers seem to have a soft spot for sickly-sweet religious songs in absurdly sentimental arrangements, so this disc unfortunately includes a trio of them.
But it’s not all a reach; there are also some of Pavarotti’s great recordings: the stunning “Ah! mes amis” from Donizetti’s La Fille du regiment; “Linda! … Da quell di” from the same composer’s Linda di Chamounix, joined by Joan Sutherland; and–surprise, surprise–“Nessun dorma!” from Puccini’s Turandot. But there’s much that’s forgettable, including exercises in miscasting such as duets with Sutherland from Verdi’s Aida (the Tomb scene) and Otello (Act 1 love duet), operas suited to neither of them.
If you’re a Pavarotti fan you probably have the selections on this disc; if you’re not, you won’t want it anyway. If like me, you’re in the middle–loving his early bel canto recordings, finding his overly energetic later excesses ludicrous, and deploring his current clown status–you’re best off being more selective than the producers of this disc.
