Carriers Movie Reviews

What a treat to be able to become part of this wonderful concert again and again, all for the cost of less than the least expensive of concert tickets. Carreras' performance resulted in typical European foot-stamping approval. His involvement in all but the Beethoven numbers is apparent and wonderful and will involve you, too. The Italian International Orchestra performs very well indeed and the chorus maintains the concert's high level.

This is the big one, the greatest and most commercialized three tenors concert. For someone not farmiliar to opera, this is the one too get. it has all the brodway punch mixed with old-style opera in a fun manner which will entertain you to the core. This is one of the last times to hear the three while they were still singing standard opera reperitoire in their increasing Age.
Domingo is in fabulous voice again. To me, he is the clear best in this concert. He gets all the best reperitore and he is in good vocal condition. It is a dark silky voice, darker even then the '90 concert. At 54 he is still able to deliver a knokout version of Vesti la Giubba, which is acted and sung in a most thrilling and convincing manner. His Granada is the best it gets. He sings this song like no other, you will be thrilled as the audience goes crazy throuought the song. Once in a while you will be mystyfied at how he is able too sing so gloriously with his tounge lodged in the back of his throat, but that only adds to his mystique.
Carreras is no longer the tenor he once was, but he makes up for it in passion. His first two songs are both duds as he yells through the prayer from Le Cid and mispronounces his way through "With a Song in My heart." After the first medley, however, he seems ready for buisiness as he gives a knockout tu ca nun chiangne, (despite it being sung at fortissimo). E Lucevan Le Stelle is interesting, but not impressive. He gives a tear-jerking interpretation but his pianissimo at "Discolea dai veli" sounds like a head voice or falsetto whereas if you heard this Aria 10 years ago he would blast away at it. For carreras this concert is of interest as one of the last times he ever sings italian Opera before lightening his reperitoire. I would refer people stunned by this diminished, wobbly carreras to his new Golden years Cd which perserves his career in much better voice.
Pavorotti is in excellent voice. His reperitoire selection is a bit boring though. his Porqouoi Me Revellier is the highlight. Why he sang Ave Maria I will never understand, but whatever. His performance in the medleys in extremely lively and funny showing his full talents. Domingo picks more exciting reperitoire.
The medley is, i think, the highlight in the history of the three tenors. Every song is fresh and exilarating. Domingo in "Those were the Days" was the highlight along with Carreras's characature's in Marchiare.
The encores were amazing, with domingo once again a highlight with his hyjinx.
overall this is the concert for newcomers to the three tenors and opera, as it is a glitzy rout through opera and broadway.

Having previously owned this DVD, I ordered three more Concerts (Live). I just purchased my first VIDEO and I felt from the beginning, I had front row seats to the most unbelievable concert I have ever seen! It was magical! All with their own style and magnificent voices was a vision to behold! From the onset, it was obvious, The conductor and all Three Tenors were not only at their best vocally, but along with the audience, you FELT the enjoyment of their singing!!This video is a 'must-have'! I was mesmerized from beginning to end!! Bravo!!!

I love this DVD!

Performed in Los Angeles in 1994 and of course features Jose Carreras, Placido Domingo and Luciano Pavarotti. Zubin Metha conducts the Los Angeles Philharmonic. The camera angles are well placed, the switching is done appropriately and the editing has resulted in a beautiful production.

What I liked about the overall performance was the obvious magical chemistry that seemed to bind the performers, orchestra and audience from the very beginning. Early on, the singers must have gotten the unmistakable feeling of having the audience in the palm of their hands.

On an individual basis the whole night featured one great performance after the other: each tenor got to show off his unique voice and talent. One got the distinct feeling that a competitive atmosphere started to develop as the tenors seemed to try to outdo one another with each successive piece of music. The result was nothing short of a spectacular evening of entertainment. Who won "the battle of the Tenors" is a purely subjective matter: but I have my own winner (which I'll keep to myself)

It appeared that the best time was had by the conductor Zubin Mehta: how could you not be enjoying yourself conducting a world renown orchestra and three of the worlds greatest opera singers before an enthusiastic and receptive audience. What more would it take to make one happy? Precious little I think!

All and all, a must have DVD for any opera fan. This concert will be remembered for a long time to come and deservedly so.

