Montserrat Caballe - Casta Diva

The legendary Spanish soprano Montserrat Caballe is known for her beautiful and distinctive tone, her flawless vocal technique, the leading roles she has undertaken--and for her tendency to cancel her engagements.

Released in conjunction with the Caballé biography Casta Diva, this isn't some routine compilation, but a collector's item. The first half is devoted to German lieder--hardly Caballé's core repertoire--recorded by the now- defunct Spanish label Vergara before she was an international star. Performances are accomplished and earnest, but a bit reserved and slightly lacking the vocal mellifluousness of her maturity. It's great to hear this fabulous voice singing Strauss's Zueignun. Less adventurous fans have a selection of Italian arias filling out the rest of the disc.

She's a phenomenon, in stamina as well as in talent: as of 1994, the Catalan soprano, who debuted in 1956, performed 3800 times, and at the age of 62 has only minimally slowed her pace (by contrast, Joan Sutherland, another indefatigable diva, is credited with 1800 performances between 1952 and her retirement in 1990). As this statistic suggests, operagoers have not tired of Caballe as Norma, Tosca, Turandot or Semiramide or in her other signature roles, which makes this lackluster authorized biography all the more disappointing. There are no sustained high Bs here, only an endless curriculum vitae to astonish but not engross readers. The few personal anecdotes included are silly, such as the one about Caballe's first kiss with tenor Bernabe Marti, whom she married in 1964. About her overweight, which the authors address at length, we're told that Caballe has glandular problems. Pullen and Taylor, British freelance music historians, may have done a job competent enough for the diva to sign "every page of the finally revised draft," but opera devotees are likely to find it boring. Photos.


1. Du bist die Ruh, song for voice & piano, D. 776 (Op. 59/3)
Composed by Franz Schubert
2. Die junge Nonne ("Wie braust durch die Wipfel"), song for voice & piano, D. 828 (Op. 43/1)
Composed by Franz Schubert
3. Heimliche Aufforderung ("Auf, hebe die funkelnde Schale empor zum Mund"), song for voice & piano, Op. 27/3 (TrV 170/3)
Composed by Richard Strauss
4. Zueignung ("Ja, du weisst es, teur Seele"), song for voice & piano (or orchestra), Op. 10/1 (TrV 141/1)
Composed by Richard Strauss
5. Cäcilie ("Wenn du es wüsstest"), song for voice & piano (or orchestra), Op. 27/2 (TrV 170/2)
Composed by Richard Strauss
6. Suite Populaire Espagnole, for violin & piano (arr. from "Popular Spanish Songs" by Kochanski) Nana
Composed by Manuel de Falla
7. Suite Populaire Espagnole, for violin & piano (arr. from "Popular Spanish Songs" by Kochanski) Polo
Composed by Manuel de Falla
8. Combat del somni, for voice & piano, No. 1, "Damunt de tus nomes les flors"
Composed by Federico Mompou
9. Aureana do sil, for voice & piano
Composed by Federico Mompou
10. Cançó de la fira, for voice & piano
Composed by Federico Mompou
11. Pastoral, for voice & piano
Composed by Federico Mompou
12. Norma, opera Casta Diva
Composed by Vincenzo Bellini
13. Il Trovatore, opera Tacea La Notte
Composed by Giuseppe Verdi
14 . Macbeth, opera Vieni! T'affretta!
Composed by Giuseppe Verdi
15. Suor Angelica, opera Senza Mamma
Composed by Giacomo Puccini
16. Tosca, opera Vissi D'Arte
Composed by Giacomo Puccini