Even after hearing this concert, and enjoying it, I still think it was a mistake. It is almost tear-jerking to see these tenors progress from the top of their voices to the wobbly twilights of their careers. Despite the enjoyable atmosphere of this concert,none of the tenors are in very good form. it is hard to compare to the origonal concert.
Its very hard to judge Domingo. He is the only one of the three who has not dyed his hair which makes him look very old. He looked as if he has aged 20 years from the last concert! His voice didn't reflect this totally but there was some tiredness to his voice. The most Urksome thing about his performance were his facial expressions and gestures. I know domingo's voice is still healthy but his faces on high notes look like he is being put through torture. His Amor Ti Vieta, sounds okay but when he hits his highnote on the work "Amor" which means love, it looks as if he were goig through immence pain. its hard to believe his performances when he was so old and tired looking. This wasn't true at the christmas concert the next year, so it must have been a momentary lapse.
Carreras does not even resemble the tenor he once was, or even a tenor at all. He is wobbing high and low now and singing at one very loud volume. His whole face shakes as he sings and on the rare high notes during medleys he clamps down on a hard E vowel which can only be descibed in this review as: aieeeeeeeee. He makes up for his disintigrating voice by gesturing like he was in a silent movie. His solo's all resemble baritone art-songs rather then Arias for tenor. i think that by this concert his voice was past its use by date. It almost brings a tear to the eye to listen to because at 52 he should still be singing in full, dark, spendor. I would refer anybody to his earlier material compiled in his Cd, The Golden Years. Carreras is not even a shadow of his former self in this concert. Like i said it is enjoyable to see my favorite tenor giving his whole heart to the audience, but sad to see that his voice is no longer what it was.
pav is in okay voice. For a sextagenarian he is an amazing talent. He is the only one who sings a Old School style Three tennors concert, diving into some tough material with his accusomed vigor. his voice is not what it was 4 years ago, but it is still top notch. Singing Nessun dorma as well as he does well into his Sixties is the highlight, while a sub-par Granada is a a low-light. A feature of note is that he sings the only high c in three tenors history in the first song of the finale medley. (Nessun dorma, despite often being billed as a high C, ends with a B resolving to an A.)
The medley is fun and exciting, despite being nowhere near the quality of the prevoius concerts.
The Encores are great, despite the last high note in La Donna E Mobllie where Domingo and Carreras make two of the most painful faces in Tenordom hitting a Bflat.

Overall this is a must have for Three Tenors fans, like myself. But if your looking for a definitive rundown of what the tenors are all about, go with one of the previous outings.

I have both the CD and DVD of this concert. I also have the CD of the Rome concert. The 3 tenors are the supreme live show of this decade, and I hope for the new millenium also. You could not ask for a better combination of voices and songs. This is a defenite buy, especially on DVD.

A much better concert on DVD than VHS. The medleys are the best of the three 3Tenor concerts. Pavarotti was not sounding too hot. If he gets any closer to the microphone, he would probably swallow it on his next deep breath! Carreras and Domingo were obviously more prepared than their Italian rival.

I'm sure that I would have been impressed by this performance if I had been in the audience. But if you're in the market for a DVD of Verdi's Requiem, you can do better than this one. Karajan's tempos are a little sluggish; the choral work is not quite first-rate; and the soloists, although they are all excellent singers, fall short of the timbral and stylistic rightness found in a couple of other recordings. The two best DVD performances of this work are the earlier one of Karajan (Italy, 1967) and Claudio Abbado's recent Berlin version (not his older Edinburgh one). Karajan's 1967 solo quartet (Leontyne Price, Fiorenza Cossotto, Luciano Pavarotti and Nicolai Ghiaurov) is the best, not only on DVD, but in any modern recording. The younger Karajan conducts with greater energy and control than the older one, and the orchestral and choral work are better in the earlier recording. Abbado's 2001 Berlin version has even more thrilling orchestral and choral contributions than either of Karajan's, plus superior picture and sound, and extra DVD features. His soloists are excellent, too, although less stellar than Karajan's (in 1967). If you're looking for your first DVD of this piece, I suggest you try one or the other of those two instead of Karajan/Vienna.

I was prepared to send this back when I received it in error as I had ordered the Price version. However, I decided to give it a chance and played it. Wow! The singing of the soloists couldn't be any better! (Carreras shows why, prior to becoming ill, he was one of the famous 3 tenors.) All were in top form as were Von Karajan, the chorus and orchestra. Just gorgeous and moving! I'll watch this and the Price version many, many times. Both are a must have in any collection. Highly recommended!

I have every Karajan DVD available, and I enjoy them so much. But this one is superb! Karajan is in better emotional and physical shape than ever. He conducts this requiem with a passion, artistry, and dramatism that will take your breath away. The intensity of his expresion is almost scary, in accordance with the music. Jose Carreras is amazing, as always, and Anna Tomowa-Sintow is probably on the the few sopranos that could overimpose her voice over the ultra fortissimo moments on this piece. It is special when you see the Vienna chorus sing from memory as they always do. Favorite moments? How many...but especially the Dies Irae and the trumpets of Tuba Mirum, collapsing in a triple forte that seems to surprise Karajan himself, and the finale with a breathtaking Libera Me. This is a historic performance, of Verdi's best composition. It puts to shame other director's versions. I always had the CD, but the sound in Dolby 5.1 is perfection. I thank Sony Classical to choose to publish Karajan's version over any other in this first Verdi Requiem (it's really unnecessary to have other versions).

When I first played this DVD it instantly became my favorite. The music is superb and it shows a lot of what it took to make music recordings before the digital age. My DVD was damaged and I am now orderring a replacement.

This is an excellent DVD. I however was expecting what I had seen a few years back on PBS. In that version there was far more tension between Carreras and Bernstein. Carreras, whom I believe had just found out he had leukaemia, walked out in the middle of rehearsal after Bernstein picked him apart. Although there is not all that tension present in this DVD, it is still a good look inside the making of this recording. Watching the performance of the singers, musicians, and Bernstein is a far better treat then just listening to them on a CD. I do believe it has been whitewashed by removing a lot of the tense moments which is why I didn't give it 5 stars.

What a great find! Watching Bernstein conduct his most famous popular piece is amazing. His wit, style, temper, intensity are all present. A very straightforward account of the recording of this double cd set using opera stars as "cast" members. All of the stars perform well.

Carreras is an interesting study here as he takes on the role of Tony. A very talented man, he is at once brilliant and very human as he tries to overcome his inner demons. His "Maria" is especially fine.

The chorus performs well also. All in all a tribute to Leonard Bernstein while serving as a behind the scenes peak at true creativity.

The audio and video are of top quality. However, in the video several shots are repeated. Having the splendid city of Viena as a background other shots could have enriched the event. Also, having Carreras as a main figure I had expected more performances from him from the very beginning. My rate of 4 is due basically to what in my opinion are slight drawbacks.

Juan Mansfield

This Video of Johann Strauss is just GREAT. It even has the menu in english, spanish, french and japanesse. The Music is great and the scenary could not be better since it is in front of some famous palace in Vienna. It is a live concert with a very special director and very great musicians. The selections used in this video are fablous, since they include marches, polkas, and, of course, waltez. I can also say that one of the violinist is a decendant from Johann Strauss; I am guessing this because it is the only explination to the treatment that he received by everybody: musicians and public. The sound is fantastic and the video is great with all those fantastic takes of the palace and statues arroung the palace. It is a great performance of the music by Strauss in the perfect scenary. And how it is custom already, the video ends with the worlwide known Redesky March by Johann Strauss Senior. You MUST buy this DVD because is just great.

Imanol Uribe created quite a stir when he debuted this film at the San Sebastian Film Festival, which is held in the Basque country of Spain, for this film deals with the ETA, a Basque terrorist organization responsible for many acts of violence throughout Spain. Winning several Goya awards including best actor, best new actress, best film, best supporting actor, and best director, the film traces the gradual disillusionment of Antonio with his mission and his life, spurred on by his increasing involvement with Charo, a prostitute and junkie. Javier Bardem does a wonderful turn as a junkie/dealer/pimp. The DVD also includes an interview with actress Ruth Gabriel as well as a documentary on the making of the film with interviews from all the actors and a trailer of the film, which points out the similarity of the story to the classic tale of Carmen. The film is a gritty and realistic approach to the subject matter.

Excellent plot and storyline always leaving you a step behind and dazzled. A thief isn't always bad.

This rare Verdi work has been re- introduced again by Covent Garden with a starry line up of principles to make up for the work's lack of unity in Verdi's own generic conventions( to be later developed in works such as Aida and Othello). Catherine Malfitano sings well as the adultress- singing tastefully as well as powerfully. Jose Carreras' voice has hardened and aged over the years, but this has added to the dramatic moments within the opera. Regardless of the histronics- his interpretation is very musical and dramatically convincing. The varying tone colours produced at the end of Act 2 are forever indicative of Carreras' creative interpretation. The conducting is somewhat rigid, but this is a singer's opera rather than a conductor's one( the orchestra plays less of an atmospheric role than in some of verdi's later works)

Stiffelio is considered "early Verdi" to musiclogists who classify things, but, in reality, it is a final transition between the maestro's earlier (but most enjoyable) works, and the mature craftsmanship of Rigoletto. Preceded by Luisa Miller (q.v.), there is more dramatic intensity and story line than in the earlier works. The plot centers around Stiffelio, a minister, who discovers that his wife, Mina, has been unfaithful. While the 19th century approach to dishonoring father and husband may be dated to some, the fact is that in watching this opera, the viewer will inevitably be caught up in the story and characters. The singers are generally fine. Catherine Malfitano is not only an exceptional soprano, but an accomplished actress as well. The facial expressions, the use of her hands and all the body mechanics are simply wonderful. I am unsure as to whether Jose Carreras was about to be diagnosed with lieukemia, or had gone into remission when he made this recording. In either case, his portrayal of the title character, in my opinion, would be hard to beat. He is fully in command of his instrument and brings life and dramatic intensity to his role. Particularly good is Gregory Yurisch in the role of Stankar, Mina's father. Here we have the third in Verdi's moving father-daughter duets (Giovanna D'Arco and Luisa Miller were earlier),the emotionally charged qualities of which many trace to the loss of the composer's first wife and baby daughters in 1840. The rest of the cast are equally fine. A surprise to me was the quality of the conducting. I never considered Sir Edward Downes to be a leading interpreter of Verdi's music. Well, he is in this performance, and as such, presents the music very well indeed. The tape to disc transfer is very good, as is the quality of the sound. As I have noted in other reviews, DVD performances of opera are really the next best thing to a live performance. Stiffelio is not performed often, so whether you live near a performing arts center or not, this DVD may be the only chance to experience it. If you are, as I am, a fan of Verdi, this is a must buy. If you want to see how good opera is on DVD or are new to Verdi, buy it. It's a fine effort.

Without all the glitz and sparkle, before the hype! This is the greatest classical concert ever! As a tenor myself I couldn't be more thrilled to hear this gem. The three voices were marvelous.
Domingo here is in top voice. Some of his singing in this concert is the finest you will ever hear from him. He is in a dark and excitingly dramatic voice! Her give perhaps the best Pue De Ser Ever! At 50 his voice is as glorious as ever. he is in a great mood all night giving all of his sound and heart unconditionally to each song, to me he lead this concert along with his emotion packed performances that never seemed to diminish.
i have mixed feelings about Carreras. He is my favorite tenor of all time, but this is not the time to see him. It almost makes you cry to see what has happened to his glorious voice in this concert. His singing is fine, but hardly under control. His vibrato can get warbly and his eyebrow doubly so. This doesn't keep his from being number one in my heart. he gives passionalte renditoins of songs pouring everything his diminsihed voice had in it into each aria. This is one of the last times you can hear him sing some of his classics like Improviso. E la Solita storia and Improviso are both the highlights of his night, he will bring you to tears with these long Aria's. He loses control of his voice at the end of Improviso but te fact that he even sang it is impressive, it is my favorite. Carreras will please the listeners ear here but promise if you hear this concert that you will also invest in some of his earlier material before his voice grew dark and overweight. I suggest The golden Years Cd which recently came out which shows him in his prime doing all of his classics.
Pavarotti is in good voice all night. Vocally he dominates concert with his amazing bush button high notes despite being, by far, the oldest. Recondita armonia is not my favorite aria in his voice, but it is okay, too lyric in my opinion. Torna sorriento is a highlight of thee dvd! Sure to please! As always, he brings a fabulous interpretation of Nessun Dorma to the table. To me he gives a less empassioned performance than domingo, but you cant argue with his voice and charm.
The medley was a real treat! The highlight for me was Amapola where the trio gives carreras the drivers seat for a change and he thrills with a dramatic B flat that you wont hear from the other two.
the encores were delightfully spontaneous with the famous trill from Pav in O sole mio.
This is the opera lovers version of the three tenors. For someone who is new to classical music i always suggest the 94 concert as it is more flashy and pop oriented. This concert, however,showcases the tenors in their best voices giving the most operatically driven and spontaneaous performance.

This DVD looks and sounds wonderful and how could it not with three of the worlds greatest tenors. Who would have thought this concept would work, but it did and does; the blending of the three; one low, one in the middle and one high is excellent-The voices perfectly match. The concert song selection is excellent and its just fun.

As a long time Tenor fan, from the days of Enrico, this is a MAster work. It does not get any better. Luciano Pavarotti showed himself as the Master of all, with some great perfomances by each, Placido Domingo performs a master work with his rendition of No Puede Ser. The encore of the the three is awesome! The double of O sole mio at the end is a fantastic blend of audible and interactive talent. If there is one you must buy, this is it. Will

It puzzles me that words like "standard" or "bench mark" were used in praise of this La Bohème. Just exactly what is the "standard" for this probably most popular opera? The originality of art is anything but to be constrained by some sort of standard. If the good words were for the singing, it still would be too lavish of a saying for this production, at least for "Che gelida manina", which was transposed down half a key, and even the replacing B is very short and not so exciting. There are indeed some really good singings, like Stilwell's Mercello. The singing of the two leading roles, however, leaves something to be desired. While Carreras' singing is quite dramatic, it feels that something was missing, not just the top C, but the lyrical sheen and exuberance that otherwise would flow through Rodolfo's vocal lines. Stratas has crafted a convincingly consumptive Mimi. But you'd hope she could bring a bit glow of liveliness to the character in the first two acts when Mimi was not yet too ill, after all Mimi should be a luminous figure. Stratas' lips are shaking noticeably (on DVD) when she sings, which makes you worry. Scotto played an impressive Musetta, and her great acting brought some enjoyable moments on stage.

It is very interesting to compare this Zeffirelli's traditional and lavish production with other productions. Although it'll much depend on your taste to decide their effectiveness, among the numerous recordings and stage productions of La Bohème, you wouldn't want to miss the 1972 studio recording with Pavarotti/Freni, conducted by Karajan, especially if singing is solely what you are looking for. If besides singing, you also want to experience some vigorous Bohemianism on stage and dramatic details revealed by great acting, you definitely want to check out Baz Luhrmann's production for Australian Opera, in which the sets are simple but visually stunning, the characters are sung by new generation singing actors/actresses in fabulous voices.

My litmus test for any Bohème is, does Rodolfo's mourning over Mimi's death make you cry? While Carreras' raging grief didn't do to me, Australian tenor David Hobson's utterly desolate cry did.

There are two problems with this DVD that buyers,(especially singers)should know.

Number one, subtitles, or more accurately, the lack thereof. The only subtitles available are in English and they cannot be turned off.

Number two, I agree with other reviewers that Careras does a marvelous job of acting and of singing. But on this DVD, one thing he does not have that Pavaratti most certainly would is a high C! Che Gelida Manina is marked down a half-step and only goes to a B natural.

I realize these things might not matter to the casual viewer, but as an opera singer I bought the DVD not only to watch but to learn as well. In order to do this I would have certainly appreciated subtitles available in the original Italian as well as all the music sung in the original key!

I have all the Bohemes availabe on VHS and Laser and still come back to this one to show anyone new to opera as it's the best video available. The version spoken of from the UK I have only been able to find on VHS and it is truly excellent. Not seen it on DVD but would buy it the minute it is released. Until then this production and cast can't be beat. Scotto is getting by on her acting ability, not her voice as Musetta. That high note is not unlike a cat getting its tail trod upon. I agree with all the comments about Stratas and enjoyed Carreras' performance very much. James Morris as Colline is a surprise. If you collect opera on video this is a must buy. The production is glorious and the overall atmosphere created is the standard for Boheme.